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Tuesday, December 30, 2014

December Journal Pages

Yeah! And Oh Wow! I did it - a whole year of journal pages!! Whoohoo! Maybe you know this from your own experiences, but keeping with a program for a whole year is really hard.

So here are my last four pages from Journal52. I made 52 new pieces of art this year. Wow. If you are up for a challenge, I highly recommend this group and the 2015 challenge is just starting up.
And it's free. What's not to love?

Week 48 - Let's Build a Snowman!

Journal52 has been full of cool coincidences this year! The weekend before this assignment, I went for my interview and portfolio review at the Center for Cartoon Studies where I am applying for my Masters in Applied Cartooning. The application, which I had JUST started, requires a comic book as part of the portfolio submission, And this comic book must include myself, a robot, a piece of fruit, and... a snowman!! So I did my J52 homework with this in mind and this is my final panel for the mini comic. That's me, standing in the doorway.

It's drawn with a Sharpie pen, and shaded with a gray Tombow marker.

© Sandy Steen Bartholomew

Week 49 - Doodle

Doodle... I tried to do this "quickly". I always take too long when I draw, so I think of a doodle as a quick drawing. And not planned...much. This is actually the tangle "Fret" - which would make a good video, if I get some time.

Drawn with Sharpie pen and colored with a gray Tombow marker.

© Sandy Steen Bartholomew

Week 50 - Sparkle and Shine

Metallics and fluorescents don't scan... and they are hard to capture in a photo too. The first image shows the photo with nice hot fluorescent colors. I thought you might like to see the contrast - the second image is the good quality scan. The metallics have the right colors, but the oranges and pinks are all gone. Interesting, eh? Oh well, it was fun and sparkly to make. Good enough.

I sketched it with a white Prismacolor pencil, and drew the letters with Gelly Roll Moonlights and Metallics gel pens - on black card stock.

© Sandy Steen Bartholomew
© Sandy Steen Bartholomew

Week 51 - Sing a Song!

I confess, I did this piece a while ago, but it's not "cheating" since this is exactly what I WOULD have done this week - but I applied to cartooning school instead. I used this in my admission portfolio too. Another example of Journal52 themes paralleling my real life!
Drawn with Sharpie pen and colored with Inktense pencils. The Purple-People Eater song is by Sheb Wooley (genius).

© Sandy Steen Bartholomew

Week 52 - Circle

Wow - a journal entry - with an actual journal entry! At the beginning of a new year, I go back thru my calendar and my journals to see what my intentions were for the year. This time I was a little shocked to see how my "word" of the year had warped. I also watched one of my favorite movies last night ("Begin Again") and realized that phrase (and the story) feel very appropriate for this coming year. So my CIRCLE is the year beginning again, and my life circling around, and my calendar/agenda book... around and around... Drawn/written with Papermate ballpoint pen in my Moleskine agenda notebook.

© Sandy Steen Bartholomew

So that is done.

For 2015, I hope to keep up with a different Journal group that uses Zentangles.
Wish me luck.

Saturday, December 13, 2014

November Journal Pages

Feels like we jumped right from Halloween to Christmas - but when I think hard about it - there was a lot that happened in November. Makes my head spin thinking about it all. December is moving just as fast. I'm getting those weird fantasies again about a week spent just "puttering". At home. Maybe with someone leaving meals for me on the doorstep...

For now, here are my Journal52 pages for the month of November:

Week 44 - Skyline
Uni Pin Pen, Tombow markers, waterbrush

I strayed a little above the "skyline" but had fun making a sunset in the background with the markers and blending with the waterbrush.

© Sandy Steen Bartholomew

Week 45 - Thinking of You
Pilot brush pen, pencil, watercolor, solid tempera paint crayon.

I find that song lyrics help me to focus my ideas for these prompts. This song, "Try" by Colbie Caillat, has been haunting me lately. It makes me so sad. I have met so many people - mostly women, but a few men too - who are trying so hard... but still aren't happy. And this time of year especially, I find myself wondering, "Why am I doing this? ... this isn't ME."

That's not really lipstick on the mirror - it's a very cool hybrid product. It's kind of like the Gelatos, smoodgey and silky, blendable, but it dries like paint. 
 
© Sandy Steen Bartholomew


Week 46 - Napkin
Sharpie Pen, dinner napkin, fingerprints

It was just before Thanksgiving and not a single interesting napkin in the house! Time to remind myself that I am OCD, not a perfectionist... it only needed to be "finished" not "perfect"! This quote gave me another reason not to feel bad that I don't host Norman Rockwell worthy Thanksgiving parties.
 
© Sandy Steen Bartholomew


Week 47 - Wise Words 
Sharpie pen, Staedtler Fineliner Pens

I think this has been my year for playing with lettering and quotes! I work with words and pictures all the time, but separately. I love the idea of playing with them combined... illustrated letters and letters that form the illustrations.

This page uses the Staedtler pens I mentioned in the recent coloring book post. [If you are interested, I added some more art to that post with these pens - scroll down near the bottom to see it.]

© Sandy Steen Bartholomew

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Cartoon School... Step One

I suppose this might be step "Two" if I count Cartoon Camp this past summer as my first step. 

Today I am up in White River Junction, VT for Portfolio Day at the Center for Cartoon Studies. I haven't shown an actual portfolio in twenty years! I was so incredibly nervous that I almost let the winter storm that woke me up, serve as a sign from The Universe... "Go back to bed! You are too old to go back to school!"

"No!" I shouted! 
Well, maybe I whispered it. 

I'm glad I showed up. Sometimes a storm is just a storm. I chose to take the next event as the real sign from the Universe. My interview with Jason, a teacher at the school, went something like this:

Him: "wait- did you say you went to RISD? When did you graduate?"

Me: "1992, I think."

Him: "I was '91! Illustration?"

Me: "yes! Wow! So you had classes with Judy-Sue and ...?"

That's a pretty good start for an interview! 

With everything I learned about the school, the teachers, the community, financial aid and applications... I no longer have any excuses to put off making my decision. It comes down to - if I do my best with the application materials - I will make the cut. But I have to do it soon since it is rolling admissions and only a very small group is selected. 

Then I can start thinking about how to pay for it! If you are interested in an adorable cottage on a lake in New Hampshire - please buy mine so I can go to cartoon school! And you will notice me selling off more things from my studio too. 

I can do this. I want to do this. I KNOW I can do this. I will find a way to make this work. 


Oh  - and we had dinner at Tuckerbox Cafe tonight - Turkish food, as the name suggests ;-). This place is across the street from MY school. Yet another reason I want to come here. Yummy. 


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