Cupcake on A Mission

Cupcake on A Mission

Incite 3: The Art of Storytelling - North Light Books

On Friday I received quite a gift!  I have an illustration and blurb in the North Light Books publication called Incite 3:  The Act of Storytelling (Incite:  The Best of Mixed Media)

(edited by Tonia Jenny), and it's available through amazon.com  or www.northlightshop.com.  I found out in December 2014 that I was included and now here it is!

I am honored to say this is the third North Light Books publication I have been blessed to be included in.  Here's a link to those other books if you are interested.

Here's a picture of the cover:

Bluesman

Painted on the inside of an old j.crew box with one paint color.

Eyeteeth

I'm a little out of order with my posts, but I love this one so much, I'm going to send it out sooner than later.  (My poor blog, I'll be back with you soon.  The last 2 months has left me with little time for you.  I will change that soon!)

Here you go.  I've got oil, acrylic, ink, glitter, dried paint, watercolor pencil, packing slip (!), everything in this baby.  I love her!

She Was Willing to Give Up Her Eyeteeth to Go After Her Dream.

Elena and Her New Fall Fashion

Elena couldn't wait to move forward with the new fall fashion.

I don't think my picture is reflecting these colors accurately.  They are lighter and actually the red dots are metallic.  I adhered thin tissue all around the figure in the dress.  The purse, too, is covered with metallic-dotted tissue over a split pea-green paint.  There is also metallic powder pigment in her dress.  I'll try for a better picture in the next few days with a new camera and try to replace this baby to more accurately match its true colors.

Pistil and Stamen Happiness

Here's one for any of you botanists out there.  It's still technically summer for another week so I thought I had better get this remnant in before it's seasonally inappropriate.

Pistil & Stamen Happiness:  

The realization that as a "Perfect Flower," you never need a blind date

(There's three of those fertile flower critters in there. (-:)

And for those of you who are thinking, what the h-e-double-toothpick is she talking about?  A perfect flower has both male and female parts, a stamen and pistil, respectively, and they can pollinate themselves!

An "imperfect flower" only has a female part (pistil) or male part (stamen--the pollen-producing reproductive organ) and needs the wind or someone knocking into it or a bee or some other insect to cross-pollinate/fertilize it.  Life, so interesting, no?

Vegetarian Pacifist

"Could you just pretend to gouge me?  I'm a vegetarian pacifist."

She Didn't Like Anyone or Anything Telling Her No

She didn't like anyone or ANYTHING telling her no.

Oil, Gouache

Although She Loved Her Cowboy... (Marshmallow Teeth)

Although she loved her cowboy, all his campfire s'mores were turning her teeth into marshmallows.

Ah, ha, ha!  I spent a long time on this one with all it's little details.  It was worth it though...it cracks me up even when I look at it! 

Now of course, I have to include something from the king...

Elvis, "Burning Love"

Iggy Pop

Godfather of Punk, '80's Style

Iggy Pop

Watercolor and Ink

I was up until 5:30 a.m. last night.  I have been so busy lately and have been away from making art for too long.  I ended up drawing three pictures yesterday, and this one was in the wee hours of the morning.  I was watching Reese Witherspoon in, "WILD" based on Cheryl Strayed's amazing book of the same name.  That movie, and Reece's acting in it, are so incredible.  

I wanted to savor the silence of the night, after non-stop rushing for two weeks.  I want to dive into time, roll around in it's murky silence.  I  had two dogs on the couch with me, both of my hands slowly petting each as I thought about life.  Around 3, I felt compelled to profile another wild human. I love the angles of Iggy's face, just as I love the lines of old people.  So many interesting planes and angles and shadows that youthful faces just don't contain.  I like the deviation from the norm, the lines of life that make someone interesting within and without, making me want to know their stories.  I have one more day to be able to have the heavenly gift of time unfolding without a schedule.  I'll have to be back on one soon enough.

P.S. By the way, here's a link to The NY Times' ArtsBeat article on Cheryl Strayed.  In it, a critic says her book had a "punk spirit!"   O.K., I swear to you, I only saw this right now, the morning after I painted this.  She was successful to the nth degree conveying that punk feeling, because after watching it, I was left with that same feeling and let it come through me as a painting of the great Iggy.

Rocket Man Was Having Second Thoughts

Rocket Man was starting to have 2nd thoughts, 

although he could feel his wife's concern even more keenly than his own.

As I was making this, I kept hearing Elton John's classic playing in my head.  Never get tired of this song.

Elton John "Rocket Man"