Various Cliches for an Alternate Holiday

Various Cliches for an Alternate Holiday, by Mary Stebbins Taitt. Done on Thanksgiving. Hope yours was happy (if you celebrate). This is in Ammon's Moleskine. This completes my sketches for Ammon's book and I will probably send it off to Jessie early next week. Technical pens (mostly my new one from Poland), Pigma pens, various colored pencils (Derwent Colorsoft, Prismacolor).

Mary's mole has reached English shores

It landed on my doormat Tuesday (thanks Mike) and here it is on my table, waiting for inspiration to tickle my creative nodes. Great to see all your work first hand, and it is very inspiring. I can't wait to get started, if only I was in more. Need some more so-called Arctic weather to keep us indoors.

Mirror Ball in Ammon's Mole

HAPPY THANKSGIVING to those of you who celebrate!

steve-o! final

a quick-o for steve's; that's eight! done while listening to somethin' else by cannonball adderley (twice).


waiter! (micron pens)

steve-o!

I have one more to finish and then I'll post it to Milo - tomorrow, definitely!
Doesn't look like the full monty this month but it is eight sides, weird that.




3 o'clock fleas (steve-o pencils & pen); blue note sketches (pen & watercolour); evolution no.1 (steve-o pencils & pen); emerging lotus (polychromos pencils)

Portholes in Ammon's Mole

Portholes, by Mary Stebbins Taitt--from what into what is unclear! In Ammon's book.

(I added a digital smudge painting of my last sketch of BB to that post).

The Bronze Hand

A last inexplicable item in Jessie's book. This is my first foray into watercolours. The bronze hand looks more orange, but the colour I used was 'gamboge'. I think there was too much water involved - one page cockled a little. Hope to try them out a bit more.

autobiography in John Norman's mole

So this is the mole I'm seriously late on... sorry everyone.

If you click on the photos, you'll be taken to the flickr page which has more descriptions. For me, drawing this was heavy, since I don't like to revisit my younger years in my head, but sometimes a good art-purgative is needed.

aliens invade Baggelboy's skine!!

More collage from me again. I've really been into the idea of rehashing things, in a good way though. Reusing, recycling, remixing - using discarded and neglected elements and bringing new life to 'em. I had a stack of neglected Artist Trading Cards (also known simply as ATCs) and a drawing I made several years ago that had always bothered me - too busy or not so well composed - I don't know. They all decided to get reborn here in Baggelboy's book. With all the pseudo and not so pseudo religious imagery in his book, it seems kind of appropriate, so here's my take. What they are is anybody's guess. "Alien's" is just an easy referral. They're there though, and they seem far happier than they were in their previous lives.

Some more from Johnnynorms

Autumn Glimpses

Biker Buddy

Here's my daily sketch of my husband, this one in Ammon's Moleskine with Derwent Colorsoft pencils.

I made a rough digital smudge painting from the sketch in Ammon's Mole:

Ammon, I am printing you a copy and will put it in the pocket in the back of the mole. So check your pocket when you get the mole back.

The Last Crossing; The Uncertain Sky

The Last Crossing; The Uncertain Sky, by Mary Stebbins Taitt. For
Donna Scott. A rough Smudge painting. Here's the sandwich version.

CONTEST!!!

Check it out HERE fellow skineheads. Deadline is this Friday, Nov 14. I sent them five files. Not even sure if there's a limit. I do know you all have some effing brilliant work, and while the work entered so far is way cool, anyone here is equally good or better. It will be a random drawing though, so it's all beside the point. So, give it a shot guys. It's easy! It's freebies. It's promoting your art.

President Obama's Dog!

"Thank you all but, seriously, I meant dog as in four legged canine, not Elephant taxidermy."

Ozark Autumn

Ozark Autumn, by Mary Stebbins Taitt, in Willie's Mole. After "Shadow Light," by Robert Rohm. (I could not find a copy on line to link to.) This is the last of the sketches in Willie's Mole. I worked on it for more than two weeks. I had to change the date. I had written 10- -08, planning to fill it in when I finished [I wanted to not fill the signature area with too many dots until I'd signed it], but I didn't finish 'til 11-07-08. I was horrified when dampness from the one after this crept through the paper and blurred some of my carefully made dots. Aieee! I repaired it as best I could. I have included a detail. This is a 5 x 8" mole, so the whole picture is about 8 x 10." I used a variety of different pens becasue I have NO set large enough to contain all the colors I need. The different pens make different dots. I hope it arrives safely back to Willie! (And
that he likes it).

Surfing Santa Returns

Mustang Battle for Supremacy, in Willie's Mole

Mustang Battle for Supremacy, By Mary Stebbins Taitt. Most of the background was done with handmade stencils and water colors. I painted in a few trees. The mustangs were done in Photoshop with flowers over them. The whole things is a sort of loose take off on a painting by Wesley Dennis called "The Mustang," which I had in my room, framed on the wall, as a kid. I couldn't find one on-line to link to so you could see it.

I have an MS in Biology and I did my Master's thesis research on "The Social Behavior of Free-ranging Appaloosa Horses." (These aren't appaloosas.). So I thought this would be a fun project for me.

I had fun doing this but was really upset to discover that enough moisture leaked through the paper to make some of the thousands of dots on the previous picture, which I've been working on for two weeks, run! :-( I haven't posted it yet becasue I am still working on it, but you can click here to see a much earlier draft if yr interested.

Dia de los Muertos or Day of the Dead (Take II)

Muertos is spelled using Republican Elephant skin...
Get it?

Dia de los Muertos

Moly delays - HELP!

Hi all,

I am writing to ask all of your advice. I got an email from Willie saying he still hasn't received his October Moly and neither have I. Do we need to factor in an extra month to let people catch up? I am not sure what to do. Do you have any advice? Would the late workers mind chiming in and letting us know if another month would help? I know we all lead busy lives, and this is a challenge for everyone, so I'd like to open things up for a discussion.

I personally feel that when I only have 5 or 10 days to complete someones Moly that I am shortchanging the owner of the book, I don't get to spend as much time on the work as I would like to.

I am going to send a link to this out to the whole group via e-mail. Please comment so we know what everyone thinks.

Thanks and I appreciate each and every one of you!!

art exhibit opportunities!

I thought I would share this here with you all, so check it out. A couple of weeks ago, I was contacted by an art gallery in NYC about participating in a square art show. They wanted me to produce five 12" x 12" canvases for what they deem the biggest show of its kind in the city. I checked it out, and did my homework and it was legit. The fee was a mere fifty bucks, your work is definitely going to be shown in the exhibit if you pay and sign and later bring/send the contract. It's a very simple process, so of course I went for it. I noticed they had more calls for shows at their site, including a skate deck art show, a record art show, a custom toy art show and a sketchbook exhibit. All of these will be taking place at their new, larger space starting early next spring and into summer 2009. I signed up and paid for all five now, and for $220.00 to participate in all five (the sketchbook exhibit fee is only twenty bucks and they send you a book to fill up, which you could later sell!)!! So, the cost to participate is dirt cheap, and the gallery is pretty high profile, and in NYC! My belief is, if the opportunity arises, step up to the plate. All of you are incredibly skilled and creative artists, so that is why I'm sharing this info with you (plus, they asked me if there was anyone else I knew who might be interested and to ask them to consider signing up). I'd imagine if any of you did participate, some of us might show up as well to the reception and we could actually meet in person, beyond the safe and cozy confines of Bloggieland. I've got the luxury of riding the dirt cheap Bolt Bus to NYC, so I'll be at all the receptions. In the meantime, please check out the link HERE and see what you think for yourself.