Indian Art Swap Pages

A watercolor that I painted

which was inspired by

some images of ancient Indian

art works shown in my old

Asian Art History textbook.

I combined ideas from 

two or three works.

Sharpie extra fine point

black marker outlines the images.
I really like the texture created
by the white gel pen semicircles
in the grass...

A photocopy of the

illustration of the head of a sculpture
depicting a queen.

I colorized the photocopy with

chalk pastels, then stamped

over the pastels with watercolor,

and finally 'fixing' the pastels

with cheap hairspray as a fixative.

The atc is a color copy on cardstock

from the watercolor.(top of this post)  The tag is

stamped on scrapbook paper,

and has an Indian proverb

hand-written on the front.

On the back (not shown) I wrote

information about the art I created,

and the art that inspired me.

The back page is covered in cotton fabric,

creating a pocket for both the tag

and the atc.  The red pocket is a

satin-backed crepe, for which I used 

the wrong side of the fabric -- because

I liked the richness of the shiny side.

Hand embroidery, purchased trim, 

and metal embellishment complete

the page.

There was also another page which

was created with a greeting card that

depicted an Indian goddess, but 

since I did no altering to the image

and just embellished with some gold

lace and silk flowers, I do not show it here

to avoid copyright infringement.

The rich colors of these pages
were a lot of fun for me,
and following a theme that
someone else has chosen is
a challenge that helps me grow.

Romantic Era Art: Art Journal Pages

Image inspired by a 

 work by Johann Friedrich Overbeck

in the book 

Art of the Romantic Era by M. Brion.

(copyright 1969)

Watercolor and Sharpie marker.

Overbeck postulated the ideals of art,

which he termed 'The Brotherhood.'

Michelangelo represented imagination,

beauty represented by Raphael,

and nature represented by Durer

were what Overbeck termed

the 'three ways of art.'

A scene also inspired from 

the same book,  an illustration

of a work by Calame 

called 'Mountain Landscape.'

I have been thinking that a 

small visual journal with ancient

glyphs, symbols, and archiological

notes would be an interesting

project to create -- similar to

the one Indiana Jones' dad had

made in one of the movies.

Inspiration for visual art

comes from many places...

old books that someone gives you or

that you find in a library sale,

images of other artists' work, 

ancient civilizations,
fashion magazines, a favorite theme,

and even the movies!

Painted Paper Collage from Scraps

Collage created using painted paper

on a 4" x 6" index card.

Lines were added using 

Sharpie extra fine tip marker.

Another collage on an index card.

Resist technique done by drawing 

circles and swirls in crayon, then painting

over them with watercolor

or acrylics.

Wrinkled paper is a scrap from

a glimmer mist project.

Scraps can make a striking

work of art.

Inspirations for Art Journaling

Inspiration for these journal pages came

from a fashion magazine, the phrase

"pear-shaped figure," and an affection for

paper dolls and interesting quotes.

I couldn't resist putting the pear-shaped

body beneath the fashion-ad inspired head,

when in the glossy magazines, they

are usually pencil-thin!

The woman's figure was painted in

watercolor on watercolor paper, then cut

out and glued onto the page.

A watercolor background was

shaded with soft pastels after

adding the text in Sharpie marker

and mauve gel pen.

The pose of the figure is not ballet...

I have been in physical therapy for a

frozen shoulder, and this is a

painful reminder of the stretches I

must do to get back my mobility!

Again, a page motivated by a fashion magazine.

I find the graphics, layouts and photography

quite inspiring, though the clothes are 

often just weird.  The turban is inspired

by African styles, and the flowers are

inspired by American folk-art designs.

If you've ever looked at Pennsylvania

Dutch designs or early American

birth and marriage certificates, 

they can provide a wealth of ideas for

art journals and decoration.

Sunflower Swap Pages

Watercolor and pen on

watercolor paper. Top image 

inspired by Willem de Morgan's

sunflower tiles - 1880's.

Bottom image after Van Gogh's

Two Sunflowers - 1887.

Christmas card c. 1880 by

Georgina Koberwein Terrell;

stamp from EraGraphics.

Fabric collage using

buttons and embroidery.

Pocket with a tag

and a folding ATC.

Folding ATC inspired by Kawamura Kiho,

Sunflower 1824.

Tag includes handmade paper,

pen drawing, fabric & charm.

Quote by Vincent Van Gogh.

Art Journal Potential

More pages in the scrappy

Green Journal...

A word of Potential:  "If"

Crumpled paper sprayed with

Glimmer Mists.  A color copy of

a drawing from a previous art journal,

and a quote from the song

"Closing Time" 

by Semisonic...

Scraps of photos

left over from a scrapbook

made after last year's trip

to Panama City Beach.

Brings back memories of

the soothing sound of waves,

and the gentle colors of

sand and water...

just what I need after

all the snow of this winter!

Valentines

The Princess Valentine

that I created for my granddaughter...

and the Ninja Valentine

that I created for my grandson.

Both images are original watercolors

on watercolor paper, then mounted

on a fabric background and adhered

to a plain greeting card.

Blessings to you

on Valentine's Day! 

Swap Pages

Here are some swap pages that I received

from a private swap that I'm in.  My theme

is Mexican folk art, and these lovely

pages were created by Kathy.

Kathy doesn't have a blog of 

her own, so I am showing them here.

There is also gold glitter that doesn't

show up in this scan,

and there are charms 

dangling on the right side.

The fiesta page is covered with squares

of tissue paper, just like a pinata.

The tissue flower and paper 'candy'

make this a fun page!

Kathy included a

 quote by Frida Kahlo:

"I paint self-portraits because 

I am so often alone, and

because I am the person

I know best."

Kathy's decorated skull doodled in black pen,

and lovely black feathers with ribbon

and beads in the corner.

Thank you Kathy!  These will be

wonderful additions to my book.

I plan to show the other pages I've received

when I get them put together as a book.

In the meantime, I have pages with 

sunflowers to create for the

next 'round' of the swap!

New Art Journal

Spread in my new art journal:

acrylic, painted papers, marker,

pastels, collage images...

watercolor, inchie collages,

hand-carved stamps,

and vintage papers.

This journal has heavier paper and

is spiral bound.  It's larger in 

page size than the last journal

I used, which unfortunately means

the entire page doesn't quite fit

on my scanner. I was hoping the paper

wouldn't buckle when I painted it.

It still buckles, but flattens out nicely

when weighted overnight beneath a 

stack of heavy books.

I found myself hesitant to create

the first page in the new art journal...

so I made a collage on a separate

piece of paper and then glued it into

the new journal.  One way of

overcoming those blank

pages and wanting 

the first piece to be "good."

Art Journal Pages

Continuing to work in the Green Scrappy Journal
that Elizabeth sent me.

'Plunge into Life' is created on top of

a page made from brown paper bag.

The next page shows the tags

peeking out of the paper bag opening,

and from behind the cardstock that

had been sewn to it.

One side of the larger tag is above.

The quote was torn from an old

psychology textbook.

A quote written on hand-painted paper

is on the other side of the large tag.

I made this paper while

painting with poster paints with

my grandson one day...
you can see the crayon resist
beneath the paint on the right side.

I love this quote...

Go throw some paint!