The fire

This still freaks me out: When I was young, I would have recurring dreams about witnessing a fire from my bedroom window. Then one day in early spring it actually happened. Thankfully no one was hurt. I think it was a barn or shed that caught fire. My view was obstructed by the house and trees. Long into the night the lights of the firetrucks were shining into my bedroom.  I still don't know any more details about what happened that day, but I'm sure if there had been a tragedy, the community would have known. When I went into school the next day no one knew what I was talking about.

The altar

 Eleven years ago, my sister introduced me to a new nature trail to hike on. It's in the woods and takes some effort getting to. At the end of the trail is a long path lined with trees and a white altar at the end. Beyond the altar is the remains of a foundation where a house once stood 100 years ago. There was something very eerie about it. As far as I know, the altar is no longer there. The spot is used for weddings, although something about the altar feels a bit sinister.

Rose and peony

 

Emily in a dress

Me 'n' Nikki

I took a painting class at my local college, but didn't audit it (whoops) so I had to actually participate in class assignments. But nothing wrong with that. The teacher was cool and I always had fun in the class.

For this assignment, the prompt was to paint from an old family photo. Naturally, I chose a recently discovered photo of myself with Nikki from 2003.

Then, we would use the Zorn palette to give it an 'aged' look, fitting for the theme of the painting. The Zorn palette consists of: Yellow ochre; Titanium white; Ivory black; and Cadmium Red. The cool thing about this palette is that it creates a full spectrum of colors, including the suggestion of blue and green, despite them not actually being there. Isn't that cool?

Luckily I saved some progress shots. I did the under-drawing in alcohol marker, which I DO NOT recommend - over time, it permeates through the paint. So if you made a mistake, the paint will only cover it up for so long.

Not my best work but I do love how Nikki came out. I also love how child-Mel's shorts appear blue despite there being no blue in my palette. I think this Zorn guy was on to something!

Essie gift art by Frappe7

Gift art of my angel OC Essie by Frappe7. The colors are so pretty!!!

Fairy tale

Fool's Fairy Tale

 

The dreamer and the dream

The girl from Nagoya

A series of commissions I did in 2018. I haven't heard from the commissioner in quite some time so I imagine they would prefer to remain anonymous. These are definitely some of my favorite works from that year and a lot of it is thanks to the commissioner's robust creative visions. Wherever you are, I hope you're doing well!