We are finding ways to create images that connect to the subject in a more …abstract way? It’s not about technique, or realistic rendering, but more about finding a language to convey the essence of a thing or a place or a feeling.

Like water.

Or a garden.

Or a forest.

OK. So the woolly mammoth is my own addition. Anyway, this class has been a real spark for me and I am continuing to dig in more to see where it takes me!

I have recently been taking an on-line art class- Drawing Workout with Christóbal Schmal. It’s been really inspiring and I have been loving it!

Without too much detail, one of our assignments involved making up plants. I have since been playing with this idea in colored pencil, in the evening.

There’s no pressure, no plan. I just start drawing to see what happens, getting lost in the shapes and colors

It’s my way of powering down at the end of the day.

For me, drawing can be a way to calm my head, focus on something positive, and make the waiting more tolerable. Two window views, above and below.

Some Substackians have been asking me about process. These particular pieces are done in a sketchbook on 150 gram paper. I prepare pages ahead of time with a wash of acrylic paint. Watered down works best. The wash on the two here are turquoise-ish. I think the one below was tan/beige. The backgrounds show through so it’s fun to experiment with different colors.

I draw on top with Neocolor ll, a water-soluble wax crayon and a little colored pencil. I always carry a zip bag of them with me.

I have also been out walking or snowshoeing in the snow, taking pictures of some of my favorite places so I can work on some sketches in the warmth of the wood stove.

OK. The port-o-let is not a favorite spot but adds some nice color to the parking lot.

We’ve had a lot of below 0 degrees F weather…with wind, and that for me is too cold for plein air sketches.

I’ve put some of my better ones here.

except the rumble of trucks carrying silage out of the adjoining field! Enjoy!

This set-up leaves me really flexible to draw outside, no matter where I end up. It’s no-fuss and it’s quick.

I love the pop of red!

I even did a couple on the road, picking bits of elements along the way to add to each composition.

And at mini-golf.

I have a small zipper case with a few colors of neocolor II pastels and colored pencils.

I sat in one spot for each set, looking in different directions. Both work nicely over the lightly applied acrylic. It had been a while since I had made it outdoors.

Another folded book here from The Art of the Fold by Hedi Kyle and Ulla Warchol.

Cover…

This is the # 17 Blizzard Pocket. I have filled it with Alligator’s most fun things to do, (except maybe brushing his teeth, though the toothpaste is fish-flavored.)

The cover is one sheet and the pockets are folded from another really long sheet.

Eight pockets. Eight portraits of Alligator. They fit in lengthwise but here I have left them sticking out. And now I’m off to some new folds!

The title though, popped into my head in the middle of the night. Somehow the two inspirations came together. It’s 12 color pages and 8.5” x 5.5.”

The second on is based on my fascination with natural history, paleontology, and woolly mammoths. It’s a folded 8

page zine printed in color, 11” x 17” sheet so smaller at 4.25” x 5.5.”

You can find these and my other zines on the shop page at www.amyhuntington.com

ENJOY!

Here is the final project. The frogs are cut from gelli printed texture.

.

A couple of weeks ago I found a book, THE ART OF THE FOLD by Hedi Kyle and Ulla Warchol. It has been such an inspiration, with instructions for how to make all kinds of folded book/art. This is my first attempt. I riffed off “characters in hats,” which I did for the #100 day challenge.

I had a spark for a story and I came upon a character to inhabit it. We’ll see where it goes. Draw, draw, draw.

I could have just painted 7 flies in hats. You might have rolled your eyes by fly #5.

So I made some other characters. (I’m partial to gators.)

So until next week…

Bye!

Take care.

But for now, I am over half-way through! There is some dance.

I redid this page below, a few times. Still don’t love it.

A renaissance hat with cat(s)

A hurrah.

A nap. And my favorite this week.

An elephant.

And a portrait.

Just short of halfway through.

I am officially obsessed with hats…hoods.

..crowns…?

Nuclear stack-hat?

I really enjoy the framed portraits.

I am working on some more. In children’s books illustrations, I love to see what the illustrator has put on the walls because portraits are so fun and add to the story of those within it.

If I don’t like the finished page, I try different ways to make it better or I paper it over and start from scratch.

There’s a lot to learn.

Sometimes less is more. Sometimes not.

From “good enough” to “great” can be a small dip or a deep dive!