Two Easels Are Better Than One

Two easels

Two easels are better than one.

Two easels are better than one because now we can both paint side by side, at the same time. It’s pretty fun and exciting. I just need to go dig my bicycle helmet out of storage because art can be a full-contact sport. At least it is in the world of Tiny-Small.

 

 

Examining The Creative Mind: Doodles and Jots

Today I am interviewing Ann from Doodles and Jots.  If you have kids and enjoy art I encourage you to check out her site. She writes and illustrates books for children and her blog is wonderful. She writes about family and art and often has tutorials for craft projects.

Doodled and Jots

Photo Courtesy of Doodle and Jots

Can you tell us a little about who you are and the kind of work that you do?

Thanks Lillian for the invitation to guest post on It’s a Dome Life!  My name is Ann and I blog over at Doodles and Jots.  Ever since I can remember I wanted to be an artist/illustrator.  My mother is a painter and was my first art teacher.  I remember her teaching me to blot my watercolor brush, pausing to describe illustrations in picture books, and gushing over my drawings.  In high school my artistic interests expanded to include photography and ceramics and later at Rhode Island School of Design I was excited to discover Industrial Design which allowed me to pursue my diverse creative interests.  I have been working as a professional product designer for nearly twenty years.  The last five, since my second child was born, as a freelancer part-time from home.  My early interest in illustration never entirely faded and when my children came along, inspiration was all around me!  Between my children’s fascination with nature, our shared love for children’s books, and the innocent way they see the world, I was itching to create!  I had several false starts trying to create a children’s book and it wasn’t until I started a blog that I really found the courage to put something out there.  Writing and illustrating content for little kids is what I am most excited about but I also share original crafts, educational interests, and practical mom stuff.

What medium do you prefer to work in and why?

I started my blog between freelance projects in the fall of 2011 when I had more time to create but then my product design work started up again and I began looking for shortcuts that would enable me to continue blogging with frequency since I enjoyed it so much.  I use PowerPoint a lot to share progress for work so I am pretty fast with it.  I started using it to create my art.  The simple shapes and drawing tools force me to keep my ideas simple.  I can also easily duplicate objects and change them slightly for a sequence or pattern which saves time.  When I am finished, I save as PNG and PowerPoint puts each slide, as a separate image, into a folder (so easy)!  It is actually kind of funny that I create my illustrations this way since I have always preferred handmade art.  I do happen to love very modern graphic art too so I use this as inspiration.  I consider myself to still be experimenting and look forward to when I will have a little more time to experiment.  For one thing, I love texture.  Sometimes I use imported textures to add richness to my images.  I would love to create a library of handmade and photographic textures to create collage affects.

Where do you do your work? Can you describe your workspace? 

I use the dining room as my office.  My kids also use it as a playroom and they have their computers in there too.  Between freelance and blogging I spend quite a bit of time in there so it is nice to have my kids with me.  For writing I need quiet so I usually write at night but if I am drawing I like the chatter.  I have a large drafting table and a filing cabinet full of art supplies for working out craft ideas.  It is really my all purpose workspace.  I also do household paperwork there.  There’s a bulletin board for tacking up school info and projects.  I have ample shelving for books.  I even have my sewing machine handy but I must admit I have a growing stack repairs on top if it!

When we do projects together we set up at the dining room table which is, of course, in the living room!

Do you have a favorite artist? What attracts you to their work?

As a little kid I loved Disney animation.  I remember being so fascinated by a photo showing how they brought in real animals for the animators to draw from!  I also loved Beatrix Potter and how she brought animals to life by giving them little homes with cupboards and knitting baskets and putting them in little tailored jackets.  For a while Norman Rockwell was my favorite.  I was in awe of his skillful detail and how he managed to render people with so much personality.  In high school Matisse became my favorite.  I still REALLY love his fun and free style.  I also love the naïve and graphic compositions of Milton Avery and the simple modern sculpture of Isamu Noguchi.  There really are so many!  I am also drawn to very minimalist art like that of Ellsworth Kelly.

As I mentioned I am a big fan of children’s book illustration.  Some of my favorites are Eloise Wilcons, Leo Lionni, Louis Slobodkin, Lois Elhert, Sally Mavor, Douglas Florian, Melissa Sweet, and Byron Barton.

seesaw

Photo courtesy of Doodles and Jots

What are you hoping to communicate through your art?  How would you describe your work in 3-4 words?

I strive for clever, simple, innocence.
 
As an artist, is there anything specific that you hope to accomplish?

I would like to write and illustrate children’s books.  I am getting good practice on my blog and I love the pace!  I get such a rush coming up with an idea and executing it in a couple hours.  The feeling of publish nearly every day I imagine is a bit like the feeling an actor gets from a live performance.

As an artist, how do you define success? 


Success for me is doing it, enjoying it, and hopefully having someone else like it too.  Making money at it would also be nice!

What kind of creative patterns, routines or rituals do you practice?  How do you come up with ideas?

I like to get out for walks with my camera.  I find nature to be very inspiring and it is when my mind is the most open.  Also I have OneNote on my computer, phone, and iPad for jotting down ideas.  I forget them if I don’t.

mud post

Photo courtesy of Doodles and Jots.

What does being creative mean to you?

Being create, to me, feels a bit like never having to grow up and being able to make my own fun!

What do you think is your biggest strength?  What is your biggest weakness?

I thing I am pretty organized which helps me be productive.  My weakness is my self doubt.  Frankly the fact I had no audience when I started my blog was the reason I had the courage to hit publish!

Are you influenced by any other creative mediums such as music, dance, art, writing or film?

I am absolutely influenced and inspired by lots of other art forms!  I enjoy watching the show Sunday Morning on CBS which exposes me to lots of art forms I wouldn’t naturally seek out.

tiptoe past

Photo Courtesy of Doodles and Jots.

Do you approach your work within a framework of rules or moral code?

I try to be a good person and a nice person and this guides my work for sure.

What is the most important idea, belief, or dilemma you hope to address through your work? Is there a theme at the core of the work you do?

I believe in being positive.  I believe in solving problems.  And I believe in enjoying the ride!  I think my tagline captures what I hope to accomplish and how I go about it pretty well…  Ideas for, diversions from, and celebrations of family life from a creative mom.

Thanks again Lillian!!!

 

You are so welcome, Ann! Thank you for sharing your work with us. I fell like I learned a lot about your process, especially with your book making. Great post!

Please visit Doodles and Jots and check out Ann’s blog.

Also, visit Doodles and Jots Facebook fan page.

Doodles and Jots for Tots (PDF eBook post & link): Get Ann’s FREE eBook!

Sunset In Kruger National Park

When we went to South Africa a few years ago I fell in love with the red sunsets, especially while we were in Kruger National Park. After layering the paint with multiple colors and even writing “All you need is love” into the paint I decided to make the entire piece about an experience that I loved.

Seeing wild Giraffe at sunset. They are beautiful creatures. I hope, if you ever get the opportunity to travel to South Africa, that you take it. Just be sure to read up on the countries politics and to take all safety warning seriously. Those safety issues cannot be ignored!

applying paint

I used an old credit card to apply the paint.

art

This was the background where I scraped “All you need is love” into the paint.

 

art by Lillian Connelly

Finished piece: Sunset in Kruger National Park

Share The Love Sunday: I’m Getting Disappeared

Hello Share The Love Sunday readers. I have a secret to tell you. I am getting disappeared. Seriously. It’s Tiny-Small’s birthday this week. She’s turning three. We’re going to be celebrating for days and days so I might not be around much. I just wanted to let you know in case you started wondering why I disappeared. I don’t want you to worry that I have been kidnapped by the people who make Nutella and forced to taste-test their products for days and days.

birthday bike

Tiny-Small got a bike for her birthday.

I have a few short, painting posts scheduled, but other than that I’m taking a mini vacation. Tiny-Small is only going to turn three once. I want to be there for every moment. Plus Jim has been working 6-7 days a week for the past month and finally got some days off. We barely recognize him. So, it’s party time! Excellent.

helmet wearing

She wears the helmet 24-7

Check out these awesome blog posts I read this week:

ART

Accountants Are Artists Too by Lisa Graham Art. She has her friend over for a visit and talks her into drawing a face. It’s a great story about how we are all artists whether we think we are or not.

FRIENDSHIP

Check-Writing Angels &Growing Up Molly Field writes about how friendship can change your life in many, many ways and about how we can experience personal growth if we are open to it.

WRITING

A Short Collection of my most Controversial and Opinionated Observations on Writers by Carrie Bailey of The Peevish Penman. She’s talking about writers, but I think her observations translate just as well to blogging and maybe even to life in general.

LIFE

a calorie counter for moms by Hollow Tree Ventures. She makes a fake app for moms that includes caloric tables for things like “eating the remaining goldfish crackers off your child’s plate.” So much laughter and recognition here!

FAMILY

My Dying Wish by Daddy Knows Less. It’s a funny conversation between two married people who don’t exactly see eye to eye.

 

Happy Sunday Reading!

Tai Chi Makes Me Laugh Until I Can’t Breathe

Tai Chi

TAI CHI wannabe

Tai Chi is probably not supposed to be a comedy, but it is in my house. It all started when I was complaining about how hard it is to do Yoga with carpel tunnel. So many poses require you to put weight on your wrists, and that hurts and makes you cranky (crankier than usual). Yoga probably isn’t a good choice for the healthy-wrist-challenged among us. The thing is, everyone and his brother keeps telling me to do Yoga for my back, as an exercise, and for mental health strengthening. So, I wanted something like Yoga, but without all of the wrist drama.

tai chi practice

Reenacting Tai Chi practice

So, Jim suggested we do Tai Chi. He claimed to be an expert on it because he watched people do Tai Chi every morning in Taiwan. He could see the people practicing on a rooftop before they started their day. I guess you could call Jim a Tai Chi stalker. Don’t tell him I said that. Also, apparently watching something a few times makes you an expert, which means I am an expert in a lot of things. So, if you have any questions about anything, feel free to ask me, because I am sure I have watched, whatever that something is, happen a few times during my life. It’s like I became a genius over night. I have geeked out on life, you guys…like a boss even! Jim has a way of giving me some much needed confidence just when I need it most.

I decided to find a YouTube video so we could have someone to follow along with, mostly because all of the “different” moves Jim showed me looked exactly the same. It was like Tai Chi deja vu around here. Anyway, the video we watched was 45 minutes long. The first 11 minutes were just some guy talking. So, being opposed to actual directions, we put the video into fast-forward mode. Which means, on YouTube, we moved the red dot down the little line until it looked like some sort of action was happening.

tai chi

Pretending to hold the ball, Tiny-Small inserts her bicycle helmet clad head

Finally, we started doing Tai Chi. The first thing the guy said was, “Put your chiback.” I started to panic, yelling, “Where is my chiback? I don’t know where or what that is…Oh my gawd….” Jim looked at me startled and said, “He said, ‘Put your chin back.’” That’s when I started giggling. Before long, Jim was doing the one move he knew no matter what the guy on the screen was doing. Then he started doing karate chops and wondering when the part where you learn to kick the bad guys butts was going to start. I started laughing harder. I don’t think Tai Chi was designed for butt kicking. Although, to be honest, a lot of what we were attempting to do reminded me of Mr. Miyagi from the Karate Kid, so I could be wrong.

The next thing I know Jim is doing this thing where it looks like he is slapping someone in front of him in slow motion while simultaneously slapping someone behind him in slow motion too. His facial expression reminded me of the kind of face you might see Freddy Mercury make in an old, Queen concert video. By this time I have tears streaming down my face and I can barely breathe. I stop doing Tai Chi and do what any good blogger would do under these circumstances, I run to get my camera.

Jim: You are not taking pictures of this.

Me: Please, please?

Jim: No way! I don’t want to be on your blog.

Me: How about a movie instead? I have got to share this with the world. It’s too funny to keep to ourselves.

Jim: NO!

Then there was wrestling and secret, sneaky, not so sneaky attempts at phone photography. Needless to say, I was never able to capture the footage I wanted to. So, instead, please enjoy these reenactment photos Tiny-Small and I made of our Tai Chi practice. Tiny-Small is standing in for Jim. They are blurry because while Jim was taking the pictures, Tiny-Small and I were moving and giggling and doing our best to embarrass ourselves for you. This is what good bloggers do when we can’t get actual footage…we make stuff up instead. I am always trying my hardest to be a “good blogger” even if that means posting pictures of myself with uncombed hair, in my pajamas, with a toddler who refuses to remove her bicycle helmet.

Tiny-Small Tai Chi

It’s probably a good thing she is wearing a helmet.

Anyway, that’s how Tai Chi made me laugh until I couldn’t breath, which, believe it or not, may or may not be an even better form of exercise. At the very least, it is easy on the wrists and pretty terrific for the soul. Also, if you are going to exercise to a YouTube video, pick one that holds your interest, otherwise you might just end up playing flag football, where your camera phone is the football and you are a Jedi warrior with jazz hands doing ballet kicks (at least in your own mind).

 

Need more laughter? Go read this funny interview of Marianne from We Band Of Mothers. She gave me a shout out that made me smile: You Can Call Her Epic.

I heart her so hard.