Thursday, March 27, 2008

Monkeying Around!

"A picture is worth a thousand words."

This 3x3 foot canvas for a baby-to-be's nursery leaves a playful story up to your imagination. A banana yellow background displays chocolate-coloured monkeys with swirly tails, curls and bellybuttons. Lime green palm leaves lend to the playfulness of this painting and suggest that there are bananas to be stolen nearby. A peek-a-boo monkey is all eyes and ears in the bottom corner. Definitely a fun piece for over baby's crib, a child's bed or the family playroom.
The canvas is a slight variation from the oft-requested Sweet Pea piece hanging at the Baby Depot (http://www.thebabydepot.ca/) in Kitchener. The dark, bold images on the fair hued background make this art especially easy for little eyes to focus on.

Sending best wishes out to the parents-to-be and first-time auntie too;)
May these mischief makers bring hours of fun to your family!

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Bounce! Messy & Tickle


Mr.Men are back.
Last year I completed a nursery for friends in the Mr. Men & Little Miss characters. Following that I had a customer request for a height chart scroll and now this three 18x18"canvas set is on its way to Whitby.
The background mimics that found in the classic books; solid greens, blues and whites with colourful, bold characters in the forefront. Mr. Bounce is doing just that while the little worm at his feet laughs. Mr. Messy has a bird perched on his head (with a look of disgust) and Mr. Tickle is tipping his hat as his hands reach and squirm behind his back. The horizon line & images in the background meet so that side-by-side this set looks like one long piece of whimsical art.

Greased Lightning!


"Why this car is automatic...
It's systematic
It's hydromatic"
...It's Lightning McQueen, geared up and ready for the open road.

(This canvas is a 12x12" replica of Pixar's Lightning McQueen from CARS.)

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Two-by-Funny-Two













This whimsical march of mixed up animal pairs is a continuation of last summers project at a nursery school hallway in Guelph. Sweet Pea was commisioned to paint the beginning (and now the opposite end) of the hallway as a warm welcome to the wee ones. With a twist on the Noah's Ark theme, I paired odd animals in a parade leading to each of the classrooms. Mary's little lamb holds the Lamb's Court sign, a leaping frog & fly hang on to Hoppers Lane and the lagging turtle directs little ones to Turtles Creek Blvd. Then at each nursery room door, the coinciding animals await, as a pictoral reminder of which room the varying-aged children belong. Though I think most of the children get stuck in the hallway doting on over 30 animals & insects.
Monkeys swing on vines, birds, toucans, ladybug & butterflies perch themselves on top of animals heads, a mouse swings from a cats tail while another carries an elephant who taunts him with cheese dangling from a string, Hopper plays leapfrog with a seahorse blowing shiny bubbles and all the animals from their habitats join together in a colourful parade.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Kiss 'N Tell


A little baby girl is about to be welcomed to a very special nursery.

Two (not including the family pets!) are about to become three in Guelph. They have gone Pottery Barn on the baby bedroom and it is looking fabulous. Currently it boasts gorgeous dark shades of cherry wood, sage green and ruby and now the bedding, custom canvas as well as other choice accents are bringing out the soft palettes of yellow, creamy white, baby blue and tangerine orange.
Animals on Parade baby bedding by the popular Pottery Barn inspired mom and dad-to-be to have custom canvas created to match. Using a slightly lighter shade of green than baby's quilt as a backdrop, elephants, leopards, birds and alligators come to life. Baby elephant and daddy touch trunks, mommy leopard and her little one nuzzle under the sun, Al(ligator) daddy carries around 'cargo' while he gives mommy a clover and tangerine birds are caught kissing on treetops. The centre canvas serves as a focal point, where banners wave in a birds beak, waiting to be adorned with baby's name and birth date.
Now all the room needs is the baby.
All the best to this little family as they await her arrival;)

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Baby Bubbles

Monkey see,
Monkey do,
Baby Monkey...i love you.

This 3x3 foot chocolate monkey canvas has been designed for
A Kids Corner in Oakville; a gorgeous decor store for babies and wee ones (http://www.akidscorner.com/).
The Baby Bubbles canvas is made to match a beautiful striped, spotted & bowed baby bedding set, but would certainly suit any funky nursery around town. With spiraled tail and tufts of fur, bouncing baby monkey and peek-a-boo Mommy (or Daddy) monkey play amidst a sea of bubbles.

Monday, March 3, 2008

Palmy Balmy Beach


As a kid, my passion for drawing stemmed from the likes of Jim Davis (Garfield), Bill Waterson (Calvin & Hobbes), Matt Groening (The Simpsons) & Walt Disney's every creation under the sun. The art of forgery taught me a handful of skills. By simply learning how to duplicate what already existed, I taught myself how to break down images to their simplest shapes and how the tiniest details give drawings life. The real artist emerges when they learn how to create, but copying does have its place in the art world.
Every now and again, I return to the wonderful world of forgery to help give me a basis for new skills. With so much passion and practice in illustration, it is important for me to challenge myself with life drawing which includes my two greatest weaknesses; hands and landscape. Original tools still come in handy; the breaking down of images into shapes and details but with realistic works these tools take on a whole new level. Shading becomes more intense, outlines soften from the solid black lines of the cartoon image I am accustomed to & what seems like one colour is actually an amazing combination of several that creates an illusion for the eye.
Here I have forged part of a painting by French artist Fabrice de Villeneuve who is known in the art world for his tapestry collections & French vintage paintings. This is one of his rare landscape-type works; Seaside Retreat & stands out from the rest of his pieces where similarities are obvious. The original painting actually has a much warmer, softer feel than it's reproduction pictured above. But the overall feel of the work remains; the open door, empty chaise, soft sand, still water & breezy palm all give the sense of that mid-afternoon peace in the summertime.