Year 4 of the 52-Week Illustration Challenge, Week 1

Week 1: Whimsy.

"Ready for a night out." Sketch in black Sharpie, watercolour pencils and white opaque Signo pigment ink on watercolour paper.

Update:

Week 1: Whimsy II.

"Working for peanuts." Watercolour and brown, black and white markers.

Year 3 of the 52-Week Illustration Challenge, Week 9

Week 9: Watercolour

"Hey diddle diddle, don't stop in the middle..." Freehand watercolour on white recycled paper. Masking fluid stars, with highlights and outlines added in black ballpoint and white Puffy paint. Mounted on black card.

Update:

Week 9: Watercolour II

"Goldfish". Freehand watercolours and finepoint Sharpie, over watercolour wash, on watercolour paper. Mounted on black card. Fish based on numerous photos found in a Google Image search.

52-Week Illustration Challenge, Week 24

Week 24: Octopus

Here's my watercolour, watercolour pencil, blue highlighter and permanent black Sharpie blue-ringed octopus on gesso-primed white canvas, accompanied by a newspaper article about my very exciting capture of one at Pearl Beach in 1973. "The Daily Telegraph" did an extensive phone interview by reverse-charges - via the only public phone box in Pearl Beach - but the eventual story was watered down after several more octopuses were caught on the NSW Central Coast on the same day. Must have been breeding season?

Update:
Mixed media collage - on an ink blot. The piece of inverted writing paper has a faint image of planet Earth printed on it. The seaweed was created from a puddle of green watercolour paint blown upwards with a straw.

Week 24: Octopus II

I had been wondering if I could create a symmetrical inkblot octopus. It failed dismally, but I stewed on it for a day or so and then I realised I could salvage it with some collage over the top. That pack of silver/mauve "satin" metallic card was just $2 in a bargain store. Bargain indeed! The eyes are cut from a brown foam animal sticker and self-adhesive "jewels".

And, now, Dad Joke Warning (below): "I'd give seven tentacles to be amoctodexterous":

Week 24: Octopus III

Week 24: Octopus IV

Things you do when you should be packing boxes of books and action figures for the interior painters' imminent arrival: A piece of iPhone photography. I uncovered a cache of stuff last night, including these glass octopuses (above). They are suspended from transparent glass bubbles with fishing line. Originally bought at Fremantle Markets, Western Australia in the early 90s. Took me waaaaaay longer to set up this shot that you'd expect. They kept swimming away!

52-Week Illustration Challenge, Week 19

Week 19: Fish

Oil pastel goldfish, with watercolour wash on gesso primed canvas sheet, and photographed inside an actual fishbowl.

Update:

Ahhh, what a quandary! I made a set of prints (monoprints, but I got two good ones off the positive) attempting to do a "Fish II" entry for the 52-Week Illustration Challenge - and it's soooo colourful, I wondered if it was better to save as a "Week 20: Colour" entry. It needed some work when it was dry, so I was mindful of the possible changed theme as I went. Being red/green colour blind, next week's theme was always going to have its challenges. Of course, my other quandary: at first, the original "positive" I created probably looked better than the "negative" prints. Choices! Decisions!

I'm quite pleased with how it turned out, especially when mounted in one of my bargain bin $3 mounts! It's a monoprint negative, with acrylic paints brushed onto the cardboard positive. Moistioned cartridge paper applied and peeled off then, when dry, a few details were added with waterproof black UniPin marker and Faber-Castell watercolour pencils.

Week 19: Fish II

Week 19: Three negative prints and the positive for "Fish II"

Top left: Failed negative monoprint (I forgot to wet the paper). Top right: Positive in cardboard layers for "Week 19: Fish II". Lower pics are two more monoprint negatives, one of which became the final artwork.

The unmounted monoprint negative for "Week 19: Fish II".