Category: announcements

Upcoming – Book Signing & The Future of Angelic Visions?

Just a quick little post to remind you all I’ll be signing books and demonstrating art techniques this Saturday, from 2-4 pm at Barnes and Noble’s in Ashley Park!  Come get a free bookmark, chat about art, and have your book signed!

In other news, I think it’s safe to say that at least a few folks have been able to finish reading the book. I’d love to hear some feedback from you all!  If, say, I hope to do a proverbial sequel to Angelic Visions, I’d like to know what I should include!  What did you find useful?  What did you feel was missing?  What would you like to see more of?  Here are some topics I’ve been kicking around:

  • More on skin and lighting
  • Composition and visual impact
  • Using maquettes and references
  • More on armor, weapons, tattoos, halos
  • Showing action and intent
  • More on costume design
  • More fancy hair doos
  • More mixed media techniques
  • Developing personal style

Anything to add? I value the input from each and every one of you!  I could also use some ratings on my book’s listings on Goodreads and Amazon so they don’t look so sad and empty.  I appreciate you all taking a few moments to do this and also letting me know just how much you’ve enjoyed this experience.

Hope to see you this weekend!   I’ll have to share the product of any painting that happen at the demo when I get back.

Upcoming Appearances: Book Signing & MomoCon

A short entry today to remind folks I’ll be having my first book signing in an actual bookstore this weekend, Sat. the 12th at Books A Million in Peachtree City, GA! I’ll be passing out free bookmarks, chatting about art, and talking about art techniques, so drop on by! I’ll be signing copies of Angelic Visions bought in the store as well.

On Sunday, I’ll be dropping by MomoCon to see what all the hubbub is about and to meet friends from around the interwebs! I don’t have a table there this year, but if it seems like my kind of crowd, who knows what will happen next year? MomoCon is a free anime convention that takes place on the Georgia Tech campus here in Atlanta, for those who don’t know it.

In other news, I’ve resurrected my Etsy and Artfire shops with some pretty cool new items lately! Check ’em out:

And more at my shops on Etsy and Artfire!

Hope you all have a glorious weekend! In the meantime, I shall be working on new art, new masks, and prepping products for the first art fairs of the season!

Angelic Visions Book Signing Tour!

You TOO can come see the
cardigan in action!
Well, it can hardly be called a tour at the moment with just two stops, but I’m currently hunting down more book stores that don’t mind hosting an an angel-crazed artist to add to this list!  
I’ll be passing out free bookmarks to all who venture my way (while supplies last), yacking about art, and signing any copies of my books that you buy at the store.  I’ll also have my watercolors with me at each event where I’ll be demonstrating my painting techniques live!
The Current Stops on Ang’s Tour to Take Over the World
(I mean sign books)

 Saturday, March 12th – 2-4 pm – Books-A-Million at The Avenue
Saturday, March 26th – 2-4pm – Barnes and Noble Booksellers at Ashley Park

(More to come!  Know a book store here in Georgia that does signings? Do share in the comments!)
You can also keep up with my events at your social site of choice!
Or just keep track here because just about everything on those sites is a mirror of this blog.
See you at the book shop!

Angelic Visions Giveaway WINNERS!

The comments are in and the winners have been chosen! Druumroooll pleaaase!
Dun dun DUN. And the Winners by completely random list generation aaaare…:

Marion, who wins an autographed copy of Angelic Visions and an angel feather bookmark! Marion’s favorite mythological figure was the winged serpent, Quetzalcoatl. Read on at his comment to find out why!

The following winners chosen by completely random list generator will each receive a handmade leather angel feather bookmark!  The feather winners aaare…:

Uniformgrey, who talked of a love for classic mermaids of all types!  Read on at their comment to find out why.

Thetarotfool, who spoke of an affinity for angels, particularly Azrael and other personifications of death. Read on at their comment to find out more!

Winners, please email me with your snail mail address ASAP so I can get your prizes out to you!

I will be attempting to send out notice to you as well, just to make sure we don’t miss each other.

I hope you all enjoyed this giveaway as much as I did! It was a pleasure to learn about what mythological figures inspire others, some I’ve heard of, and some I haven’t!  I particularly enjoyed reading comments like Foresomeone’s which talked about the oral tradition behind sharing tales of leprechauns with their grandpa.  There are so many other interesting comments, so I encourage you to look back at the giveaway entry and give them a peek yourself!

Thanks to all for participating!  I trust this won’t be the last Angelic Visions related prize event in these pages, so keep your eyes peeled!  And thanks for sharing your stories with me.:)

Angelic Visions Giveaway!

(EDIT: The Winners have been chosen here!)

Finally, the blog giveaway has arrived!  I’ll make this short n sweet.

Leave a comment on this entry talking about your favorite mythological figure (and why you love them).  In two weeks, on Saturday, February 19th, I’ll be drawing three names using random.org.  Here’s what you’ll get a chance at winning!

The prize pot!

One lucky winner will receive a signed book, an autographed special edition metallic print of the cover, and a handmade angel feather bookmark!  Two other lucky winners will each receive their very own handmade angel feather bookmark.

Take a closer look at that bookmark!

Constructed from 3 oz leather, these feathers were hand-carved, hand-painted, signed, and dated on the backs by yours truly!  Each one is special and unique due to the nature of the leather carving process. No two will ever be exactly the same.  You can’t see it very well in the photos, but they glimmer with a dusting of gold that’s just entrancing to behold!

NOTE! If you don’t tell me about your favorite mythological figure, you will not be included in the drawing!  If you’ve already bought the book and would just like to be entered to win a bookmark, be sure to specify that in your comment.

Haven’t heard of Angelic Visions?  Than go check out my book trailer to learn more about this shiny new tome on portraying your very own fantasy angel figures!

Be a doll and spread the word using the social networking share links at the top of this entry!  Every link back makes me feel all warm n fuzzy inside.

Upcoming Appearance: Artworks on the Square

Just a quick reminder that Artworks on the Square here in Fayetteville, GA, will be hosting several events for my book this month!  There’s the solo exhibition reception this Friday, a book signing party next weekend, and a color pencil demonstration the weekend after that.  You can read more details on these events here.

In more book news, all of the pre-orders, minus a few that need sketches, have been mailed out!  The book itself is now in stores (Barnes & Nobles, Amazon, Borders, etc.) so keep an eye out! (Though if you order from me, your book would come with a shiny print and autograph!). 

My recorded video demo on painting watercolor skintones is also available on artistsnetwork.tv and is a nice complement to the book’s demos.  At only $16.99, it’s pretty affordable and even cheaper if you’re a subscriber over there!

Things are coming together quite nicely at the start of this new year! Now I better dash off and get things ready for this Friday! I’m so excited to meet some of my local artists.

Hope to see you then!

Angelic Visions – Solo Exhibition + Book Signing + Demo

If you’ll be in my neck of the woods come January, I’ll be launching a barrage of Angelic Visions events starting the first Friday of January, ALL of which will be hosted at our local gallery, Artworks on the Square!  Read on for more and your chance at prizes and pretties.

Friday, January 7th, 2011, 7-9 pm – RECEPTION & SOLO EXHIBITION

Selected artwork from Angelic Visions will be on display for the entire month of January with a reception on the 7th. Wine tasting and live music provided!

Saturday, January 15th, 2011, 7-9 pm – BOOK SIGNING PARTY

Join us in celebration of the debut of Angelic Visions!  Door prizes will be handed out to the first lucky few with prize raffles going on throughout the event.  You could win a free copy of the book, the Angelic Visions themed calendar, and other such goodies!  Food and drink will be provided, of course! Can’t have a shindig without them!

Saturday, January 22nd, 2011, 12-2 pm – TECHNIQUE DEMO

Join me for a demo on how to render skin tones in color pencil and a rundown of the basic tools of the trade.  Appropriate for all skill levels. $25 per person. (No materials required as this is a demo/lecture sort of class).

Mark your calendars!  I’ll be sprinkling reminders as these dates approach. I hope to see some of you locals there!

Also, still taking Pre-Orders, for those who are interested in the special bundle direct from the artist.

Angelic Visions – Pre-Orders OPEN!

I’ve been dropping hints here and there on the nature of Angelic Visions, a project which I have been working on for nearly a year and a half to date!  I’m happy to announce Impact Books has begun its roll out of this upcoming title, featuring a write-up and a free watercolor demo from the book over at their blog!

I have the advanced copy here in my hands and can attest to you that it is just gorgeous!  Like all of Impact’s books, it is a lovely gloss covered paperback chock full of rich colorful images and tons of visual aids to help ease you into the process of painting your own gorgeous heavenly creatures.

Here are some sneak peeks to sate your palettes:

In addition to pre-ordering via North Light’s shop, this book is available directly from me at this link. I’m offering the option to buy the book bundled with an ink sketch on the inside cover, a calendar, or both!  All orders of this book bought directly from me will be packaged with a shiny metallic 8×10 in. print of the cover art “Angelic Vision” and will be autographed by the artist!  Don’t forget to include your 2 word prompt for your sketch when you checkout.  
Note that pre-order bundle quantities are limited!  Order soon to procure your special copy from me!
All pre-orders will ship some time after mid-December.  Those with the sketch option may require more time for processing since I am customizing those.

Leather Faces on Parade!

Wow, when you try to make a pun from Phantom of the Opera’s “Masquerade” and leather masks, you end up with disturbing mental images of Leatherface from Chainsaw Massacre dancing a musical number (or perhaps that’s just me?)

Moving on to the point of this entry! I’ve been dabbling a fair amount in leathercraft of late! In a strange twist of fate, dabbling has started to become a part of my business at large, with at least half of my sales at DragonCon from masks I had on display there.  As such, I’ve recently uploaded a flood of masks for Halloween to various online markets. (Just click the thumbnails to see their sale listings)

And if that weren’t enough masks to shake a stick at, I’ve also been invited to the Mechanical Masquerade, a steampunk ball taking place November 6th in an old theater in Avondale Estates.  I’m super excited about attending this event as a vendor and hyped to make all new designs!  I’ve been a little stumped on what to do so far, but I have a feeling that when the dam breaks, I’ll get a rush of inspiration at the very last minute!

Right now I’m brainstorming on how to mix the themes of filigree, keyholes, gears, roses, clockwork, and lace.  Toss that all together and I’m getting mental images of a street-walking Rosie from The Jetsons, but I’m sure it will all gel at some point to inspire some really cool designs (no doubt in the same vein as my Keeper of Secrets mask).  I’m not quite sure I understand the Steampunk movement as it applies to Fashion, so I am looking for reference links here, if you guys have any good ones!

Will I ever get back to painting (or writing, for that matter?) Only time will tell!  For now, I’ve been quietly thumbnailing images for my long forgotten Rapunzel comic at night.  The upcoming Disney retelling of the tale (Tangled) has rekindled my love of the story and my dark retelling of it.

But that is a matter for another entry!

Con Report: Faerie Escape Atlanta

I’m back from Faerie Escape Atlanta with a very good feeling about the direction this con is going. They’re tapping a niche for mystical/mythical fantasy that I think will gain them a lot of followers, if they can keep it going!  The con was held in a small Holiday’s Inn, a refreshing break from cons that sprawl across multiple hotels with enough people packed into them to make you feel like a sardine. I also ♥ free parking and light traffic to this location!

Angelic Shades at Faerie Escape 2010.
Product placement galore!
This was FEA’s first year in operation and it showed with the lack of attendance for Sunday, when there weren’t as many events scheduled to keep folks coming back.  Traffic in the dealer’s room was all but dead.  What the con lacked in traffic, however, it made up for in the friendly atmosphere and good company. We sat next to Henna Belle, who provided us with lovely conversation and entranced us with her wonderful henna art. She was mesmerizing to watch!
I also met a couple of fantasy authors from Mercury Retrograde Press and was delighted to learn there was a small indy press here in Sandy Springs that catered to underground and character-driven fantasy works. They lured me in with free brownies and I left with two books I couldn’t resist, Secret of the Sands by Leona Wisoker (desert kingdom + prince + thieves=SOLD!) and Shorn by Larissa N. Niec (winged people + angst = Also SOLD!).

Both Larissa and Leona were kind enough to personalize my books for me, which was a treat. I’m hoping that once I get through my huge to-read pile that I’ll be able to work with them on producing some art for their books, which they both seemed highly interested in!  I’ve been wanting an excuse to illustrate something beyond my own stories and this seems like an excellent opportunity for me to expand my subject matter and try more challenging scene-based work.

The Phoenix and Dragon bookstore hosted the event, another place I’ve never heard of local to me!  They also display art in their store on a monthly basis, so will definitely be looking into that once a few more originals have returned from their travels abroad. FAE Magazine also expressed some interest in my art, which I’m hoping to ply my trade with submissions shortly!

So while I barely made more than $150 the whole weekend, it was enough to cover the cost of the Exhibitors table/gas/food and provided a good opportunity to network with people in my area.  Product-wise, my prints were all but neglected in favor of the leather carving, which really seemed to grab people’s attention!  All but one butterfly barrette (the comet moth) sold while half of the keychains and macrame necklaces were wiped out by a single customer.  Surprisingly, not a single mask sold, for as much as people were trying them on!  On the bright side, I won’t have to remake them for DragonCon, which is somewhat of a relief!  I am hoping to return next year to FEA with nothing but crafts and will probably be saving my print/art stock for DragonCon and Anime Weekend Atlanta specifically.
On a random note, with so many faeries wandering around, I feel compelled to make my own fae persona, which I have deemed the Butterfly Eater.  Costume with a ‘captured and impaled’ butterfly theme coming up!  Those good faeries won’t know what hit them. Mua ha ha!
Now, I have two weeks to get in gear for the next (and largest) convention I go to each year, DragonCon here in Atlanta!  I have around 22 images to mat & embellish, paintings to frame, and keychains to make.
So let the mad rush begin!  I’m armed with coffee, tape for my eyelids, and an unhealthy addiction to heavy workloads!
PS
My display (as you can tell from the booth photo) has evolved a bit! A new artist alley booth breakdown is coming soon!