Knot Woman II - And She's Off!

If you are familiar with the background of how I came to design my logo, you may also know that at the same time I designed Knot Woman I, I also used a different direction to come up with Knot Woman II. See the little mental refresher in figure 1.

At that time, I was more focused on my other Knot Woman but have always had this one in the back of my head. Recently I've had a little extra time to learn more about the way the Scribes of the Book of Kells and similar Illustrative works did these amazingly intricate pieces. I was inspired by the detail (an incredible amount of time) that went into these pages. I also really love the bright colors they used.

Now that I finally have my studio set up and organized enough to work (one more dream come true checked off my list) I decided she would be the first piece I would work on in my new space.

I started by using a custom grid to draw her in pencil on a large piece of semi-transparent paper to use as a template. This took some time, a straight edge and several calculations. I'm so glad I paid attention in algebra, it actually can come in handy in the everyday, even for an artist! Take note I immeadiately started making changes from the original design. I like to do this with projects like this one and just go with the mood I'm in at the time. Its more fun for me that just ending up with something I could get from using a photo copier. See figure 2 to see what I ended up with for the template.

While I was busy with all this I spent a lot of time thinking about what medium I wanted to use to produce the effect I thought I wanted. I briefly toyed with the idea of acrylic on canvas, but I knew with this project I wanted to break out of the 2D box I'd been in for a long time. I realized I would enjoy the experience of slightly copying the method the Scribes used to create their work, with some modern conveniences. I finally decided on Watercolor. I had found my watercolor pallet that I first got in college for the one class I was required to take and did very little with after graduation.

Looking at the colors I already had I also found inspiration from an old postcard I had received from my minister when he went to visit friends in Hawaii. See figure 3. Depending on the colors on your monitor, you may not be able to see the true colors that I'm getting my inspiration from so let me describe them a little. The lava river is a nice rich orange/red color. the lava fountain is bright yellow/orange anfigure 2 While I was busy with all this I spent a lot of time thinking about what medium I wanted to use to produce the effect I thought I wanted. I briefly toyed with the idea of acrylic on canvas, but I knew with this project I wanted to break out of the 2D box I'd been in for a long time. I realized I would enjoy the experience of slightly copying the method the Scribes used to create their work, with some modern conveniences. I finally decided on Watercolor.

I had found my watercolor pallet that I first got in college for the one class I was required to take and did very little with after graduation. Looking at the colors I already had I also found inspiration from an old postcard I had received from my minister when he went to visit friends in Hawaii. See figure 3.

Depending on the colors on your monitor, you may not be able to see the true colors that I'd the sky looks like a deep violet-purple color. I've kept this in my inspiration file since I received it and knew it was the direction I wanted to go with Know Woman II as soon as I saw it again.I used the template I put on the thin paper to transfer the image to a piece of watercolor paper. Then I started filling in with watercolor paint.I started with the Woman's figure itself and made it a bright yellow with yellow/orange accents. After I completed her to my satisfaction I decided to continue with knots as inspiration and looked up ways to create a border. Using a similiar process to draw and then transfer the pieces of the border to the watercolor paper I then filled them in with a darker Orangy red with red accents. The corner knots are done in red. See figures 4 & 5.



Stay tuned to see the final reveal!

I Sometimes Think I Do My Best Work Under Pressure.

If you follow my Facebook Fan Page, Ann-Monique, you know this already. I'm finally adding it here.

Exciting Winter Break this past December/January. Went to my parents for 2 weeks, got to see my brother when he came over from N.Y.C., and got a commission for 3 pieces for an Off-Broadway Production called A Woman in Progress, being done by the company my brother is involved in, Mind the Art Entertainment, that needed to be completed in less than a month.

Yep, 3 pieces in about 4 weeks. They needed a drawing, a painting and an original sculpture (and no, I don't have any real experience in sculpting).

We caught a break with the drawing, I had one available in my portfolio that was the kind of look they were wanting. There was another mixed media piece as well I had done for fun ages ago that also had the look they wanted only it was 8.5"x11". I did a larger similar version in acrylic on a 24"x36" canvas. Since I already had a composition to go by, the painting when quickly.

The big project of course was the sculpture. Considering the time element and my lack of experience with most materials, I chose clay. (Imagine that)

I briefly considered using non-fire clay so I could just send it back on the plane with my brother and his girlfriend, but I quickly put that idea aside. By the time I had spent the money on enough for the size they needed, I realized I might as well just buy a low fire clay and pay to have it fired and then shipped. I knew it wouldn't be dry enough to fire before the end of the Winter Break. I also knew that being a stage prop, it needed more durability than non-fire clay can provide. So I "bit the bullet" and spent the money to do it right. The process when much easier than I had even dreamed to hope, the hardest part was actually doing all of this at my parents house, with no real convenient place to work and all of my tools locked up in my locker on campus! But I was successful and had a blast getting it all done.

Here are the 3 pieces we ended up with. I especially had a great time doing the sculpture since it was a new experience for me. It looks whiter in the photo that it does in reality. Must be the flash. Its more of a buff color. Eventually it might end up glazed, we'll see.




I should mention here. These pieces were not being purchased by the company. The plan is to hopefully in the future auction them off to raise more money for the charity that the Show's proceeds were being donated to. The people involved were not receiving financial compensation for their work, but volunteering their time for a good cause. This is a group of very talented individuals. Check out their website: www.mindtheartentertainment.com

Inspired by Celtic Knot-work

I've been thinking of trying to incorporate some knot-work into some of my figure sketches to carve into some of my larger ceramic pieces. Since my goal for this quarter is to be able to pull 12 inches high or more I'll have plenty of room for some more detailed work. I've always been fascinated by the Celtic styles of illustration and was able to see a lot and learn a little more when we lived in England for 3 years.

Here is what I've come up with so far on the Knot Women idea.

Knot Woman I - Initial Sketch

My first attempt at creating a female figurative piece using Celtic Knots as inspiration. Stage one is one of many triangle knots commonly used. Stage Two shows where I added an additional twist to lengthen the figure and add a body section. As you can see, like a traditional Celtic Knot the line flows over and under without being able to see a beginning or an end.

Knot Woman II- Initial Sketch
I used a different approach here, choosing instead to add the limbs of the figure to a traditional knot, this was inspired by the animal figures that have been found in Celtic Knot art where a part of the body is the knot itself and the other areas are drawn out from it. I'm looking forward to furthering this design in a relief carving on a ceramic piece where I'll be able to add more depth and lose the "stenciled" look.

I can't wait to have a piece or two of pottery to start trying variations of these.