little successes

Many layers make up the background - it's a little wobbly, but good.

I first learned to use Photoshop and Illustrator in the 1980's, when it was "the wave of the future" and only available on Macs. Photoshop was used for scanning in your reference sketches and converting to a masking layer. All the *real* drawing was done in Illustrator. I spent long hours in the computer lab creating images too large to fit on a 3.5" floppy, images that the "help lab" would compress by turning into 300 page documents of ASCII text.

A lot has changed since then. My abilities as an illustrator as well as the capabilities of both programs. For the last several years I have done the majority of my art "by hand", by which I mean non-digitally. Each time I attempted a computer-based illustration, I would get frustrated with the learning curve necessary to master the tools available in the latest software version. It was faster to create the whole thing with pen and paper because I had a proper understanding of what those materials could do.

A new layer for adding "characters".

Recently, my boss at my day job asked me to throw together a sign to put in one of the display cases. I could see the image I wanted in my mind. But all of the tools I would normally use were at home in my studio. I opened up Photoshop on my work computer and gave it a whirl. Being trapped at the office gave me the impetus to push beyond the first 17 mistakes of color and placement and work up something I could live with, even feel proud of. :)

The final image.

The only sketch I did "by hand"

Two things I would like to do next time around:
1. draw at home using my wacom tablet instead of the jerky mouse I used at work.
2. dig up that tutorial on how to make my own brush settings instead of just using the pre-sets.

ONE TRUTH MANY LIES

One Truth, Many Lies: A New View of Art and Natural History Collections

• Apply by December 13, 2013

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

Goals of the Residency

• To connect visual artists and museum visitors in a lively discussion of the intersection of art and science;
• To create programming and artwork that focuses on novel use of natural history collections as part of the artistic process.
• To increase collections use by nontraditional communities;
• To provide access to natural history library and research collections for artists to utilize in the creation of a body of work.

Duration

Residency terms are over a period of three days and two nights, and must take place during one of the following date ranges selected by the Artist and agreed to by the Academy:

April 14, 2014 – May 4, 2014  

May 19, 2014 – June 9, 2014  

June 25, 2014 – July 16, 2014

August 1, 2014 – August 22, 2014

Artists will receive an honorarium, and compensation for travel, lodging, meals, and incidentals for three days and two nights in San Francisco.

Deadline: Proposals due no later than 5:00 p.m. on December 13, 2013, and must be submitted via email to Diane T Sands (dsands@calacademy.org) with the subject line: One Truth Many Lies Submissions. Questions may be directed to Diane T Sands, MLIS, MFA, Collection Development Librarian, via the email above or at (415) 379-5489.

Eligibility

The Academy will select a total of four (4) Artists in Residency (the “Artist(s)”) based upon the following criteria:

   Merit of past work.

    Readiness to engage with visiting public at the Academy.

    Potential for proposed programming to impact the Academy community and beyond in positive and educational ways.

Emerging and mid-career artists involved in high quality, research-based practice, who have not had the opportunity to work at the Academy, will be given priority in selection.

Residency Requirements

1. Selected Artists will be required to present two programs during their residency, at least one of which must be a public educational program: A lecture or demonstration designed for the museum floor with general audiences in mind; And a hands-on workshop or other class offered free of charge to the public, and optimized for individuals to create and work collaboratively with the visiting artist. Programs will be arranged at scheduled times Thursdays through Sundays.

2. The Artist and Academy staff will mutually agree upon any public programs and activities offered by the Artist.  

3. Significantly, Artists will have at least one day to interact with researchers at the Academy and work with the research collections housed in the Academy’s Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability.

4. Artists will participate in final informational exchange/interview with Academy staff.

How to Apply

1. Artists must provide a resume and/or curriculum vitae, with full name, address, phone, and email.

2. Provide a letter of interest, outlining the two proposed programs for the public during the Residency, and the specific Academy research collection to be accessed.  Please provide taxonomic (family) classification or narrower, if possible; please refer to information about the Academy’s scientific research departments and collections at http://research.calacademy.org/.

3. Provide three (3) references.

4. Provide URL for at least fifteen (15) clearly-captioned images of recent works.  No CDs, memory sticks, or paper portfolios will be accepted.

Proposals will be reviewed by a committee of knowledgeable arts professionals and selected Academy staff. Finalists will be invited to the Academy for an interview and presentation of their work.   

Selected artists will be notified via email on or before Friday, January 31, 2014.

Ownership and License of Artist(s) Works Created During and For Residency

1. Artist(s) will retain copyright of all work product created by them during and for their Residency at the Academy.

2. The Academy requests that Artist(s) grant the Academy a perpetual, irrevocable, royalty-free, license to use, adapt, incorporate, reproduce, display, modify, and make derivative or collective works of Artist(s)’ work product from the Residency for use in Academy promotional materials, brochures, advertising, or similar marketing materials, including on the Academy’s website or social media sites.  

Child Safety

All Academy Artists in Residence are requested to review and abide by the Academy’s “Code of Conduct with Youth” policy.  

random sketches

I begin another wonderful, hand-made sketchbook today (thanks, Anna!). Here are a few sketches from the last book worth sharing. Enjoy!

ok. this is from the sketchbook before last, but I couldn't resist. :)

conventions and killer robots

Firecracker flower (Dichelostemma ida-maia) and frenemies.

I posted the companion piece to this guy over at the Illustration Smackdown on From the Stacks. I know many botanical artists who do wonderful jaw-dropping work. Once I thought I might try to join them. However, I am not very good at following lists of conventions - and the American Society of Botanical Artists have a bunch. For the ASBA, scientific illustration is a smaller piece of botanical art. In my mind, it is the other way around

Not only do I have a predilection for drawing animals, but I kept getting hung up on botanical traditions, like the isolated specimens on a pure white background with no extras. I can’t help it. I find it kind of boring. Mentally, I draw wild beasts into these delicate works, ripping the foliage apart or inserting killer robots with blasters setting fire to the petals. This time I went beyond mentally drawing, and I must say I am glad I did. :)

evolution of a painting

Slowly over the last month, I have been painting the above puma.This time I remembered to take some progress photos. :)

Stories in Stone

They don't make books like they used to. I've been hanging out in the closed stacks of the library lately. Many of the older books on the shelf have the best decorations on the front. Lots of gold leaf, funky designs. Here (beyond the break) are some of my favorites from this week....

another week of sketches

While I put the finishing touches on my current painting, I offer another handful of sketches.

Across from one of the bus stops I stand at, is an Oakland landmark.

I had a little help from V on this one. :)

This one reminds me of Edward Gorey.....

What are you reading?

random sketches from the week.

If a bear sighs in the woods, does anyone hear?

I have started trying to bike part of my daily commute. Fun!

The one sketch I managed during a fun day out with my brother & his wife in Muir Woods. For a monochrome sketch I feel I did okay capturing the trees. Must go back for more practice.

I am not fond of grocery shopping.

smacked by a fish (again)

I posted this gem earlier today over on the From the Stacks blog. This time  (as a tool to help my own self see the changes over time) I remembered to take some photos of the process.

These follow after the break below. :)

found the scanner

I draw something every day. Not everything is worth sharing. Some times even if it is, I've buried the scanner so deeply under half finished projects, I can't share easily even if I want to. I spent a chunk of today doing some cleaning in the studio and - surprise! - found the scanner. Here are a few images from the last month. :)

fatal phone calls

Using my head

The latest Illustration Smackdown posted on the From the Stacks blog featured the chimpanzee, Pan troglodytes. It also set me head-to-head with Jane Goodall, probably the only time in my life I can say that. 

In the aforementioned blog, I blather on for a bit about comparative anatomy, a subject that I find fascinating. It is a good example of why biology is, in my opinion, as much about vocabulary as it is about getting your hands dirty. Hand, paw, hoof, flipper, talon, carpals - all of these words refer to the same set of bones in different animals. While comparative anatomy is usually limited to vertebrates, it is helpful when looking at invertebrates of the same order. 

I created the above image with carbon dust on Ross Board. It was my first usage of Ross Board, due largely to the fact that it ceased being produced before I hit high school. Created by the Ross brothers out of Philadelphia, the board was used for carbon dust illustrations by medical & scientific illustrators.

It is been a long time since it was produced, although many people have tried to duplicate it. The rollers used to make the white clay-coated paper have disappeared along with the Ross brothers into history. I obtained some board through a retired illustrator and have been hesitant to use it. I feared ruining it. Ross board has a heavier tooth than other boards I have used. Having started with smoother boards, I am not sure I like it. I suppose that is all right as I only have a few pieces left. No sense in falling in love with a limited supply. *grin*

Illustration Obsession

What, you may be asking yourself, are those odd shaped sheep in that reproduced image (an engraving from ~1787), brought to us courtesy of the Biodiversity Heritage Library's Flickr stream?* They do look like sheep, don't they? Or some sort of odd ungulate-sized mice lazing about on rocks? Maybe a blocky rat, or muskrat? ...But, NO! They are bats. BATS!?!?! Printed the same size as the jaguar three plates earlier. What was Buffon thinking? I don't know, but I had to do my own illustrations of these little guys to demonstrate how much scientific illustration has improved in 200+ years...

The three bats presented in the above Buffon image done here in pastel, from top to bottom:

• Greater Bulldog bat, Nolctilio nigrita
• Ternat or Greater Yellow House bat, Pteropus vulgaris
• Senegal bat, Vespertilio nigrita

*Buffon's Natural history, containing a theory of the earth, a general history of man, of the brute creation, and of vegetables, minerals, &c. &c. From the French, with notes by the translator.  London:1797-1807.

Tooting my own horn

My new book of illustrations is out!! Twenty or so images interspersed among stunning ocean mythology poetry. Many thanks to Zachary Chartkoff for collaborating with me on this one. :) 

Get your copy here. 

Fish on Friday

Your Friday fish blog is here. I worked up this lovely Remora remora using carbon dust on illustration board for the latest Illustration Smackdown on the From the Stacks blog. Nature is full of wonderful creatures, but this one is just weird. The front dorsal fin has evolved into a giant sucker disc which the Remora uses to attach to a larger fish, turtle, ray, or shark. The larger animal swims fast enough to increase the oxygen flow over the Remora's gills, which is good since they will die in still waters. Wacky!

writing and reference

This past weekend I got some great new cards from the pickypockets booth. I spent the last three hours (in between reference questions - probably why it took so long) enhancing it with my first ever pop-up.

I had so much fun I might make a habit out of this. :)

I have! More pics after the break....

tumbling into indoor safaris

Life changes us all. 

I used to spend time planning outdoor adventures to better study the changes in nature, to witness migrations and annual events. Now I work too much, spend my time indoors and plan excursions to the grocery store. The nature side of my sketchbook suffers (while the snarky cartoons are often on the rise).

Enter social media.

Inspired by the students I work with at the university reference desk, I set up a tumblr account. While I have yet to post anything (I'm not that organized), I have subscribed to many threads that feature some awesome nature photography. When I need to sketch, to feel connected to the world out there, but have 5 more hours to go on a desk shift, I start scrolling. When an image captures my imagination, I'm off and sketching.

Cook This!

I made up a magazine and laid out the cover of the Spring Issue for the latest Illustration Smackdown. Since I have never been known for my botanical illustrations, I tried to ask why anyone would ask me to illustrate fennel in this day and age. Voila! A cooking magazine. 

I laid out the cover in Photoshop, and discovered the "bar code" font. So much easier than drawing my own. Submit your recipes in the comments by the end of the month and I'll attempt to toss together a zine (in my copious free time).  

Fun with a ball point pen

Lately, the only pen in my pocket has been a seven-year ball point (supposedly the ink will last for seven years, but I'll likely lose it long before 2019). I have been having great fun working on a full range of grays using just the one implement. Fun!

This dog is made up from my memory of dogs while sitting in one of the many waiting rooms I get to enjoy on a regular basis. :)

sheep reference thrills

Today I am thankful for a few slow moments at the reference desk. I've written seven letters, and drawn a big horn sheep - and I still have 2 hours to go! The New England Journal of Medicine has come up in five of my last seven searches for folks. I'm sure that means something.....

the truth, the vole truth and nothing but the truth

This little meadow vole just got accepted into a juried show today. I created it a while ago for a wildlife illustration class. During the research for this image, I came across an article referencing these little rodents as the largest pests of commercially grown artichokes. Wacky.

pen pals who don't write back

My grandmother is almost 95. Arthritis keeps her from writing back. When I lack interesting tidbits to share about my children, she gets a quick sketch. 

Send me your address, and you too might get a hug in the mail. :)

sunny Sunday afternoons

A crappy photo I took of a one page Toast comic I drew in my journal yesterday afternoon. I find I draw a lot of these, but only one or two ever make it into the published zine. This one won't make the cut because a) it isn't all that funny, and b) it takes more time to explain what it is about than to read it. The green bin referenced above is the street-side city compost bin (see pic below). The garden looks much better now, though there is always work to be done. :)

books books BOOKS

This is one for the book nerds. :)
For those of you uninterested in the entire list, some quick recommendations:
The Toaster Project - Thomas Thwaite. Follow Thwaite as he makes a toaster from scratch. Really.
Blackout & All Clear - Connie Willis. I swore I'd never read a WWII novel again, yet I could not put these down.
Sacre Bleu - Christopher Moore. Funny. Artsy. Profane.
anything written by Carlos Ruis Zafon

(read the whole list below.....)

A beetle smackdown

Published these two images over at the From the Stacks blog today. I knew if we kept doing the Illustration Smackdown long enough I would eventually get a critter I had drawn/painted before. I did both of these images in 2006 - the color image as a live demo done on the public floor of the museum. I had started off doing a butterfly from my own collection, which was crumpled by an inquisitive 3yo while I chatted with his mother. The Naturalist Center had a pair of beetles under glass, so I pulled out some new paper and got to work.

Exhibits and an invitation

I have been hard at work on several exhibits lately. Two are done and one is in the works. 

Above & below I am working with Mollie Cueva-Dubkowski, a Careers in Science Intern at CAS, to create an exhibit in the Library Reading Room on Ecuador. Mollie is a fabulous writer (as evidenced by this blog) and her exhibit is fascinating to look at AND educational. There will be another blog post (it's in the works now) with more images, as the Reading Room is not open to the public without an appointment.

Also, this past Monday, myself and a number of wonderful volunteers, hung the Nature's Jewels show at t he Tilden Environmental Education Center. pics below!