Sunday, December 29, 2013

Monday, December 16, 2013

MY CHRISTMAS CARD 2013

started this religious xmas theme back in November, all those sketches & hours of painting…I just posted my new christmas design FOR SALE

Saturday, December 7, 2013

WINTER COLORS

This 9B soft pencil is just the perfect tool for a quick winter sketch, another bleak winter day outside my window. A bit of  tinted turpentine wash makes this look like a watercolor.

Thursday, December 5, 2013

FROM SKETCH TO NEW DESIGN

I don't spend months working on creating a painting anymore…I like to scroll thru my existing archive, & see how by adding a new element, it might turn it into a new interesting design. This creative process is actually kind of fun, you never know what the surprise will look like. Experimenting is the name of the game.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

ANGEL AND TRUMPET

well, after many sketches, this is my new angel design…I still prefer the freshness of a quick sketch

Sunday, December 1, 2013

ANGEL SKETCHES

Xmas music on the radio, starting on a new xmas design. Unlike a landscape, representational subject like an angel can take a lot of sketching & planning….


Sunday, November 17, 2013

FULL MOON

5PM, full moon rising from the East…reflection on the lingering snow makes the whole landscape really bright outside my window!

Thursday, November 14, 2013

WORK IN PROGRESS

Holiday is around the corner. Always want to do a nativity scene…got my cow & donkey reference, let's see how far I get with this new illustration.

Sunday, October 27, 2013

FALL SKETCH

Ten thousand pictures come & go everyday. Another fleeting appearance of the landscape from my window.

Monday, October 14, 2013

FULL MOON FAIRY SKETCH

The moon has been nice & bright the last few days. Thought I get started on a full moon fairy.

Friday, October 4, 2013

Thursday, September 19, 2013

APPLE ILLUSTRATION

Productive thursday...apple picking at the local orchard with time out for a pretty sketch. Watercolor definitely works with this illustration.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

An Exhibit of Seurat's drawings at MMA, NYC in 2008, definitely influence my style of sketching.

Tuesday, September 3, 2013

SUMMER ISLAND RAMBLING

Each island has their own charm & magic. One of my local favorite is BLOCK ISLAND, RI. This card design came from an actual seaside cottage on the island.

Friday, August 30, 2013

CAT SKETCHES

Inspire by the beautiful lines of Degas and Ingres, my early sketches were all about drawing. I'm more into painting these days. Light, shapes, & values, that's how I see my surroundings now.


Thursday, August 29, 2013

PLEIN AIR NOCTURNE

6:30am, trying to catch the light before it changes. Still mild enough to be painting outside & breathing in the morning scent from my garden.

Monday, August 19, 2013

SUMMER POPPY

Poppy is so delicate & small. I love the iridescent quality of this tiny flower... beautiful variations of light & shadow. Which version do you prefer?

Sunday, August 11, 2013

SUMMER NOCTURNE

Extreme warm backlighting causes objects in the foreground to appear flat, cool, & dark. My flower bushes in the foreground are completely hushed in cool shadow.

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

MAGICAL BUTTERFLY

Still very far from a finish design. Fiddling with one illustrated butterfly in various layers today. After so many versions on photoshop, my eyes can't decide which is better. Sometimes too many choices is confusing.


Monday, July 29, 2013

FLOWERFAIRY-work in progress

 Since my eyes max out at 2 hours, creating a new painting takes forever. It took me a long time to learn photoshop, but it  can really helps me to speed up a new design. The fairy wing is painted separately. It saves me time, cause I can paint it faster in a small scale. I can transform & scale this fairy wing, to see my options. I kind of like this purple version, I got this color  by clicking the COLOR BURN option. I still have alot of work with this new fairy. With the finish background, I have a better idea of how to finish the features on the fairy.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

NEW FLOWER FAIRY

CICELY MARY BARKER'S flower fairies remains a classic & inspirational. I wonder if her fairies are children that she knew or pull from her imagination? I usually start off my flower fairy with a specific kid that I know. At a certain tender age, they are in their own little world. By spending time with them, the magic comes thru at the in-between moments.


Friday, July 19, 2013

POPPY MORNING

There's always magic in the mountain, especially on these glorious summer mornings. Nothing more magical than visiting a lovely garden in the neighborhood. We really have to learn to  live the moment, cause summer is so short up here!

Wednesday, July 17, 2013

BABY WREN

I was having coffee, sitting next to baby wren's birdhouse at 7am, when I pass by at 8am, they are gone... need to find something else to entertain me in the early hours of these lovely summer mornings.

Thursday, July 11, 2013

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Friday, June 21, 2013

ANGEL SKETCH

From fairy doodles to a more refine concept of what I want to do with my fantasy illustration.

Monday, June 17, 2013

FAIRY SKETCH

New moon against the dark twinkling sky was especially magical yesterday. I just feel like working with some fantasy today, starting with some ideas with fairy & the moon.

Monday, June 10, 2013

Saturday, June 1, 2013

NEW LILAC DESIGN

My new design came straight from my garden, butterflies & musical notes are photoshop into the background. I might do a variation this weekend. The magic of photoshop can be as fast as a quick sketch.

Monday, May 27, 2013

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

APPLE BLOSSOM

I like the line from art critic John Ruskin, to "paint the leaves as they grow"...

Saturday, April 27, 2013

MY STUDIO

Change of season provides a wonderful opportunity to dust off the cobweb, & open the windows to bring some fresh air into the studio. Rearranging my px & postcards can take up the whole morning.

Friday, April 19, 2013

PET INSPIRATION

One of those mellow days, just taking time out from working on the computer.

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

SPRING BREAK

Too nice not to sketch outside. It's great to be sketching outdoor, after a long winter. I worked up the details after the sun went down.

Friday, March 29, 2013

GRAPHIC SIMPLICITY

After a day of painting details with a tiny brush, it's nice to look out my window & be inspire by simple shapes. A few big charcoal sticks, with a bit of rubbing in, can convey the graphic simplicity of sky & mountain peaks.

Saturday, March 23, 2013