Tiffanny's Sketchbook

Is art like brushing your teeth or more like body building?

2012-01-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

so here are my sketchies from today:

Because of winter, I haven't zoo sketched in a while. I was a bit nervous that I would publicly suck. but that feeling went away because even though I haven't drawn animals in a while, I feel like I just picked up where I left off. It makes me wonder how necessary it is to be obsessive about drawing daily to be good at it. Is it possible that it's like body-building, where rest is as important as doing the lifting itself?
Or is it like brushing your teeth - do it everyday or your teeth will rot? (Teeth being analogous to skill.)
I really don't know. I'm just rambling. All I know is, it was 80 degrees out and I had a day off, and life doesn't get any better than sketching all day at the zoo :)

ps. drawing pigs are my favorite. just a bunch of circles put together :D I like circles.

Illustration Friday - Grounded, with youtube video!

2012-01-10T00:10:00.000-08:00

The inspiration for the doggie is of course, my darling Gracie, my gorgeous red Toller.

Isn't she gorgeous?!

To watch me paint this in time-lapse, click here!

Tiffanny

Mish Mash Blog Post!

2012-01-04T02:05:00.000-08:00

I spent much of December working on Trivia Adventure's Promo Video. It took about 3 weeks to do all the setup, animation, compositing, and effects, and an additional week to learn Particle Illusion and do yet more effects.

This one-minute video was accomplished in 4 weeks by me and my husband doing the animation and compositing, and with my co-worker Adam doing the logos. Sound was outsourced. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Working straight through Thanksgiving and Christmas was worth it. (Only someone who loves making art that much could say that). But working 16 hour days for a month has to end, and now I am basking in relaxation. I'm sleeping as much as I can, exercising again, and have a blast doing some digital painting at work, which I can't wait to share!!

These sketches are from Ikkicon, where the promo video had it's first public showing! Our booth was unfortunately in a low-traffic area, (DOH), but the promo video did it's job and brought some curious people in! Anyway, these sketches were done when the traffic was low. We have lovingly called our girl character "Generica" because she's basically your customizable character, so she starts out generic until you make her your own. All of the stuff she's wearing can be found in the game when you're higher level :) Her pet is Action Kitty, the first pet you can find in the game.

And finally, I started the year right by attending figure drawing. Gotta keep the skills sharp, sharp, sharp. I do a lot of digital art at work, but I find that the infinite undos can be used as a crutch. When I go to figure drawing, I generally use oily crayons that are hard to erase, to keep erasing at a minimum. This teaches me line-economy, and to be as sure as I can be of every line I put down. This actually makes me faster, because I'm not searching and erasing as much. :)

Any-who, it's 4 am so I guess it's time for bed :)
Thanks for visiting my blog! See you at the next update!

Boxing Day Still Life

2011-12-26T20:01:00.000-08:00

No better way to spend a day than painting with friends.

Here's some details. I had troubles with the apple, which I lifted and repainted 3 times. I think it looks ok now though.

Well, we were getting hungry, so I short-handed the flowers. I'm ok with abstract elements in a representational painting though. I enjoy spattering the paint around and letting it do it's thing.

Okie, that's all for now. Hope you all are enjoying your holidays!
Tiff

The Messenger

2011-12-25T03:01:00.000-08:00

My illustration for this week's Illustration Friday is the postal worker! Dear postal worker, thank you for delivering cards and gifts from family and friends to my mailbox. :)
Dear family and friends, Thanks for sending them :) Happy Holidays and hugs to you!
Dear readers, thanks thanks thanks for checking out my blog, even though I have sucked-out-loud at keeping it updated. I know one measly painting wont make up for it. If it helps, my New Year's Resolution is to update once a week. YES, Once a week!! It's not much, but I think I just MIGHT be able to do it!
Anyway, here are some details:

I'm thinking of switching out of cold pressed watercolor paper and using hot press, which has less tooth. Wish me luck :) I hear hot press is a total bitch to work with. Any tips? Gimme! :)

Festively yours,
Tiffanny

Gifts to my coworkers :)

2011-12-21T01:36:00.000-08:00

I've had a hard year, but also a great year. Incredibly down on my luck for the first half of it, wondering why the hell I should even be doing art. But then the second half of the year came and made all the bad go away. I owe such a great year to my fellow coworkers for the insane support, encouragement, and trust. I made some watercolors for them to show my gratitude. Good thing we are a small company, or my hands will fall off. These are all 5 x 7
To Herbie, my officemate, thanks for always trying to make my laugh with the silly jokes, though we need to find new ones for the new year.

To Jason, for trusting me with big jobs, for pushing me to be better always. AND for signing the paychecks. That's very important.

To Jeff, your level editor is so dang easy to use. You make my life easy. Seriously!!!

To Adam, for the emotional support... Lots AND LOTS of emotional support. OH, and technical support too.

For Jeremy, for the recipes, the loyal adherence to Taco Thursdays, for always being the designated driver. :)

Merry Christmas to all!

Tiff
ps. was that sappy? I guess showing appreciation kind of is... oh well :)

ACTION KITTY!!

2011-12-04T08:52:00.000-08:00

(Action Kitty just heard that Tanuki Village is being invaded by Evil Snakes!)
I think Action Kitty has become Steel Penny Game's official mascot. He's been terrorizing all our whiteboards with his paranoid, drama queen personality. No whiteboard is safe.
OMG, so last night our killer programmers found a Flash bug and FIXED IT right on the spot. Take that Adobe! SPG's programmers are world class. Speaking of Adobe, I had to learn Flash while working at SPG, and my VERY FIRST puppet-animation is now in the Trivia Adventure game! You can buy him at the petstore after you beat the Tanuki Village. :) (level 12 and up i think)

Any-who, there's more action kitty coming soon!
Until next time!!
Tiff

Figure Drawing!

2011-11-29T14:03:00.000-08:00

My blog sorely needs updating!! Been working too much, but I can't help it! My job is so fun. I'm making a marketing video for Trivia Adventure, and so all I did over my Thanksgiving break was draw storyboards. I know it's for a little marketing video. It's not for something huge and epic like Cars 3, but somehow I feel like I'm still doing the coolest job ever. I'm storyboarding!!! Plus, Trivia Adventure is kind of my baby :) I like making little monsters and creatures for it. I can't wait for you all to see the latest level, because I really tried to surpass the older levels in art department. I will let you know when it's released!

Anyway, my new year's resolution is coming early. I can't keep neglecting going to figure drawing. I will go at least 3 times a month, damn it. You know how you do scales with music as practice? You do figure if you're wanting to be an animator/character designer, and so that is what I have to do.

these are one minute poses. I did about 40 of these and these are the only 3 that I really liked. Gotta work on those one minutes!!!!!

Until next time!
Tiff

Trivia Adventure Concept Art!

2011-11-14T10:12:00.000-08:00

I painted this for our office space :) Our Trivia Adventure "mascot" and her cat, Action Kitty.

details:

Anyway, back to animations!

Figure Drawing!

2011-11-08T10:06:00.000-08:00

I have been attending figure drawing sessions but I haven't been posting my drawings, but I'll try to be good about it and keep this blog updated better. Anyway, here are my favorites from the last couple of sessions. Each pose was 15 minutes done in crayons.

I love going figure drawing! I used to go to 2 sessions on Sunday, a session on Monday, and another one on Thursday. Ah, those were the days. Now I'm lucky if I attend once a month! I have to rearrange my life a bit to squeeze more sessions in.

ps. sorry for the poor scan quality :\

Scary Illustration! Concept Art for Trivia Adventure!

2011-10-31T11:01:00.000-07:00

So for my Illustration Friday piece, I wanted to share with you some concept art I've been doing for the Facebook Game Trivia Adventure. It fits this week's topic of "scary" perfectly!

So I'm working hard to get these new levels and creatures up and running. I hope you will visit the game! And keep visiting so you can see new art!

Thanks for visiting my blog! Last week, many of you gave comments and encouragement for my watercolor piece, and it means a lot to me! Thank you thank you thank you!

Tiff

Illustration Friday - Fuel

2011-10-21T23:34:00.000-07:00

I took a much needed day off today. I had THE perfect day. I slept in until 12:30. Then my husband and I took the dogs to Red Bud Isle dog park, where I sketched and sketched as dogs played around me. Then we went to a fruit stand and I ate mangoes till my belly was distended. Then I took a 2-hour nap. Then I did a 30 minute workout video, then had a big dinner of pasta, caramelized onion, pesto, and kale shreds. Then I painted this for Illustration Friday. Food is a body's fuel!! Anyway, I feel awesome.

I know my painting is a big kerplosion of color. Is it cheesy in the way Rainbow Brite is cheesy?? (I loved Rainbow Brite as a kid. I think she's cool.) Maybe it is... I hadn't touched my watercolor paints in so long I wanted to use every color!

Have a nice day.
Tiff

Trivia Adventure Finally Launched!

2011-10-10T14:27:00.000-07:00

Hello readers! Finally, after months and months of long hours and hard work, Trivia Adventure has been released! Please join the adventure on Facebook!

So, I got to do a ton of art and animation for the game. Particularly, the levels, characters, monsters, town buildings, and other misc art. I will probably start posting some of my favorite pieces of art here when I get the time.

I am very proud of Steel Penny Games, the company I work for. Steel Penny Games is a very very tiny company with only 6-8 of us working regularly on the game, and I'm in awe of how much we did in the last year. Under the pressure of having my art featured prominently in the game, I think I've improved as an artist under their roof, and hope to improve even more!

Announcing............ Trivia Adventure!!

2011-10-03T22:48:00.000-07:00

Y'all know how I've been absent from my blog? Well THIS is why. I've been working on the coolest, newest, most freakin' awesomest Facebook game by Steel Penny Games... TRIVIA ADVENTURE!!!!!!!!!

It's coming out SOO SOON and I will make a new post to announce that as soon as I can! Until then.... save this as your desktop background. Your coworkers will be like... Hey! That's cool! I want one too! And you can be all "I know, right?!!" Then send them to my blog or the Steel Penny Games website, where they can get their very own desktop background of hot girl with cat... and oh that guy in the background.

I hope you adore your new desktop background :) And I know you will love the game when it's released. SOON!!

Tiff

ps. AND YES, she IS holding up a brain wearing funny glasses and a fake nose.

My Sketchbook!

2011-09-21T00:08:00.000-07:00

I love my sketchbook (Fabriano Classic Artist's Journal). But it is VERY ANNOYING TO SCAN. Anyway, this post is dedicated to my friend TED!, who if he didn't guilt me into doing it, I would probably still not have updated my blog, because I am SO BUSY! I'm preparing for two conferences right now. The SCBWI conference where I will be part of a Q&A panel and giving a short presentation, and the Game Developer's Conference, for which the game I'm working on has to be polished, and have slick marketing materials. I can't wait to show you guys the t-shirt I designed for the game!!! My first t-shirt! I believe I will be allowed to post up some art after the game launches, which should be before Oct 10, when the conference is.

So I have pet ducks now. Some wild ducks flew into our pond and my Toller tolled them. Now we are friends. Me or my husband visit and feed them everyday and feed them cracked corn. There has to be actual crack in the corn, because they wont eat anything else! I tried oats, peas, carrots - no. It has to be cracked corn or they turn their beaks up at it.

I'm kind of proud of the variety in my sketchbook. There's people, animals, and cars. There was a time where I would freeze if I had to draw a car.

Anyway, I'm getting fat. (At least I feel like it). All this overtime is preventing me from exercising as much as I should. So I'm going to go ride my stationary bike now. I hope you like my sketches!

tiff

The Amy Farrier Interview - "Work. Mess up. Work more."

2011-09-02T09:51:00.000-07:00

Let me tell you about Amy. She's a friend and also an Austin illustrator. She's modest, smart, supportive, and talented. I adore her! Here is some insight into the person, her art, her process, and more!

1) What is your least favorite color and why?

I think every color can be beautiful in the right spot. I suppose my least favorite, as someone who works in watercolor, would be muddy colors (where you try so hard to create something interesting but end up with an opaque mess).

2) Have you ever fallen in love with a pencil? If yes, Tell me about the pencil. If no, tell me about what Mr. Right Pencil would be like.

I don't think I've ever had a special relationship with a pencil, though I do like to keep some sharpened 3Bs ready for action. Now pens, on the other hand, that's a whole different story. Staedtler pigment liners used to be my go-to pen for linework, but I haven't been able to find them anywhere the past couple of years. I switched over to nibs and ink. My favorite nib is one I found on etsy as a set of earrings made from antique British Royal Post Office pen parts. Turned out to produce the exact sort of line I was looking for; go figure!

3) Do you like hoarding art materials, or do you purchase things like paper and sketchbooks as you complete them?

I definitely love to open a drawer and have plenty of watercolor paper of different weights/shades/sizes just ready to be painted on. And art supplies are so beautiful that it's hard not to become a collector (bottles of ink, paintbrushes, colored pencils...). I'm also lucky enough to live a few minutes drive from Jerry's Artarama, so I may be a little more stocked up than your average person; but not in a scary way.

4) If you could be a character in a children's book, who would you be, and why?

Well, maybe Mary in The Secret Garden or Alice of Wonderland. I've always loved the idea of stumbling into another world or finding one behind a locked door.

5) If you left your sketchbook at the San Antonio Zoo by accident, and you only realized it half-way to Austin, would you drive back for it?

Unless is was for a specific project, I wouldn't go back for it. Mostly my sketchbooks are just caught moments or scribbles, and I like to think of a kid picking it up and thinking he or she had found something cool. Or even better, maybe the monkeys would discover their portraits and be excited.

6) When draw in your sketchbook, do you draw in order, from page 1 to the end? Or do you jump around? Do you date your entries?

I do draw in order. Though sometimes I skip the first page if I'm feeling creatively blocked by all the white space, then come back and do it later. Or never. And I rarely remember to write down the date, but I wish I did.

7) You are painting something. You need a number 8 brush. Unfortunately, you can only find a number 4 and a number 12. Do you go smaller or bigger? Why?

Bigger! It may be less perfect, but chances are that if I use a smaller brush, I'll focus too much on detail and lose spontaneity.

8) How many colors are in your palette? Which ones?

Seriously way too many to name, plus I've got two different watercolor palettes. But the colors I use most often are: cobalt blue, French ultramarine blue, yellow ochre, burnt and raw sienna, transparent yellow, alazarin crimson, scarlet lake, and viridian green. And sometimes Payne's gray.

9) Who is your favorite living illustrator?

Well, I have so many favorites, but my biggest influence is Lisbeth Zwerger. I happened to look at a lot of her work when I first started up with watercolor in 2006; she's a master watercolorist, deeply original, draws incredible animals and people, and is always developing her style. And she's illustrated pretty much every fairy tale out there!

10) If you could give one tip to aspiring illustrators in 5 words or less, what would it be?

Work. Mess up. Work more.

11) Brag about your illustrations. Tell me what you love about your own work.

Hmmm, this is a seriously hard request because anything I say sounds, well, braggy. How about if I tell you what I love about working. I love when the watercolor and linework come together to create the picture I have in my mind, and sometimes it does! And capturing funny, imaginary moments with animals (deer in smoking jackets, cranky cat pirates with a mission). Taking traditional watercolor subjects like birds and fruit, but making them look modern. Stuff like that.

Watercolor Time Lapse Painting of Illustration Friday's topic "Influence"

2011-09-01T23:14:00.000-07:00

Hi readers :)
I have been so busy lately. I meant to post this up last week but I've been working a lot. It's cool tho, cos I like the job. I'm making art for a Facebook game! I can't wait to tell you more about it, but it's not ready yet. Soon though, I hope.

Anyway, click here for the time lapse video of last week's Illustration Friday painting.

I've been trying to nurture two different careers in art. One is in video games and one is in watercolor illustration. It's been kind of hard juggling both. Needless to say I am never bored. I always have something to do, something to work on. I guess that's not a bad problem to have when you like what you do. I am exhausted everyday, but I go to bed happy and ready to make more art the next day :)

Anyway, I apologize for not being as regular at posting as I was in the past. I have been sketching a lot, but nothing comes out post-worthy :) Unless you want to see really sloppy sketches. Do you?

Tiff

Illustration Friday - Influence

2011-08-22T21:02:00.000-07:00

The topic of this week's Illustration Friday is Influence. So who do you think influenced whom? :)

And here are some details:

I took a time lapse video of this painting so I will post that up soon too!

Anyway, I hope you liked the painting!
Tiff

Illustration Friday - Obsessed

2011-08-01T01:51:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone, it's time for Illustration Friday again! The word of the week is OBSESSED!!! Can you tell what this little girl is obsessed with??

And here's some details:

Anyway, I hope you like it. I've been using Illustration Friday to build a portfolio of children's book illustration portfolio pieces. It is very slow going but I think I finally have enough pieces to send publishers promotional material. Now all I have to do is think up some sort of promotional material that they wont just toss in the trash. (Traditionally, illustrators send post cards) ANY-HOO, I hope you like my painting. (I'm talking about you, you unicorn-obsessed little red head girl. You know who you are.)

THANK YOU FOR VISITING MY BLOG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
tiff :D

Watercolor - Gesture

2011-07-19T01:18:00.000-07:00

This serves both as my "Illustration Friday" and "Watercolor Wednesdays" piece. The Illustration Friday word is "gesture", hence.......

"Watercolor Wednesday's" topic is "Baby's First....." Well, if you've followed my blog you know that I'll find any excuse to put some sort of animal in the piece, so I decided that the dog can be baby's first guardian angel. I purposely positioned the baby's swirl hair over the puppy serve as puppy's halo. If you look super close, you'll see her dog tag has little wings drawn on it, designating her very important job. Here's a closeup:

Anyway, I really dont know if the puppy succeeds at keeping the stupid baby from getting attacked by the blender. I will leave that up to your imagination :) hehehe You tell me what you think happens!!!!!!

Tiff
PS, dog was modeled after my dog Gracie, a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, who is actually a pretty cruelly indifferent dog. I once took her to Barton Springs to play water fetch with her. I decided to test and see what she would do if I pretended to drown. As I "drowned" she picked up her ball and took it to my husband instead. She didn't even think twice!!

Watercolor Still Life of a Violin

2011-07-18T15:42:00.000-07:00

This painting had tons of unhappy accidents along the way. Violins are a challenge!!

Illustration Friday - "Stay"

2011-07-12T13:58:00.000-07:00

I thought would be cute to have a tiny little kid be the boss of a big giant Great Dane. In retrospect I think I could have made the dog's head even bigger.

Here's a closeup detail shot.

Okie Dokie, hope you like it!!!!!!!
Tiff

When I Was A Stupid Kid - DO NOT LAUGH

2011-07-11T00:20:00.000-07:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I would often find myself on the receiving end of a hearty chew-out by my mom.

The short pauses between each mini-sermon was the hard part. The uncomfortable silence felt like forever.

O M G she just farted. Dang that was loud. And funny. Crap. Too funny. But I can't laugh now!!!! I'll be signing my own death certificate.

OH PLEASE, may I be excused?! NO!!!!!!! She's starting up again!!!!!!

JUST HOLD IT IN!!!!!! Use will power! Control your facial muscles!!!!!!

WHEN WILL THIS END?!?!

Finally! Another second and I'd be dead!

And that was a chew-out that was well worth receiving, When I Was A Stupid Kid.

Tiff
ps. I know fart jokes are low-brow, but as comedian Lewis CK once said, "You don't have to be smart to laugh at a fart, but you'd have to be an idiot not to."

Naked Lunch - Kelli Bland

2011-07-09T17:59:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I got my butt back to Naked Lunch Figure Drawing for Animators. This session's model was Kelli Bland.

The session is about 2 and a half hours of very short poses, from 1 minute - 7 minutes.

I'm glad I went because I got a fantastic ego boost by having the winning drawing for a free Naked Lunch session! Unfortunately I can't share the winning drawing because I gave it to our model as a token of my appreciation. :) I really hope she likes it! For her sake, I hope to become rich and famous, so that the drawing I gave her might someday be worth something. I'm nice like that! (hehehe)

I hope you enjoyed my drawings! Thank you for visiting!
Tiffanny

Illustration Friday: MidSummer Night

2011-06-27T00:27:00.000-07:00

Here'a my submission for Illustration Friday:

Hope you like it!
Tiffanny

Illustration Friday: Launch

2011-06-20T00:02:00.000-07:00

This week's Illustration Friday topic is "Launch"
The inspiration for the cat in the painting is my friend Adam's cat Sunny. Thanks for supplying the inspiration, Adam!

Here are some closeup details:

For a time lapse video of the painting process, click here for a youtube video

I hope you enjoyed my painting!
Tiffanny

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Sibling Rivalry

2011-06-17T03:01:00.000-07:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I was on the dishing end of a sibling rivalry. On the receiving end was my unassuming, OH-SO-CUTE, Little Miss Perfect, younger sister and roommate, Bonbon (Derived from her name Ebony. E-BON-y). Look at how cute she is.

She was SOOOOOOOOOO cute, that teenaged girls would AWWW and SQUEEEE at how CUTE she was. Seriously, I kid you not. She was just SO CUTE! Look at them big ol' eyes. I tell you, when I was a kid, I found all the gushing quite disgusting!!

In addition to being SOOOOOOOOO CUTE physically, Bonbon, was....

As her name suggests, OH SO SWEET.

AND, to make matters WORSE, while I was an academic lump of coal,

Bonbon was an academic DIAMOND.

The most infuriating thing was that all this was all-natural. She didn't do these things to suck up to parents, or to make me look bad. All this cuteness, this sweetness, this smartness, was ALL NATURAL. No plastic!! She always wanted people to be happy...

... even if you were mean to her!!

And that's how I acted like an jackass, When I Was A Stupid Kid, because disliking Bonbon, is like disliking a puppy or a duckling. What jackass doesn't like puppies or ducklings? You know what I mean!?!

ps. Bonbon grew up just as sweet and cute. If you're a person that gets her angry, you must REALLY be a d-bag.

Watercolor Sketchbook - Dog Park!

2011-06-05T21:59:00.000-07:00

I wanted to spoil my dogs today so we went to the dog park!!! Unfortunately the dogs kept splashing on my sketchbook so I stopped painting and finished at home. So this isn't completely an on-the-spot painting. :)

The dog to the left is Gracie, the brown dog is my other dog Honker, and the man in white is my hubby :)

Hope you like my painting
Until next time!
Tiffanny

Watercolor - "Turtle Watching"

2011-06-04T19:05:00.000-07:00

Went to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center today to do some painting. The pond at the entrance entices an audience with it's collection of cute little turtles. Unfortunately, from where I was painting, I couldn't see any, so don't try to find any turtles in my painting :)

Watercolor - Pirate Lady with Parrot

2011-05-30T22:01:00.000-07:00

The parrot in this painting is inspired by my talented friend Ted Blackman's long time pet named Gumbo!! Thanks for the inspiration, Ted and Gumbo!

Watercolor - Enchanted Rock, Fredricksburgh, TX Part 2 and a story of our bizarre trip.

2011-05-23T11:35:00.000-07:00

For some reason, the forces that be did not want me and my friends painting yesterday. After trying desperately to get out of Austin to paint yesterday, we encountered obstacle after obstacle.

We tried to get out of Austin at approximately 12:00, but the arrival time to the painting site ended up being 5:00!

Our trip was kind of bizarre. Between my painting friends and I, we call this trip "Harold and Kumar III: Escape from Llano, Texas"

The highlights are trying to find coffee in Llano. The first coffee shop we encountered was out of business, and the second one had a box labeled "FREE VEGETABLES" filled with what looked like wilted grass sittin right outside the store. That shoulda been the first sign. Inside, we were met with an empty shop except for two guys rocking on a rocking chair in their bedroom slippers with an old man with a cowboy hat behind the counter. (Cue banjo music from Deliverance)

We asked for coffee. The old man said in a nice heavy Texan accent, "Sorry we aren't serving coffee right now but if you come back in an hour, we're giving away free hamburgers". We walked out puzzled. A coffee shop that doesn't serve coffee, but free hamburgers instead. Bizarre.

We went to a gas station. All the coffee was old. I conclude that there is actually no drinkable coffee in Llano to speak of.

Then, as we approached the park we had to wait for cows to cross the road in single file. It was cute actually. They actually looked both ways before crossing the street. Well trained cows :)

When I started painting, I realized that I forgot to bring a damn pencil. No one else brought one because they're all oil painters. Also, I forgot to bring my #8 brush, the brush with which I normally do 99% of my paintings with.. I only had a small #6. So I had to paint carefully without having pencil guides underneath, with a small brush. It was a challenge. I will never forget my materials again. DOH!!!!!!!!! Anyway, that was a long and exhausting twilight-zone of a trip.

Tiff

Watercolor - Enchanted Rock, Fredricksburgh, TX

2011-05-21T18:34:00.000-07:00

This is Turkey Peak at Enchanted Rock State Park. Enchanted Rock is THE largest pink granite hill in the United States. Yay! and only a 2 hour drive from my house!

The drive there was mostly overcast. The sky had JUST begun to clear up from the previous night's rainy weather. I'm glad the weather cleared up in time for plein air painting!!! Tomorrow I plan on going out painting some more so I hope you come and visit my blog again :)

Tiff

Watercolor - Cave at Pedernales Falls State Park

2011-05-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

After working a looong week and loooots of overtime, I relish being able to go outside and paint again!!!!! I very much enjoyed visiting Pedernales Falls. Unfortunately, there wasn't a whole lot of falls because of our drought, but we found a gorgeous spot to paint nonetheless. I hope you like it! :D

gargoyle

2011-05-08T01:33:00.000-07:00

It's kind of a rite of passage at the place I freelance for to do a gargoyle drawing, so here is mine.

My friends tease that I cannot draw anything horrible, sad, or disturbing. They could be right, seeing as how it was the perfect opportunity to make something badass-scary, but still I tried to make the prettiest gargoyle on the planet. Why do I do this?!?! I dont know! Nothing wrong with a little pretty, right?! I mean, what would you rather look at, a kitten? or open heart surgery?? I rest my case.

Tiff

When I Was A Stupid Kid - CANNIBAL!!!!!!!!!!

2011-04-28T22:58:00.000-07:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I had a tiny little problem....

My CANNIBALISTIC baby sister JOANNY.

She particularly liked biting knees, and your back. Why?!! I DONT KNOW. She's a strange one, that kid. If any baby ever needed a binky, it was her.

Look at that evil little face... (cute... but evil...)

So, you'd be minding your own business, and she would sidle up to you, ever so quietly.

THEN WHAM, she'd latch on to you unexpectedly, sending your heart into overdrive. I swear I'm surprised I didn't die of a heart attack at the age of 7.

Unfortunately, there are laws against kicking a baby's ass. But that's ok, I had my own solution.

And that solution....

is KIDNAPPING............Her toys, that is. I told her, with my most grown-up voice........

I WARNED her. I warned her!! She understood. OH YES SHE DID. She knew what the consequences would be if she bit me JUST ONE MORE TIME. Indeed-y!!! I'm positive that she knew what would happen if she bit me JUST ONE MORE TIME. I could see the comprehension in her eyes. And yet....

WELL I COULDN'T BACK DOWN NOW!!!!!! If I didn't snap her little Barbie doll in half, she'd NEVER listen to me. She'd KNOW that every threat from here on out would be an empty one. It had to be done!!!!!!!

But....

UH OH. DAD. "IT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!" I pleaded.

Dad can be reasoned with!! All I have to tell him is that Joanny was BITING me, and that I HAD to snap her Barbie in half, because if i DIDN'T, she would NEVER listen to me, because all my threats would be empty. He'll totally get it. Besides, SHE started it. I mean, I didn't draw first blood! Joanny will SURELY be punished for this!! And the nightmare will finally end!!

But...

And that's how a baby defeated me, When I Was a A Stupid Kid. WHY didn't my parents buy this kid a binky? I will never know.

THE END

Tell me about your sibling rivalry stories!!! I would LOVE to hear it!
Tiffanny

Illustration Friday - Bicycle

2011-04-28T21:22:00.000-07:00

For a video of how I painted this, click here!

to purchase, go to my store!

Time Lapse Watercolor Demo - A Girl with a Butterfly

2011-04-25T00:37:00.000-07:00

This painting is available for purchase!

To see how I painted this, click here for the time lapse video! I hope you enjoy it!

I would like to thank Andy Fling for the inspiration for this painting. Thank you Andy! I hope you like the direction I took!

Tiffanny

Time Lapse - An American Tourist in Brussels

2011-04-19T22:44:00.000-07:00

I rarely paint from photos, most of the time preferring to do paintings from life. But once in a while you come across such a beautiful photo, you have to make an exception. This is an American Tourist in Brussels in the 60's. I like the fact that I painted from a vintage and faded photo, because you can use more of your imagination with the colors.

Click Here for the Time Lapse of how I painted it. Also, if you like it you can Buy it. I hope you enjoy it and thank you for viewing my blog.

Tiffanny

Zoo Sketches

2011-04-10T19:50:00.000-07:00

Watercolor - Portrait of Jen

2011-04-10T00:08:00.000-07:00

My painting buds and I were supposed to go paint landscapes today, but the wind was so fierce that it blew my friend Jay's easel into a bush (Which cradled the easel and kept it from falling off a cliff and into a lake. Damaged his easel quite a bit though!) We decided to do portraits indoors instead. Luckily, his wife was kind enough to volunteer. Yay! The lighting was so confusing. Blue light coming from outside, plus an incandescent lamp, plus bounced indoor lighting all over the place. Capturing light isn't my strongest skill. (Though I'm not sure what is. Some have said drawing animals. Not sure though). Anyway, there it is. Tomorrow we will try landscape painting again, but I think the weather will be even worse. Who knows what will happen :)

Thanks for visiting my blog!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tiff

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Global Cooling

2011-04-07T11:09:00.000-07:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I loved playing outside.

I was an outdoorsy kid. I didn't do my playing indoors.

Unfortunately, in the Philippines, it gets to be about a thousand degrees with 200% humidity. Playing outside can feel almost like dying.

Ahhh, blissful air conditioning. If only the outside can feel like this. WAIT. Maybe it CAN.

Time to cool the world! Let this AC air out! Open the windows!!

Kick open the doors!

How clever I am! I can't wait to tell my dad my smart idea!

OK. Great insight dad. Good thing I have a solution.

And that is how I contributed to our global climate change predicament, When I Was A Stupid Kid.

Tiny Painting

2011-04-01T13:20:00.000-07:00

Dear Blog,
Life is a bit complicated right now. I'm sorry I haven't made time for you. Believe me when I say, "It's not you... It's me". Work has been taking up all my time right now. I know... I know you need attention, and love, but I did it for us. For you and me. If I didn't work, I will die of hunger, and then where would we be? Please accept my tiny painting with my apologies. I know... I know you can't be bought, and it is insulting that I even try and bribing you out of your feelings of disappointment and neglect, but will you give us one more chance?!

I'll take your silence as a "yes". Horray!

Quick Sketches

2011-03-28T11:22:00.000-07:00

A few quick sketches.
Gracie was holding her tail funny over the weekend. We thought her tail was broken but it turns out she has a condition known as "broken wag" from swimming too much. She gave us quite a scare!

I used one of them there water brushes for these sketches. I really don't like them as much as regular brushes but they're fun for just doing quick washes when you're short on time. It's also nice to cut loose and not be so picky.

Anyway, I hope I can give you guys more sketches. I'm too busy to do anything more finished lately!

Tiffanny

Steel Penny Game's Puzzling Paws

2011-03-22T11:08:00.000-07:00

Dear Readers,
Last year, I worked freelance for Steel Penny Games and got to do a lot of character animation and art for their now released game Puzzling Paws. It is one of the best jobs I have ever got. I got so much creative freedom to do character designs, animations, and even a watercolor painting for their office space! They're a really great group of people to work with.

The game itself is awesome. Great brain exercise. When you solve a puzzle, you really get the feeling of being smart and clever. (some of the puzzles get REALLY hard.) When's the last time a game made you think? Problem solve? They don't make games like this anymore! The game is download-able for only 5 bucks. A real bargain. Please check it out! :) Another plus is the game is very casual, Pick it up, play a puzzle or two, and come back later. It doesn't have to eat up your time. OR, you can get addicted and play it for hours like I did.

Tiff

PS. If you're playing the game, remember from the tutorial that the level wraps around itself, if you push a block off screen, it will come around the other side. Make sure you remember this! It's a key to solving a lot of the puzzles!!!

This Week's Still Life - Cabbage, Carrots, Portabella

2011-03-17T23:56:00.000-07:00

Here's this week's still life! :) I'm going to have to skip Illustration Friday this week though... picked up some freelance work over the weekend. Too busy for personal work. Will post more art as soon as I can :)

Hope you likey,
Tiff

Portfolio Rebuild Part 2 - Girl meets Boy meets Fish

2011-03-17T02:42:00.000-07:00

When I draw or paint, I try to invoke parts of my life to fuel the painting. It makes it less boring for me to paint ideas of people I know.

The inspiration for the kids in the painting are Penny and Mark (my sister, who is Chinese, and my brother-in-law who was born in the UK) I like the idea of East meets West, and the girl is like... Let me show you my world!!! There's lots of opposites going on too. Girl and Boy, Country person and city person, East and West, and uh... Fish and Frog? Hehe, that probably doesn't count.

And a closeup in case you are interested:

This Week's Still Life - Rose and Cup

2011-03-10T23:45:00.000-08:00

I know... it's a cup and a rose on a chair. What the heck is the meaning of all this?! I just like the palette of greens and pinks :)

Until next time :)
Tiff

Illustration Friday - WARNING

2011-03-10T22:16:00.000-08:00

This week's word is "Warning". This is what my immature mind came up with:

Didn't have time to color it because I had to go to my still life session. But next week I will manage my time better and color it. :) I hope you laughed!!

I Was So Angry With Myself ! ! !

2011-03-10T01:19:00.000-08:00

because I settled. I was overwhelmed at thinking that I had to rebuild my portfolio from scratch so I only put half a heart into my first piece.

After I wrote the words, "I think this is the limit of my skill level at this point in time." in the last blog post, I soon got angry with myself. How could I expect so little of myself, and how will I expect anyone to want to pay me to draw and paint if all I could give was something half-assed? (I mean, look at the wildflowers I painted last blog. Those are clearly half-assed!!!) I couldn't sleep afterwards. I need to shoot for something higher than my current comfort level. I am not good where I currently am. I need to strive. I hope this re-painted version shows that. I will try harder from now on; I owe my readers and future employers/clients the best I can deliver. I can sleep better if I know I did my best.

a zoomed in view...

It's now 3:00 in the morning and I still have to get my Illustration Friday piece for tomorrow! I will try to post something late tomorrow night. For now I shall crawl into bed and collapse.

Tiffanny

Portfolio Rebuild Part 1

2011-03-07T14:08:00.000-08:00

LATEST UPDATE-----
OK I think this is the last update unless someone has anything glaring to critique I added the dark rocks on the lower left to solidify the composition, but kept it far enough away so there's room for text. Thanks for the suggestion, Matthew! I think this is the limit of my skill level at this point in time. Please stay tuned for part 2 of my portfolio rebuild!! (I'm hoping to get 10 pieces by december 31st, then I'll be ready to beg some publishers to work with me) :) Thanks all for the help! If you have ANYTHING more to say, please critique. I may not post it up here, but I will still consider any suggestions. If anything, it will give me things to look out for in the future.

*OLD POST--------------------
UPDATE!! Adding more darks (darker rocks) really helps! It feels more finished. I added more horse rump form, added an eye sparkle, and added the saturation back in. Does this look ok? Thanks again from the bottom of my heart for the helpful suggestions.

*OLD POST BELOW-------
I'm rebuilding my children's book portfolio from the ground up this year. My portfolio last year lacked finesse and focus, and so, taking some constructive criticism from some people from the children's book illustration meetings, I've decided to completely redo my portfolio. Anyway, this is my first try since going to the meetings. Tell me, can you see this image in a children's book? What would you do to improve it?

and here's a bit of detail:

I'm really looking forward to hearing some constructive criticism.

With the few critiques I just got, thought I would try some quick changes to see how things read. Wow, flipping the image looks weird to me. Possibly because I'm so used to seeing it the way I had it originally. Does this look weird to you too? Also, I applied an auto-levels to the image. I worried before that the saturation makes it hard on the eyes, which is why i toned it down in photoshop. I have one of those stupid monitors that changes the value depending on the angle you're looking at it, So I'm never quite sure what you out there are seeing.

Thanks in advance,
Tiffanny

Watercolor - Colorado River, East of Lady Bird Lake

2011-03-06T18:38:00.000-08:00

When I paint outdoors, I struggle with two things that often contradict each other, and that is value vs. depth. The hill that the blue house is on was really a dark value, much darker than how I painted it. But darkening the value decreases the perceived space between the viewer and the hill. So which truth do you express? That truth of the lightness/darkness or the truth of the depth? Today I went with depth. Sometimes I go with value. I really don't know what is right or better. How would you solve the problem?

Tiff

This Week's Still Life - Circular Saw

2011-03-04T00:58:00.000-08:00

After doing my weekly still lives in oil, watercolor started to feel a bit weird... Even though principles of design are the same, application and technique are so different between the two mediums. People have told me that jumping between mediums is good because "some things carry over." Frankly, I don't notice if I suddenly get better at one medium after messing around in another. Is it because improving is just so incrementally minuscule, or is it because the theory is bullarky? I'd be interested to know how you weigh in. :)

Until next time,
Tiff

Illustration Friday - Bee-ber Swarm

2011-03-03T11:01:00.000-08:00

OK, I'm now on the Illustration Friday bandwagon. I go to these Children's Book Illustration meetings, and everyone and their mothers do these. Well, I guess I have to act like a real illustrator and do what they do. :) This is my first one. The word is "Swarm" I kept trying to think of a clever and funny way to illustrate this, like my friend Ted Blackman did, but all I could come up with was Justin Bieber in a Bee costume being swarmed by little girls. Did you at least chuckle?? I hope you did.

Here are the pencils for the illustration. I think I like pencils more than the final. That always happens to me. Something gets lost in translation, no? Sometimes inked lines get robotic, whereas pencils still show the artist's hand in it. Maybe I just need to learn to be more expressive with ink :)

Until next time,
please keep visiting me :)
Tiffanny

Immature Me - (Stories of a Kid in a Woman's Body) - The Wasted Wish

2011-03-02T11:37:00.000-08:00

(This all happened on Tuesday in the car, but I didn't feel like drawing cars because I'm so slow at it. Wanted to get the idea down quickly.)

Until next time!
Tiff

my kraft paper sketchbook

2011-03-01T22:09:00.000-08:00

Some pages from my kraft paper sketchbook. These pages aren't random. They're hand-picked because they're halfway decent and wont make your eyeballs melt. (I'm considerate like that). The rest of the pages are REALLY BAD, like staring-into-the-Arc-of-the-Covenant bad. . But that's ok cos its a sketchbook :)

These are from today. Sped to the Witte museum in San Antonio as soon as 5:00 hit to visit their free-on-Tuesdays-and-open-late natural history museum. These were some of the taxidermies.

these were from the live exhibit. poison dart frogs are flippin adorable!! I would want one as a pet but I dont exactly feel like winning a Darwin award just yet.

I have a new story to tell you but I'm not done drawing it yet. Hope I can post the story tomorrow! So please visit me again :)

Tiff

Watercolor - Kayak

2011-02-28T15:49:00.000-08:00

I have kayaking on the brain. Yesterday, I went kayaking and had SUCH A GREAT TIME. It was 80 degrees in Austin. Ah blissful, sunny warmth, I LOVE YOU! I definitely have an outdoorsy side. And I have an affinity towards water. (I swim like a fish) So Austin is perfect for me. I never regret moving down here. Anyway, I located some awesome spots to paint so I'm going to go again this Saturday and paint paint paint. Yay!!

This is my husband's kayak. Mine is white, but I felt like painting red, so I painted his instead. White would have made a nice contrast though.... OH WELL.

Thanks for visiting my bloggy blog!
Tiff

PS. I have painted this kayak many times for practice. This is my first painting of it. in 2008. IT IS HORRIBLE,
Check it out !! This was when I was first learning to watercolor. I think I've come pretty far in 3 years, but of course, there is still so much to learn before it resembles a Winslow Homer. I can't wait to see what my paintings will look like in 3 more years. I hope I continue improving.

Time Lapse Watercolor Painting, A Gift to Jen

2011-02-27T00:35:00.000-08:00

For the time lapse video of how I painted this, please click here

This painting if entitled "Never Apologize for your Stash". A lot of knitters love having a lot of yarn, and non-knitters can't quite understand why we have so much "stash". Some knitters even feel apologetic or embarrassed by having a big stash. I'm not so. I have yarn for at least 30 pairs of socks, and I consider this to be a yarn drought. It's not really as crazy as it seems. A painter will have many blank canvases, sketchbooks, paints, easels. A wood-worker will have lumber, power tools, nails, screws. A baker will have a full pantry of flour, sugar, spices. My Mother-in-law's pantry is always stocked and ready for almost any recipe.

But what if you have more stash than can be used in your lifetime? To that I compare the stash to my art supplies. I still have prismacolors, oil pastels, chalks, and acrylics that I most likely wont use, just because I have now identified myself as a watercolorist. My focus has changed, and watercolor is my new favorite. I shouldn't have to use up all my art supplies just because I have them. But I like to keep them just in case my focus changes again, as with the yarn stash :)

So, my friend Jen is a bit of an apologetic yarn collector. I painted this picture for her in order to remind her that she shouldn't be, and to please never stop doing the thing that we've bonded over - knitting, and all the yarn/book/pattern/needle/notion shopping that has come with it.

No stash apology!!
Tiffanny

ps. The cute red head is based on Jen. I even called her husband to describe to me just how she sits while she knits!

Immature Me - (Stories of a Kid in a Woman's Body) - The Mooner

2011-02-23T00:45:00.000-08:00

So last week after me and my weekly still life group got done painting, we decided to go to Kerbey Lane Cafe for a midnight snack.

We were behind my buddy Tom's car the entire time. Finally, my husband decides to pass him up.

So Tom and I are pretty good friends, and I thought it would be hilarious to give him a friendly mooning.

But the time it takes to get your butt ready for a full mooning position is too long. We whizzed by in a second.

Wouldn't it be more convenient to just have a cardboard cutout of a butt handy? That way you can moon at a moment's notice, without ever having to try wrangling your cheeks out of your pants whilst buckled in.

The opportunity to moon your friends will never pass you by. You can keep it in the side compartment and whip it out faster than you can say "Neil Armstrong Rules!"

Then you can have a hearty laugh when you see your friend's incredulous face!!

And it would be even safer than actually mooning if you were the one driving. You can keep at least one hand on the wheel!

Just don't moon any cops!

WANNA MOONER? Here's a pdf of a butt and instructions on how to make your own MOONER!

Have fun!
Tiffanny

ps
BE SAFE. Mooner is just for novelty. Do not actually use in a moving motor vehicle. I dont want any blood on my hands. SERIOUSLY. Don't be reckless!!

pps, facts about mooning:
-according to Wikipedia, in Maryland, mooning is completely legal and is considered to be protected by our freedom is speech. "If exposure of half of the buttocks constituted indecent exposure, any woman wearing a thong at the beach at Ocean City would be guilty."
-on the other hand, a man in Texas got arrested for indecent exposure for mooning the car behind him.

Short Pose Session, AVAA, Freakin' Cool Aztec Lady

2011-02-21T22:33:00.000-08:00

We had a new model today! I didn't catch her name, but I overheard her say she's an Aztec descendant. She was gorgeous!!

10-15 minutes... The one on the left was actually really hard, because it was a straight, symmetrical pose. If you're an artist reading my blog, tell me how you deal with such a straight on pose? Do you move? or force some direction into it even though you don't see it?

5 minutes...

1 minute...

Glad to be figure drawing again. Love to do it. Will see you soon, I'm writing a new stupid story. It's pretty stupid, but I think it's funny, so I hope you will think so too :)

Tiff

ps. I was listening to "When you Wish Upon A Star" while I was writing this post. I really liked Disney cartoons when I was a kid, but I really love it more now. I really appreciate all the time and care everyone put into a hand crafted movie. I hope that art form never dies.

This Week's Still Life - Miter Saw

2011-02-18T12:14:00.000-08:00

Here's this week's still life. It was hard to paint but fun at the same time. The object was so complicated that more time was spent drawing than painting.

This Week's Still Life - My awesome boots

2011-02-12T10:04:00.000-08:00

OK I have to admit I have a lazy side when it comes to oils. Oils are hard to get started on because you gotta assemble the easel, squeeze out the paints, tint the canvas, then after you paint, you spend a good long time washing the brushes. Then if you want to really finish your painting you even gotta stretch them over some bars. (I paint on cheap canvas pads. Dont wanna taint an expensive pre-stretched one with my beginner cooties). So much time goes into not actually painting. That's why I'm glad my friends help me get started. My friend Tom really wanted to paint and his enthusiasm was contagious. Here's his rendition of my boots: http://www.tmbritton.com/

With watercolors you just open up your paint box and GO GO GO!. Then after you paint, a good rinse on your brush does the job. So easy. I miss painting in watercolor. OH I forgot to mention. I have 2 jobs now. Hence the lack of posts. I'm very very busy, but it's a wonderful kind of busy. At my second job, I get what I dont get with my first job... creativity. First job is good for my technical skills (lots of 3dsmax, baby) and the second is good for my artistic and creative skills. (I'm drawing!) so, I don't care if I go to bed exhausted because I feel like I'm getting better at drawing. The flattering part is that someone is actually willing to pay me to draw. Can you believe that?!! It's just the validation I need. I often wonder if I should be working on learning software versus practicing drawing. Practicing drawing actually paid off!

Until next time, friends!

Tiffanny

Immature Me - (Stories of a Kid in a Woman's Body) - Mighty Tonka

2011-02-02T20:32:00.000-08:00

Like any kid in a woman's body, I still find toy stores uber-fun.

WEEEEEEE!!!!!! I LOVE Toys-R-Us!!!!!

Huh! This toy is called "Mighty Dump!"

MUST.... HOLD.... IT.... IN.....

And that is how I found myself on the floor laughing uncontrollably, yelling "Mighty Dump! This toy is called Mighty Dump!" in the middle of Toys-R-Us.

THE END

PS
Unfortunately, I can no longer buy a mighty dump, as it is currently unavailable :(
http://www.amazon.com/Tonka-Mighty-Truck-Construction-Vehicle/dp/B00000IWAR

The next time something makes you laugh uncontrollably and is not too expensive, do yourself a favor and buy it! I will never forget that Mighty Dump.

PPS
Tonka and Mighty Dump trademark owned by Tonka Corporation

Watercolor Sketchbook - Gracie and Honker at Walnut Creek

2011-01-30T18:03:00.000-08:00

LOVE MY DOGS. First nice weekend weather in a long time, HAD to go play at the best dog park in Austin!

Mythological Characters

2011-01-25T22:24:00.000-08:00

You know, I've been so focused on learning how to paint but I really shouldn't neglect drawing out of my head. I think being able to do both, draw from life, and draw from your head rounds out an artist. Being able to draw from life takes skill, but drawing from your head is a great way to communicate, especially what's only in your imagination, and the life drawing adds to that. Anyway, I drew these centaurs as a personal challenge, because I am Ungulate-anatomy's bitch (Ungulate meaning hooved animals) (And, is there a better, nicer, more PC way of saying you're something's bitch?). The goat in particular drives me bonkers. I've dedicated zoo trips to only the goat, but that's a whole other subject.

And a manticore. For these drawings I focused SO hard on rhythms that my nose started to bleed. (kidding about the nose bleed).

Well, there you have it. Things that eat my my free time and keep me from having a life outside of work.

Until next time,
Tiffanny

Watercolor Sketchbook - View from the Austin Public Library, 3rd floor.

2011-01-24T10:37:00.000-08:00

I've recently become enamored with the Austin Public Library. I used to go to the San Marcos Library, and they were great, but I had to pay an annual fee. APL is FREE!!! Woot!! I checked out lots of watercolor technique books, and some oil painting books too. Learning is fun. The APL is my new art teacher.

You know what's hard?? Drawing buildings. And that's all I have to say about that.

Tiffanny

LAST week's still life

2011-01-24T10:31:00.000-08:00

Did this last week, but I was too lazy to take a picture and post it. My friend told me that Norman Rockwell drew a skull 200 times to help him in his portrait painting. Yay, this is skull #3 for me. :)

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Wile E. Tiffanny

2011-01-18T11:57:00.000-08:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, my understanding of physics was governed by the world of cartoon violence. Yes, you could fall a thousand feet, and not get killed.

Yet, I was no dummy, and if I were to fall, I would like it to be on a layer of soft, fluffy toilet paper, just in case. This judicious planning would offer me the thrill of falling safely, because I would then land gracefully with a delicate bounce on my tush at the end, toilet paper breaking my fall with a tender, white, hygienic caress.

As I looked over the edge of my perch, I was confident. This was no 1000-foot drop. This was a mere 2 feet. I could fall and bounce all day!! It would be so fun!!!

WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

then...

then....

then...

And that is how I learned that cartoon physics do not apply to me, When I Was A Stupid Kid. (My coccyx hurt for a long time after that!)

Did you feel indestructible as a kid? How did you learn otherwise? Share your story! :)

Love,
Tiffanny

This Week's Still Life - Soup Pot, Onions

2011-01-14T13:04:00.000-08:00

More oil practice! I feel that with oils, the painting doesn't come together until the very end. For the first hour or so I feel like, OMG, how the heck is this ever going to come together?! Am I doing this right?! With watercolor I tend to be more deliberate right from the beginning. It has to look right, straight away. It doesn't seem to be that way for oils. Is this just me?

Tiffanny

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Queen of the Gnat

2011-01-12T19:50:00.000-08:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I was engrossed by a crappy 1984 film called Sheena, Queen of the Jungle. I haven't seen the movie in a really long time, so I don't remember just how crappy. All I know was that as a Stupid Kid (6 years old), I thought it was genius.

I watched the scantily clad Sheena (with her horse painted to look like a zebra), completely transfixed. I believed that I made a wish that day, a wish that I would someday grow up with perfect hair, skin and boobs, and I would live in the jungle free with my animal friends, just like Sheena.

Then came the part where Sheena uses her jungle mojo to summon animals to her aid.

"Wooooahhhhhhhh", I thought. NOW THAT WAS COOL.

OMG I just have to try!!! I've always had a way with animals. Maybe I AM A JUNGLE PRINCESS and just didn't know it!! Maybe I'm just like Sheena!!

OK Tiff, just concentrate! Put your hands to your temples just like she did! You can do it! You can be a Jungle Princess!! Summon SOMETHING. ANYTHING!

Is anything coming my way yet???

and BAM, A gnat THWAKS me in the eyeball. That could only mean ONE THING.

I DID IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

And that's how I discovered that I had the power to control animals, When I Was A Stupid Kid. (Too bad it was just a single-use gift).

So, what crazy TV or movie character did you pretend to be, when you were a Stupid Kid? Please comment and let me know your story!

Tiffanny

ps. Regarding paragraph 2, my wish did come true, except for the living free in the jungle part, hehehe...just kidding :( But seriously, my boobs are excellent. ok, no, I'm still kidding. :(

Time Lapse Watercolor Painting, Heidi

2011-01-08T16:02:00.000-08:00

This is my entry for the Tomie DePaola award that didn't win :( The contest was to illustrate a passage from the book Heidi. Strangely, most people portray Heidi as a blonde girl, but she actually has dark, curly hair in the book. I entered the contest because I really want to attend the New York SCBWI conference but can't afford it. Winning would have afforded me accommodations. Oh well, it was a learning experience :) And, I have a new piece to share with you, my blog visitor! Click here for the youtube video!

Hope you visit my blog again!
Tiffanny

Short Pose Session, AVAA, Karin

2011-01-04T16:01:00.000-08:00

5 min poses... (my cat walked on the paper while i was taking a picture of it. I think it helps to show the scale of my drawings :)

This Week's Still Life - I hate pineapples

2011-01-03T10:09:00.000-08:00

So I'm still plugging away at the oil painting. Sometimes feels like I'm painting with my left hand (I'm right-handed). Still getting used to things. I learned that Mars Black is better than Ivory Black for alla prima. Trying different approaches. My friend and I painted this pineapple. We both agreed it was an excruciating experience. Pineapples are hard!! This is the second attempt at Mr. Pineapple. Attempt #1 is too embarrassing to show. I mean, really embarrassing. We had a hearty laugh. Curse you pineapple!!!!!!

This Week's Still Life - Skull / My childhood fear

2010-12-31T16:01:00.000-08:00

This week we painted a medical model skull. I decided to continue trying to use oils. It's hard because I'm used to using watercolors and I haven't quite got the hang of oils yet, but I'm not terribly dissatisfied with the results :)

When I was a kid, skeletons were the thing I was afraid of the most. (Then aliens). I remember always being alone in the dining room because I never finished my food with the rest of the family. But I wasn't allowed to leave until I ate every grain of rice on my plate. So I would sit there alone, but I always kept my eye on the window, because I was always afraid that I would see a skeleton there looking in.

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Booger.

2010-12-30T11:16:00.000-08:00

Like any Stupid Kid, I always had a finger up my nose... that is, until....

Until I really examined a booger one day, and decided that THAT was the MOST DISGUSTING thing I have EVER seen. (My face is going, "What the .... ??!")

Therefore, I fought any and all urges to pick my nose. NO SIR. These fingers are never going to touch something so vile ever again!!! Boogers to me became as radioactive as poop, homework, and boys. DISGUSTING!
In a few days, it felt like I had two wine corks stuck in my nose. But I was determined to make it through.

I would suck up lungfuls of air through my mouth. A minor inconvenience. I'm SURE my body will find some other way of dealing with boogers. It had to! It wasn't going to let me die!

Since I can't breath through my nose, I started snoring. But that's OK. I was convinced that one day, I will wake up with an empty nose, just like I do when I recover from a cold. One day you can't breath, the next day you can! It'll be just like that!

I will be the first human to walk this earth with the power to not have boogers. While everyone's picking their noses, I will be the one who will never need to touch a booger, elevating my status to that of a higher being... perhaps a god.

Well, it so happens that not long after, I had an appointment with Doctora Dizon, my pediatrician. Just routine stuff, vaccinations, physical.

HOLY MOLY, she about dropped the otoscope when examining my nose. "What do you have in there, RAISINS*?!" she exclaimed.

And that's how I was given a medical prescription to pick my nose, When I Was A Stupid Kid.

* She didn't actually say "raisins", she said "champoy", which is a salty Filipino snack made from dried plums. Raisins are the most popular dried fruit in the US, so I used that as the American equivalent.

I hope you enjoy my Stupid Kid stories!
Tiffanny

Christmas Day Sketchbook Paintings

2010-12-26T12:30:00.000-08:00

It was really cold yesterday, but I still wanted to go out and paint, so I just went to Austin and did these from inside the comfort of my car (and at home, after taking lots of color notes). Parking downtown is usually excruciating, but since it was Christmas, there was tons of easy parking. I smell a new Christmas tradition for me! I hope you like my little sketchbook paintings.

Until next time!
Merry Christmas!
Tiffanny

This Week's Still Life

2010-12-25T16:07:00.000-08:00

So my friend and I decided to switch things up. I painted with oil and he painted with watercolors. Kinda scary to be out of your element. I haven't painted in oils in forever!

When I Was A Stupid Kid - The Severed Head Affair

2010-12-18T21:04:00.000-08:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I loved playing tricks. Especially scaring people.

So I hatched a plan to scare the pants off of my cousin. I started gathering my materials to frankenstein a monster so terrifying, he would literally crap his pants right then and there. Then I would explode in insane laughter, mocking him for falling for my plan. Relishing in his terror and in my own genius. It would be the greatest achievement of my life.

So with a paper bag stuffed with a t-shirt and tied on one end, I proceeded to draw a festering face.

And with some yarn, I fashioned some horrid hair.

With ketchup, I bloodied his brow.

And with a kitchen knife and some crazy zeal,

I stabbed the Severed Head Monster.

Before I placed my monster strategically in the bathroom, I used red cellophane to cover the lights and cast an eerie glow. A scheme this diabolical needs elaborate special effects.

With that beautiful red light, my monster turned from a hacked-together paper bag monster into something that looked very realistic, if I may pat myself on the back.

Now, all I had to do was wait and get ready to savor the moment. MY VICTORY! And I shall be held in high in the Parthenon of Child Evil-Geniuses for the most clever, practically fool-proof scheme ever concocted by a deranged mind. Now, just a bit of fairy tale adventures to quickly pass the time....

Oh man, I gotta pee....

WAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

And that is how I scared the crap out of myself, When I Was A Stupid Kid.

Oh boy, oh boy, now you tell me a story! What kinda pranks did you pull? Hopefully they didn't backfire like mine did!

Tiffanny

Watercolor - Still Life with Iron Teapot, Missletoe, and a Bust my Husband Sculpted!

2010-12-15T10:51:00.000-08:00

So my friend and I are going to do at least one still life a week for as long as we can tolerate it. This is the first painting since we have made that resolution.Ohhhh it has many problems, but I have been assured that only I can catch them, being the critical creator. Anyway, here it is for all of you to love or hate, and everything in between.

Visit me again :)
Tiffanny

Short Pose Session, AVAA, Karin

2010-12-14T15:25:00.000-08:00

Figure drawings from the AVAA ranging from 5 minutes to 30 minutes. I was sitting on the side that was completely lit, so not much light and shade to show form.

I kind of wonder sometimes if I should even be posting my figure drawings. They're not particularly fun to look at, especially not compared to watercolors, and paintings in general; And I dont really shade things in so they kind of look like coloring-book drawings. Maybe I will start posting figure drawings again when I start going more traditional with it (like with charcoal or conte or something). I dont know. As a reader of my blog, what would you say? Pare it down to only fun stuff, or do you wanna see my figure drawings (which, if anything will at least show that I am practicing and possibly growing)

I dont know. OH, a friend and I made a resolution to get together and do a still life once a week, possibly every tuesday or thursday. So you will be seeing that stuff on here soon i hope!
Thank you ever so much for visiting me blog :)
Tiffanny

Short Pose Session, AVAA, Red-headed lady

2010-12-07T08:01:00.000-08:00

Yay! New model last night. I draw on really big paper when I go to figure drawing (18" x 24") so I have a hard time with proportions because I don't see the entire figure at once on my paper. I'm on a donkey easel, so stepping back is not too easy (It's more of a scooch and lean-back thing that I do). Still, I LOVE drawing on big paper because I can really use my entire arm to draw. Big sweeping lines are fun. Adds energy (theoretically. In practice though, my figures still look a bit stiff)
25 minute pose...

I've been really working on understructure before I put details on. You can really see the frame this figure was built on in this one and the next one.
10 minutes...

5 minutes

Well, that's all for now! Hopefully I can get my readers something in color soon. :)
Thank you so much for visiting. HAVE A NICE DAY!!!!!!!!
Tiffanny

Watercolor Sketchbook - Flightpath Cafe

2010-12-05T20:17:00.000-08:00

A cold front has covered pretty much the entire United States, and even Austin, Texas was cold today. I had to change my zoo plans. That's ok, there's a figure drawing session in town. I drove a half hour to get to the figure drawing session only to find out that it was canceled... forever! :( I decided to just try sketching people at Flightpath Cafe. I was never great at painting interiors. I like drawing and painting people though :) Hope you like it :)

When I Was A Stupid Kid - First Crush

2010-12-04T09:27:00.000-08:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, my first crush was Astroboy. Was I aware he was only a cartoon? Yes. Still. He's that awesome.

Did you have a cartoon crush as a kid? If you're not too embarrassed, please share! I'd like to know I wasn't the only Stupid Kid around!

Thanks for visiting!
Tiffanny

5 Ways to Prepare for Zoo Drawing

2010-12-02T12:31:00.000-08:00

OK, I plan on going to the zoo this weekend, weather permitting. So I've started preparing by drawing my dogs. I prepare many other ways, and I've created a list I hope you may find helpful.

1) I prepare by browsing through animal drawing books. My favorite authors for this are Joe Weatherly, Ken Hultgren and David Coleman.
2) I watch my BBCs Earth or Life DVD, and sketch some animals while they are moving. This prepares me for the zoo trip where animals wont hold still.
3) I look at my animal action figures from Schleich, I draw them in a pose that is different from how they are sculpted to prepare me for different poses a real animal will have.
4) I go to a natural history museum and draw taxidermy.
5) I draw my dog and cats. I try to draw them moving as well as relaxed.

Now that you have mentally prepared yourself with these tips, you will have a more productive trip! :)

I hate spending hours at the zoo and then ending up with crappy drawings. Best to prepare to make the most out of your admission fee! So, I hope to update with some zoo drawings by next week. I hope you will visit me again.

This is Honker, my short-haired dog. Because of this, you can really see her definition. She's perfect for anatomy study.

This is Gracie. True to her name, she's very graceful, in movement and features. She's foxy-red and has a deer-like frame, with long thin legs.

This is Frannie, a friend's dog. She's hard to draw! I'm so unfamiliar with her.

Short Pose Session, AVAA, Reina

2010-11-29T20:56:00.000-08:00

Reina was booked as model again today at the AVAA. Once upon a time, someone commented that I only draw pretty young thin models and that I ought to expand. I soooo agree! I wish I did have a choice in the matter, but I'm not the one booking models! The recession has absolutely, without a doubt, hit us hard financially, but I'm optimistic that next year, I may be able to hire my own models. Need to practice males too. Not that Reina isn't awesome to draw, of course. And kudos to her for being in great shape.
25 minute pose...

15 minute pose...

5 minute pose...

And that is that!
Hope you keep on visiting me and please comment if you find some bad habits. I'm aware of the thunder-thigh tendency. I continue to fight that... :)

Have a great day!!
Tiffanny

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Tiffanny, Private First Class

2010-11-26T16:21:00.000-08:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I liked to pretend that I was a soldier.

I would dash from foxhole to foxhole...

I would subordinate my enemies with my machine gun...

I would crawl bravely though dangerous mine fields...

I would... What the hell is that smell???

And that's how I got myself completely covered in dog crap When I Was A Stupid Kid.
What's the worst thing you got all over yourself when you were a Stupid Kid? How did it get there?

note: I decided not to paint all the frames, mainly because watercolor paper is verrrry expensive :( I would love to paint everything though! But I should really save some paper for plein air painting or still life or something. I would blow through it way too fast if I painted all of my Stupid Kid stories.

Economizing,
Tiffanny

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Two Birds With One Stone

2010-11-20T00:54:00.000-08:00

When I Was A Stupid Kid, I had a closet door that had a lip and a crossbar on the inside.

Like any red-blooded-Chinese-Filipino-kid would do, I exploited this unique furnitural property for my entertainment.

Whilst latched on to my closet door as if it were my personal in-house sideways see-saw, I pushed off the side of the closet....

...and swung gleefully until the hinge hit its limit, whens-forth it would send me flying back to the beginning, where I would again, push off the side and continue swinging. It was utterly fabulous.

I never doubted the supreme invention called screws and hinges. Those metal things would never fail me.

That is, until the day the hinge screws finally came off the wood and sent the closet door, with me on it, flying across the room and crushing my bed.

And that is how I destroyed two large pieces of furniture in one foul swoop, When I Was A Stupid Kid.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my childhood adventures. I think this incident might be tied to the fact that my hips always pops, as far as I can recall.

Now tell me, were you a good kid or a destructive kid? What did you destroy and how did you do it?

notes about the illustrations:
*The Illustration of me falling on the bed is misleading in the fact that I drew it falling with the flat side on the bed. It was more like a side-chop. Also, My mother believed that thick mattresses were bad for you, and so my mattress was quite thin, an inch thick at most, so it did nothing to break the fall.

Come visit me again!
Tiffanny

When I Was A Stupid Kid - Orange Popsicle

2010-11-15T22:04:00.000-08:00

When I Was a Stupid Kid living in the Philippines, I loved getting orange popsicles. The kind where there are two sticks, so me and my sister can share. It was like getting two for the price of one!

I loved these orange popsicles, but I never had money to buy them. I devised a plan. I was going to make orange-popsicle-flavored-drink. GENIUS! All I needed was milk, oranges, and sugar, right? This is me happily making my popsicle drink.

This milk carton is misleading. First of all, we didn't have fresh milk in the Philippines, heck no, we had Birch Tree brand Milk Powder!! Which did not actually dissolve in cold water. So, I had hot water, mixed with Birch Tree brand Milk Powder , a ton of sugar, and orange juice. Orange juice doesn't naturally mix with milk, by the way. How they get orange juice molecules to stick to milk is modern science.

This is my face after I drank my Warm Orange Popsicle Flavored Drink. I think I turned blue.

And that's what I did, When I Was a Stupid Kid.

THE END

What sort of foods did you make when you were a stupid kid?

PS.
The outfit I'm wearing is based on the Grace Christian Kindergarten uniform I wore for school. The red balls in my hair, I distinctly remember because my yaya pulled my hair back so tightly with those damn balls. My forehead remains just as large today.

Time Lapse Watercolor Painting, Alicia and Sparky / See the painting IRL @ The Knitting Nest

2010-11-12T01:07:00.000-08:00

Please click here to go to the video!

This the the last of the Knitters and their Cats series. This one is based on a dear friend who inspired me to take up knitting. When I lost my dog Cosmo, she knitted me my first ever hand-knit scarf to cheer me up. I was in awe. I regarded that hand made scarf as The Best Thing Ever. She made it with her own two hands, just for me. It was better than anything you could ever buy at a store. I took up knitting soon after I received that scarf. Like her, I generously knitted for others. One year, I knitted 11 pairs of socks for my family. 22 socks total. That was before I learned how to watercolor, so I had time back then :) Now my knitting obsession has been replaced by painting. I guess I have an addictive personality. Its why I stayed away from coffee for a long time. Now I'm addicted to that too. DOH.

Knitting to me now is the treat at the end of the day. If I have felt like I've done enough art, If I have completed at least 30 minutes of exercise, if I have spent enough time with the dogs and exercised them, I will allow myself to knit. Surprisingly, even with these stipulations, I've completed a sweater and 4 pairs of socks this year :)

You can see the 4 Knitters and their Cats paintings in person at The Knitting Nest. The owner of the yarn shop is so sweet. She's an animal lover just like me. She lets her dogs hang out at the store. That's what I love about Austin. People generally love dogs here. There's almost always outdoor seating at restaurants so you can eat with your dog. There are even parks you can go swimming with your dog at! Anyway, I do go on. You're probably here to read about art and painting, and here I am rambling about knitting and dogs. DOH.

Hope you visit me again, traveler of the internets!

Tiffanny

Watercolor - Zilker Botanical Gardens Lantern in Pond

2010-11-06T20:56:00.000-07:00

Unfortunately, my camera wasn't up to the task of taking 2 hours of video for this painting I did today. I really wanted to do a time lapse for you, but it just wasn't going to happen. I need to figure out how to hook up my camera to a battery source and laptop at the same time so I can record video. On batteries it can only records 2 minutes of video, which would have made me have to stop and go every two minutes. That's a bad way to paint.

Well here is my process. I started with the darkest part of the water, but wiped off where I was going to put the fish while it was still wet. Then I dropped in some orange fish, again while it was still wet. I wanted the greens to bleed into the oranges to make the fish look like they are in the water. This was a special challenge for me. I've never painted the water surface, reflections, and what's underneath it at the same time before. Hopefully it worked out. You tell me. The rest of the painting follows my usual technique. I think I can generalize a few things regarding painting water though. Reflections are hard edged. Everything underneath is soft edged.

And that's all for today. Two posts in one day though :) I hope I am keeping you, my reader, entertained. Anyway, earlier today I said how busy I was. I'm not kidding. I'm applying for two grants, and they both require me to show all kinds of work (10 or more illustrations). I'm busy working on one of my grant-paintings starting tomorrow. If I win it, maybe some publishers will take notice!

I hope you visit me again!
Tiffanny

Time Lapse Watercolor Painting, Eunice and Mewsic

2010-11-06T09:07:00.000-07:00

It's crazy how busy I have been lately. There is really not enough time in the day. I might have mentioned here before that I'm aspiring to paint for a living (or at least as a moonlighting job on top of my day job). I thought the easiest route for me would be to be a children's book illustrator, but trying to get jobs is frustrating. After sending out 80 postcards to various publishers, there have been no responses. I ordered 250 more cards and I'm so busy typing up addresses. It's so mundane but it's gotta be done. I often wonder why many publishers don't accept e-mailed art. That would make my life so much easier. (And cheaper. postcards are expensive to print. Plus the postage!)

I've been busy getting enough paintings together for The Knitting Nest. The woman there, Stacey, has agreed to hang my artwork there for a Ravelry event next weekend. I think it's the perfect venue for my "Knitters and their Cats" series. I would like to extend my gratitude to Eunice for helping me out with my project. She's a super sweet lady with a heart of gold. Regarding her cat's name she says "My cat's name is Mewsic. Music is my favorite thing and when I got her, she meant so much to me, I had to name her after my favorite thing in the world." How sweet, right?

So here is the Time Lapse Painting on YouTube!

I'm hoping that I could get my readers a special surprise. I'm on my way to Zilker to do some plein air painting. I'm bringing a camera and tripod along. Hopefully, I can get a time lapse of me painting on the spot. Because of the logistics of my camera memory, battery life, etc, it may just be a 1 frame/second deal.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Tiffanny

Time Lapse Watercolor Painting, Chinese Girl and Cat

2010-11-03T18:47:00.000-07:00

I made a Time Lapse video of this cute painting available on Youtube. Click Here.

Thanks for visiting my blog!

Short Pose Session, AVAA, Reina

2010-11-01T22:02:00.000-07:00

I was late to the session thanks to having to run to the store to get more Cad Red Light. (Just in case I felt like painting at 2 am later.) Anyway, I was late so I had to be in the way way back standing, and I CANNOT draw standing. My deltoids are too weak and feeble. I felt like I didn't have good control over my pencil. That's my excuse anyway :) Only two drawings I can post today that wont make you gag.

Time Lapse Watercolor Painting of Jen and Tennyson

2010-11-01T14:23:00.000-07:00

The video is here

Watercolor - Zilker Botanical Gardens Gazebo

2010-10-31T18:32:00.000-07:00

Austin weather is absolutely gorgeous right ow, and so is Zilker Botanical Gardens!

Watercolor Tutorial or Demo Video

2010-10-30T21:49:00.000-07:00

Now Available on YouTube. Here is Part 1 and Part 2

Putting this tutorial together was laborious and time consuming, but if you learn a few things, then it was worth it. I hope you like it. I tried to cram as much info as I can into the video, and yet there are still so many things about watercolor that I left out. Maybe I will do more tutorials in the future. There are several places in the video where I make mistakes while painting. I think this is ok to show the viewer how I deal with problems I encounter. Anyway, I really really really really hope you like it!

Tiffanny

Short Pose Session, AVAA, Michelle

2010-10-25T23:53:00.000-07:00

I was really really really trying that Reilly Method I read about. It's especially apparent on the 5 minute poses. I really enjoy trying something new. I THINK that it's helping my drawings look more rhythmic, but who knows! :)

15 minutes...

5 minutes each figure...

1 minute poses

Oh yes, about that tutorial. Cutting the dialogue together right now. My weekend was completely booked with my Bro-in-law in town plus a B-day party for a dear friend. Today I got a very short-term freelance job, so I put my time into that instead. Sigh. It's coming though!

Tiffanny
ps. HI PENNY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Watercolor - Jennifer Anastasia and Tennyson

2010-10-22T20:18:00.000-07:00

My friend Jen and her cat Tennyson.

Well, I've been working on a video tutorial for my watercolor techniques and philosophies. Unfortunately AfterEffects doesn't accept the format that my camera spits out. So I have to import the files into 3DSMAX and render it to a file that AfterEffects recognizes before I can cut the video together. But rest assured it will be up soon! I've always liked teaching. I took advantage of my little sisters when they were kids, sitting them down and lecturing at them. Poor dears. :) Now that I'm somewhat acclimated with watercolors, I feel that I have a few things I can teach. I guess we'll see how it goes. I've never been taught watercolors OR how to teach. This is allllll going to be new.

Until tomorrow,
Tiffanny

Short Pose Session, AVAA, drawings of Emily, Reilly Method

2010-10-18T22:28:00.000-07:00

25 minute pose:

15 minute pose:

10:

You may notice the lack of 1-minute gesture drawings this time. That's because I totally blew it. I don't know where my head was, but the harder I tried, the worse it looked! 1-minute poses get my adrenalin going. There's so much to draw and so little time. Anyway, I calmed down when we hit 10 minute poses. For the 10-minutes and up poses, I kept the Reilly Method in my mind the whole time. (The Reilly Method is described in the Anatomy issue of Imagine FX, page 18. It's an incredibly elegant method, but I still need to practice more, more, more.)
Anyway, I do have some bad tendencies when I draw. One is to break the hands and feet into components, rather than having them flow from the arms/legs. I'm working to fix that. Can you spot any other bad tendencies? Mistakes I keep repeating over and over? Symbol drawings to note? (For the non-artistic, a symbol drawing is like drawing what you know, not what you see, which appear again and again in your drawing.)
OK, time to hit the spin bike. I engorged myself like a tick this weekend with ice cream, brownies, and a chocolate cheesecake from Kerby Lane Cafe.

Tiffanny
Ps. OMG! Sold my first print ! Completely unexpected.

Watercolor - Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center / Promoting Brian

2010-10-17T12:11:00.000-07:00

I sprung for the annual membership when I went to the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. There is just so much to paint there that I think I will get my money's worth. I think I will try to go there once a month and after I have 12 paintings from each month, I will put together a calendar :)

I promised my friend that I would help promote his artwork. I am horrible at self-promotion myself. Seriously. But I will try promoting for my friend. His name is Brian Lee, he is a passionate alla prima landscape oil painter. Absolutely dedicated. At such a young age, he's already exhibiting in a gallery. Go see his artwork! If you like his work, drop him a line! Artists could always use a boost. Anyway, I'm pretty sure Brian is under 25, and at the pace he's going he will be a serious painting force when he's older. So go buy some art before he's too famous for you to afford his artwork!!!

Tiffanny

Still Missing You

2010-10-15T14:01:00.000-07:00