Shoot it, Sketch it: Objet d’art

March 11, 2013February 8, 2014 | Anna Cull

sketchbook journal ink watercolour sketch art objects photograph cabinet — Objet d’art, sketch and photo, 2013.

I enjoyed a little sketchbook time while away on holiday last month and thought I’d use one of the pages for this week’s Shoot it, Sketch it ― although it’s really a Sketch it, Shoot it. The drawing I originally planned to post today is still a long way from being finished. Why, oh why do I tackle such complicated illustrations? You’ll see what I mean next week.

Also taking part in Shoot it, Sketch it are Clouds of Colour, The Little Leaf, Lunch Sketch, Poppytump, Two Scamps, Baaps and 30 Minute Art.

Shoot it, Sketch it: Red sky at night

March 4, 2013April 23, 2024 | Anna Cull

Red sky at night – mixed media, 187 x 297 mm, 2013. — Red Sky at Night – mixed media, 187 x 297 mm, 2013.

Red sky at night, original photo – Christchurch, 2012.

This is my second sketch based on photos I took on my way to LUXcity in Christchurch last year. It is the companion piece to City Lights. The end result is not quite what I had in mind when I started sketching. It’s full of unexpected outcomes — and I’m okay with that.

Other bloggers taking part in Shoot it, Sketch it are Clouds of Colour, The Little Leaf, Lunch Sketch, Poppytump, Two Scamps, Breana and 30 Minute Art.

Once in a blue moon

February 24, 2013September 16, 2014 | Anna Cull

Lilac Wolf NZ logo design, competition entry, 2012.

I entered this design in a logo competition a few months ago. The brief was to create a logo for dog spa Lilac Wolf NZ that was positive and memorable. The concept behind the brand is that every dog dreams of feeling like a wolf and being treated like a king.

My design shows Lilac Wolf surrounded by bubbles. He imagines they are craters on the moon… or snow falling in the forest. He is howling with happiness — or is he blowing/chasing bubbles?

These are the initial sketches. I really liked the texture of #1 but I decided to work with #2 because of the body shape.

The scanned sketch became a vector trace (flipped and altered slightly).

The traced fur was used as a guide for the coloured vector shading.

I deleted the original fur, continued to edit the shading and the bubbles, and gave the moon a gradient fill. I then redesigned the fur and tweaked a few things for the final logo.

P.S. For those who are curious, I’ve just been told that there was no winning design in the competition.

A pre-modern business card

January 31, 2013June 24, 2020 | Anna Cull

I posted the artwork for Tim Gallant’s business card a couple of months ago but needed to finalise a few details before completing the design. Tim has a longbow-making business and is a talented drum teacher/musician.

The two finger salute included in the design is a gesture sometimes referred to as the Longbowman Salute and may or may not date back to the 1415 Battle of Agincourt. I drew the ‘salute’ as a medieval gauntlet and added a couple of other elements to create a logo that is, I hope, more humorous than offensive. The colours and layout were inspired by the Gallant Family coat of arms.

The background (below) was serendipity at its best. I painted it on a piece of nothing-special cardboard using some acrylic paint left over from another project. I thought it would be quite a smooth surface but, instead, the paint accentuated every little bump and ridge…but it scanned beautifully. I tweaked the colours in Photoshop to better suit the business card and voilà. Where would we be without happy accidents?

Shoot it, Sketch it: Windermere

January 28, 2013August 26, 2015 | Anna Cull

Windermere, Akaroa – ink and watercolour, 210 x 295 mm, 2013

Windermere, Akaroa – ink on watercolour paper, 2013

Windermere historic house, Rue Lavaud, Akaroa, 2012

I drew a quick sketch of this historic Akaroa house a couple of years ago (see below) and thought it might be fun to revisit it — figuratively and literally. The photo was taken a few months ago with this Shoot it, Sketch it project in mind. Windermere was built as a boarding house in 1877.

Can you spot the subtle difference? The house no longer has a chimney (the earthquakes that have rattled the Canterbury region over the last couple of years are probably to blame — an awful lot of chimneys and brick buildings were damaged in 2011).

Others participating in Shoot it, Sketch it are Clouds of Colour, The Little Leaf, and Poppytump.

Cozy

January 24, 2013July 7, 2013 | Anna Cull

Cozy Knit (spots and stripes) #2 – surface pattern.

Cozy Knit (spots and stripes) #3 – surface pattern.

Cozy Knit (spots and stripes) #4 – surface pattern.

Cozy Knit (spots and stripes) #5 – surface pattern.

These were my entries for the recent Tigerprint Spots and Stripes design competition. The brief was to come up with a fresh take on surface patterns featuring spots and stripes and to follow key colour trends for spring/summer 2014.

The main pattern was taken from the little angel I drew for Shoot it, Sketch it a few weeks ago. I scanned the original ink drawing and edited it as a vector illustration. I ended up with quite a few combinations I really liked but had to narrow it down to just five. I picked a couple of the brighter patterns, a couple in some rather yummy grey-blue tones and one that looks a bit like knitted brown paper.

No, they didn’t win, but that’s not why I enter competitions. I do it for the challenge, for the experience and because it’s fun to have a go. Anything more than that is a bonus : )