Thanks!

Finished up the piece for my graduation thank you cards.  Not sure why I decided to paint on black board (actually, it's because I have so damn much of it--I couldn't bear to toss it all out after cleaning out my studio!) but I think next time around when I try it on a lighter surface I'll be able to try some different effects.  Still can't get over the lovely matte finish of gouache!

Free Time?

It's bizarre to do projects that aren't school related.  I'm working on a little piece for my graduation thank yous, and I've been in the mood to work traditionally lately, so I thought I'd try out some of the gouache paints I bought a year or two ago but never had the time to dabble with.  I think I'll really like them when I get the hang of it--I'm loving the matte finish. 

Here's a quick preview/horrid photo before I scan it in and clean things up a bit:

Mike Lowery

I think I'm in love.  Mike Lowery is a professor at the Savannah College of Art & Design, and his work does nothing but inspire me.  Three of the seven art interns at Kohl's will be coming from SCAD--maybe some will know him!  Don't forget to check out more goodness at his website, here.

(And he does pattern work!  Le-swoon.)

Movin' On Up

I'm officially a college graduate!  Two weeks of freedom before I start my internship in the art department at Kohl's.  I'll be in the kid's department and I can't wait!  Here are some pictures from behind the scenes, including Marisa and mine's bright tights and my awesome cake featuring a taste of my thesis work (har har, see what I did there?).

 (Sorry, I couldn't find a source for the kitty cat picture, I've had it saved on my desktop for ages waiting for today!)

The Roaming Gnome

Here it is; my final MIAD assignment.  :(  We were to choose a mascot and backdate it (prior to its invention) into two calendar pages.  I chose the Travelocity gnome and created a sort of travel brochure calendar.  First is the gnome climbing Mount Everest circa the 1950's, taking you "to the ends of the earth", and second is the little guy leading a wagon train across the wild west in the late 1880's.  The phrase for that one was originally going to be "to the final frontier" but Star Trek kind of killed that one for me, haha.

(click to enlarge)

Nine 'o Hearts

Here's my other card for our final illo project.  It was originally going to be full of details but I liked the way the flat colors looked, so it stayed that way.  It's basically everything I like/enjoy.

Sell Sell Sell

Guess what?  All ten of my thesis prints are up for sale on my etsy shop, Abithegail!  There are two available sizes, small (8x10 and 8x8) and large (16x20 and 16x16).  It's so exciting to see them all up in my shop. :)  Don't forget, I still have cup cozies for sale in my class's etsy shop, The Rodent Burrow!

True Love

Here's a little promotional postcard for next February!  I tried doing a piece with plenty of details and no linework; I'm not sure how I feel about it yet, give me a couple weeks.  However, the subject matter is purrfect.  I tossed in some process shots just because it's been a while since I've shown some.

The Rodent Burrow

Not nearly as cool as The Burrow (Potter-Dorks unite!) but still pretty freakin' cool, my class's pop-up Etsy shop has arrived!  There has been a lot of slaving over the needle and thread recently in my household, all to bring to you these little guys.  Their shining faces turned out cuter than I could have ever hoped for!

The shop also features some kick-butt stuff from my fellow classmates- stamps, wallets, wall decor, jewelry, and more.  Act quick, the shop will only be up for a month!

Photo Booth

Today my school had something of a school-wide series of talks among students they called MIAD Define, where seniors could volunteer to talk to any interested underclassman about their thesis work and the entire "end of school" experience.  We had a sort of fancy photo booth set up near the elevator, taking a slice of art school life one by one.  The camera was controlled via smart phone and while still standing in front of the lens, we could glance down at the phone in our hand and see the photo we'd just taken.  The set up was great- I'd love to have an entire school sort of yearbook taken that way.  Here are some of my favorites from the day, but you can see all of them here.

(Pictured: Me, Jasmine Barmore, Jake Otto, Mariah Holterman, Calvin Whitehurst, Leah Sablich, Courtney Allison, and the MIAD River Rat.)

A Little Somethin' Somethin'

Just a kitty I drew last semester that I found while cleaning up some files.  Hope your week is starting out on a good note!  Mine hasn't been too bad- a couple episodes of Carnivále, sewing so much that I might have nerve damage in my fingertips, and doodling up a Valentine's Day postcard filled to the brim with kitties!  Meow.

It's Official

With the help of some of irreplaceable friends (the saint-like Liz Nugent and the splendid Marisa Seguin) my website is now up and running!  There are still some more pieces I need to add, but right now I'm sewing up a storm and making some super adorable cup cozies--more on that later!

In other news, Gallery Night at the Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design was last night and it was a blast.  I met some great people and got excellent reactions to my work.  There was a mini-crisis when the drywall my shelves were mounted to began to fall apart, but a young usher man saved the day by running into the 3-D lab and grabbing a screwdriver so I could quick make some new holes and reattach my shelf.  I wish the night would have lasted longer, I love when people start reading my work and grin at a joke or hold their kids up so they can appreciate it closer.

Happy Halloween!

I'm only six months early, right?  Here are some little guys I made to base a collection of home goods off of.  There will be some coordinating patterns, of course... I just have yet to make them.  Do you have a favorite?  I think mine might be either the vampire or mister ghostie.

Sylvia the Silky-Faced Wonder

This weekend I gave away shifts at Starbucks so I could do more homework.  Yes, I am that cool.  In lieu of paycheck, I have received the comfort of knowing not all hope is lost when it comes to thesis.  After working my tush off, there are only three out of the ten pieces left to finish, and all of those are about half done.  The end is nigh!

Meet Sylvia (and click to enlarge, for heaven's sake).  There were all sorts of goodies I managed to hide in this one, stuff for a lot of my friends, names, my birth date, and then just some silly snake-tattoo-humor like the dead mongoose.  The idea of putting "Jesus Sssssaves" somewhere was tossed around but ultimately discarded (sorry Thad!). 

Georgia the Giantess

Here's one of the pieces that will be going on my postcards for my senior show.  Which I should do the back type for, since I kind of need to order them asap.  She's my favorite so far- she puts on makeup not only on her eyelids but on her chest so she can look dashing. (How come only male birds get to look pretty?  Not fair, says Georgie.)

Bonus fact: My mom was born in '54.

Sven the Sword Swallower

Look guys!  I'm done!  (Or at least, almost done, there will probably be color tweakage.)  It feels weird.  Nine to go.  Heh.

The Rodents

One of my classes will be putting up a pop-up Etsy shop called The Rodent Burrow in late April, and we're all designing banners and icons to vote on today.  Here's a quick rat-pattern I whipped up for my entry.  If you're wondering how on earth we ended up calling the shop that, it's because our school mascot is the River Rat.  Also, I totally came up with the name.  :)

Bug Bed

Here's the finished bedding design! (Original here.)  I changed the bugs into simpler silhouettes, which helped tone down the busy-factor and helped bring the audience age a tiny big older.

American Hoarders

All finished!  There are lots of Easter eggs in this one (but not nearly as many as I've managed to shove into Sylvia the Silky-Faced Wonder's tattoos!).  I love stashing little details into pieces; for instance, Gene, the fellow, is collecting model tractors and cars because that was something my grandpa did.  Can you find some of the other treats?  Look for: a tiny pitchfork, the actual American Gothic painting, some lollipop-esque Grant Wood trees, and a sled (Rosebud, as per the instructor's request).  (Click the image for a bit of a leg up in your quest.)

 (PS: Can you find the two kitties?)

American Hoarders Sketch

My freshest seminar project is to do a piece inspired by Grant Wood's American Gothic.  These are a couple of my sketches--as much as I love kitties the hoarders piece works better.  And I'm not too worried about a lack of felines in my portfolio springing up anytime soon, anyway.