My Sense Of Humor Is A Bit Twisted

My sense of humor is a bit twisted, which is why I am grateful for the Internet. On the Internet you can always find people who sort of think the way you do. You can find people who laugh at the same things you laugh at. When you find them, you should latch onto them like a long-lost relative and never let them go. I mean, that’s what I do anyway. You need at least a couple of people to stand next to you as you laugh at morbid things, death, and the overall insanity of life.

dog painting

Abe and his Pancreas

A few years ago my dog and soul mate, Abe, got sick with pancreatitis. Then he lost a tooth. He was getting old. I was sad that he was getting old. To cheer myself up and to mark the occasion I painted a portrait of him with his pancreas and his tooth. The Three Sisters mountain range is in the background (a theme that shows up in several of my paintings from that time period because it was a symbol of strength for me at the time). Abe died a few months later. I have this painting to remind me of the time we spent together and it makes me laugh which, in turn, reminds me of all of the fun we had together too (like the time he jumped out of my car at a stop sign on the way to get an ice cream cone from McDonalds).

I recently made a collage of my friend Molly from Grass Oil and it is pretty silly. She’s juggling a microwave while her poem about making a last-minute dinner dances below her feet. I had so much fun doing this that when another friend started talking about her kids being goats I got another idea. I decided to turn her kids into goats in a painting. I also liked the play on words: Kids are goats. I was a little worried her kids might be offended, but she assured me, her kids were as twisted as we were. So, this happened.

collage painting kids and goats

My Kids Are Goats

You can go check out Kelly’s post My Friends Are Crazy, My Children Are Goats and This Happened on her blog DeBie Hive if you want to get her side of the story. I’m the crazy friend and I wear that badge with pride. She made me laugh with this post and that painting makes me laugh every time I see it too. I saved her post on my “Kindness I Want To Remember” Pinterest board because whenever I feel a little down in the dumps I plan on rereading it. Those goat kids make me laugh and her family is so awesome. You will fall in love with them all immediately.

Then my friend Alex, from Late Enough, announced she was going to have gallbladder surgery. So, you can guess what happened next. I painted her with her gallbladder. I think it’s hilarious and sentimental. I mean, how else do you pay tribute to an organ or say goodbye to it? It’s laugh or cry. Whenever possible, I always choose laugh. The truth is, I was worried about her. Surgery scares me a little. So, I just poured all of that angst into a painting. After I told her about it, she sent me to a website that actually sells stuffed organs. She already had a stuffed gallbladder to replace the one she was losing. This was when I knew for sure her sense of humor was as twisted as mine. If you want to see the painting go check out her blog post and leave her a get well note too while you are at it. People heal faster when goodwill is sent their way. Her blog post is: Update: Gallbladder Surgery Day.

I went away for a few days for Tiny-Small’s birthday and all of this excitement and humor happened. My friend over at Words For Worms re-imagined my art as book covers. Her post is pretty funny and I found some of the collages she used, done by Bulamamani, made really terrific book covers. I never thought about collage in book cover form, but Words For Worms experiment really got me thinking about that. I think the best art always tells a story of some kind. Go check out Word For Worms post if you want to imagine my paintings as book covers too: Let’s Judge Books By Their Covers!

health

Laughing makes you healthy, so I say laugh as much as possible, especially when it seems like the worst time to do it (or maybe just the hardest time to). Without humor we’d just be crying all the time and that’s no fun. So, if your sense of humor is a bit twisted too, you are not alone! There are a bunch of us nutty types out there just waiting to be found, obviously.

 

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!