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Welcome to my blog , The Hare Illustratère. I'll be posting about my art process and journey as an illustrator/author here.

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Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Dragon on my Back


DRAGON PICNIC
© Diana Ting Delosh

Whew finally got this dragon off my back and onto the paper. This illustration started out as a fun project but due to too many interruption, it just dragged on. So now it's finished and I'm not sure what to think of it. I'm happy enough with it to add it to my portfolio. I'm also glad that I have something to show for my efforts as this is my entry for the upcoming CBIG group exhibit; Dragon  & Magic, art inspired by the books, The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame or The Magic City by E. Nesbit.

Needless to say my choice was The Reluctant Dragon. Really enjoyed the story about a peaceable poet of a dragon and the boy who befriends him. In this scene Dragon recites his latest poem to the boy as they snack on cheese and berries.

Do I love it? Don't know -  I'm just so glad it's finished and I can now move on to what's next on my list.

More on the exhibit in a future post.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Illustration Friday: Star Gazing!

New Moon & Stars
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor

Here's my illos for this weeks IF prompt: Star Gazing. The new moon surrounded by swirling stars.

I had originally created this illustration for my card store as a Ramadan card. It's interesting that the Muslim holidays revolve around the new moon while the Asian holidays revolve around the full moon. Either way the ever changing glorious night sky is always a source for inspiration. 

Friday, August 13, 2010

Friday the 13th!

Black Cat Friday the 13th
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor

Blackie the feisty black kitty says
HOWDY and HAVE A
HAPPY & LUCKY FRIDAY THE 13TH!

This card and 700+ more of my whimsical card designs may be seen at www.GCUniverse.com/dianascards

Celebrating my 3rd Anniversary at GCU!
SPECIAL OFFER
Free Shipping when you order 20 cards or more
 - use code AUGSHIP20 - ends August 18th. (U.S. only)



Illustration Portfolio at: DianaDelosh.com

Friday, July 23, 2010

Illustration Friday: Double!

Twin Doves
© Diana Ting Delosh
 Ink, Watercolor & Photoshop
Art is available on cards at www.gcuniverse.com/dianascards
See my portfolio at dianadelosh.com

Mirror image twin doves. Yup -you're seeing doubles. Here's my entry for this weeks IF prompt: DOUBLE.

On the subject of doubles, I have met my doppleganger. She works at my local super market and looks like a younger version of me. What's too coincidental is that instead of Diana her name is Diane!

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Golden Mosque - Sketch to Card Art


Golden Mosque
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor


Non-mainstream holidays are a big seller at my online store Diana's Cards. Most likely because the brick and mortar stores have very little selection if any for the non Judeo Christian holidays. So it was a no-brainer for me to do a new illustration for the upcoming Muslim holidays. Here's my approach  for the subject. As the upcoming holidays are religious I decided to do a mosque as the focus of my design.

What better mosque to be inspired by then the famous Golden Mosque of Jerusalem. Did a Google search and did this rough sketch from the image references on tracing paper. I wanted to use the reference as a jumping point, an inspiration not a true depiction of that famed building - so no print outs for reference. 

This reference sketch was actually done awhile ago and just put aside until I had time to work on this project. Finally yesterday, with Ramadan coming up fast in August - it was time to push this illo out now. Amazing how time creeps up on you and how that ticking mental clock can be a great motivator. 

The art process begins in earnest: 
Step 1 - Resize sketch and transfer onto watercolor paper via my light box. Decide that it's not balanced. Too heavy on the right, needs something more on the left. I add buildings to the sketch, erase it. Sketch in more trees - it's ok -but not inspired. Remember that there is actually a newly built mosque right around the corner from me. It is a rather plain structure accept for the rounded pink scallops on the top of the building. Fills in the empty spot nicely.

Step 2 - Go to ink - I use double 0 and triple 0 rapidiograph pens filled with waterproof ink for my line work. Use the 00 pen for the foreground and 000 for backgound and detail, texture. This goes smoothly and I  scan the line art in case I screw up in the next step. 

Step 3 - Coloring.The painting is pretty straight forward. Take a step back and realize that the pink in the back building is too bright and makes it pop out too much. Change it to purple. Also decide it's too plain and add more lines for texture. Last a moody night sky is added in and stars are painted in white gouache. I like that the white can be more opaque or translucent, gives more depth to the stars and the the night sky.  I could've dropped in the sky with Photoshop but I like the effect of mixing the black, blue and purple directly on the paper. Art is finished.

Final Final Step - Scan and clean up in photoshop and make into product. I did say this was for my card store - yup it's loaded and submitted as 3 designs for 3 different categories and in about a week it will be ok'd and available for purchase. Maybe this design's too late for Ramadan 2010 but there's still Al Fitr in September and Al Adha in early winter. While we're at it - might as well make it available as a print. So better late then never.   

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

IF: BREAKFAST!


Cat Family
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor

Breakfast with the cat family. Poppa Cat and Bart are sitting down to a nice bowl of crunchy cereal. Momma is tending to baby. What is Clarisse up to? Don't they notice that she's sneaking off?

This is my entry for this week's Illustration Fridays prompt - Breakfast. 

To see more of my work at DianaDelosh.com

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

ARG-G-G-G-G! They STole my Art !

Just received an alert form a fellow artist that they noticed while they were browsing Etsey what appeared to be my art and gave me the url.
http://www.etsy.com/listing/43083094/original-watercolor-painting-the-bear

And low and behold it is my art! And they're claiming it as their own handmade art!!!!! and are making $ selling it on Etsey!!! WAH-h-h-h-h! I'm so-o-o angry I feel ill.

So I report it as not their handmade art and e-mail the store to please take down now. First I had to join Etsey to report the store. Crazy- huh? Then I posted & vented my grievance on Facebook and Twitter to alert my fellow artists about this offending store.

Have just received a form letter from Etsey for how I can claim to be the rightful creator of said piece. It is a 2 page document. I hate paperwork but need to deal with this.

Anyway if you're an artist check out the above Etsey store to see if they're stealing your art. Let's close down the offending store!

Will keep you informed on if I get satisfaction and how fast my art is removed. This is day 1.

After much activity on Twitter and all, the Etsy store is now down. Only took a few hours. Not sure if Etsy took it down or the store owner closed shop.

 More details in a future blog.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

IF: PAISLEY


Groundhog Awakes!
© 2010 Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor

Groundhog loves to lounge in his daisy paisley trimmed robe. Here's my illustration for this week's Illustration Friday prompt. Wish I had a Daisy Paisley trimmed robe.

Tuesday, June 22, 2010

THANK YOU!

YAY! My Ripple Art Card, #581 CALL OF THE PELICAN, Sold! It makes me so happy that my art was picked by  someone as their gift for donating to help save the animals from the BP/Gulf Oil Leak Disaster.
Now for the Icing on the cake - someone just requested that I do another Call of the Pelican as they would like it also. Ah-h-h to bask in the warm glow of appreciation while doing my part to help. So yes I will do a Call of the Pelican 2. It will be similar but due to the spontaneity of my watercolor medium it will not be an exact dupe. I hope to have it finished by the end of this week.
Please see  http://ripplesketches.blogspot.com/ for more info on the project.    
CALL OF THE PELICAN
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor Sketch art- 2.5 x 3.5"

Friday, June 18, 2010

Illo 2 - A Boy & His Wolf

A BOY & HIS WOLF
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor

Well here it is Illo #2* - now this piece was a long time coming. Too many interuptions, obstacles both personal and professional -but here it is finally and I'm fairly happy with the finish.

I wanted to work on Book Jacket type art.  Several art buyers have looked over my portfolio and have stated that I should add more full color Jacket and B & W interior art for middle grade/YA books to my portfolio. Why - because midgrade/YA books are big sellers and the picture book market is slow right now. I should add that doing so has been on my to do list for awhile but it's the 12 Week Challenge that's galvinized this thought into concrete action.

The idea/assignment - Bk jacket art - I decided to redo an old piece that's been languishing in my flat files. There are somethings about it that I still like: the wolf and the dreamy forest. As for the rest - it's over wrought/overdone and what's with the boy's outfit? 





 After the pencil, comes the inking and finally we're in the last stages -  the coloring. As usual I lay in my color. Work on the boy - paint in the wolf - now with more detail and depth then my older version. Paint in the background.  

Here is where it went awry. In the new version I put in a big tree in the mid ground. The tree top is where I envision the type. BUT I end up hating the tree top! Would probably look fine with type but as it stood - I just wasn't happy.  I am happy with the boy and I love the wolf. Now what? Feed my trash monster? Banish it to my flatfile? What? As this is watercolor, a transparent media, I can't just paint over the offending parts. I can paint the background on another piece of paper and splice it in via photoshop. OK that's a thought but wait this is a personal piece and there is no real size for me to stick to just as there is no deadline or client. There is only me to please. So what's my solution? Crop it! Yay! and I even like it now. 

Yes, yes one day I'll paint dreamy forests and splice in with photoshop but that can wait. Now I hear illo 3, Sandcastle Summer,  calling me as well as Ripple Sketches and gazillion other things to do.  Illo 4, 5, 6 will be randomly: The Reluctant Dragon, black & white, and TBD. 

*Refers to the Zero2illo 12 week challenge. Weeks 4 - 6: create 6 portfolio worthy illustrations. My personal challenge - create 6 people illos as my website is underpopulated with people.  

Thursday, June 17, 2010

IF: RIPPLE

CALL OF THE PELICAN
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor Sketch art- 2.5 x 3.5"

I usually think of Pelicans as large lovable, even comical birds to see these beautiful birds covered in black goo on TV because of the BP Oil Disaster is so-o-o-o tragic.

Here's my entry for this weeks IF prompt: RIPPLE. 
This is also my art donation for the Ripple Project - helping to raise funds to save the wildlife effected by the deadly BP/Gulf oil leak disaster. Here's hoping that all our combined efforts will make a few ripples add up to a tsunami of good.  

My original ink and watercolor may be yours as gift for donating $10 to either 2 nonprofits, The Institute for Marine Mammal Studies or The International Bird Rescue Research CenterPlease see http://Ripplesketches.blogspot.com for details on how to "purchase" and to see other art available for a $10 donation.

Thursday, June 10, 2010

MY New ZAZZLE Store!




Cymbidium Blossom
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor
Just opened a store on Zazzle.com, http://www.zazzle.com/deloshdesigns* for fun and hopefully profit! Now my whimsical and elegant illustrations will be available on a variety of  products. 
My Cymbidium Blossom motif is my debut image in this venture.

See Cymbidium Blossom motif on:
MUG
T-SHIRTS and assorted TOPS, Infants to adult sizes:
• Just in time for Father's Day TIES
APRONS
HOODIES
TOTE BAGS

To celebrate this new venture - 
all items are currently set at a special introductory price. 
Promotional pricing will be in effect for about a month or until I have 4 motifs up 
(which ever happens first)
THANKS FOR LOOKING!



Tuesday, June 8, 2010

IF: TRAIL


Seed Pack © Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor
Violet Mouse reads her seed pack so voraciously that she doesn't notice the trail of seeds falling out of the package. Here's my entry for this weeks Illustration Friday prompt, TRAIL.

Here's wishing everyone Happy Trails this summer.

See more of my art at http://dianadelosh.com 

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

IF: SLITHER!




Ink

The Boy fantasized that the carpet pattern was made of snakes and before he had reached the end of the runner his daydream had slithered to life. Here's my entry for Illustration Friday's prompt: Slither.

Can't believe it's already June! I have to remember to stay focused on my goals or my dreams will slither away.

Friday, May 28, 2010

Now Hanging at the One of Us Exhibit.

My ink & watercolor, Moi at 9, hanging at the One of Us Exhibit at Book Culture, sponsored by Tilbury House. Unfortunately, I was unable to attend the Book Launch party last Monday night, May 24, but my  friends did. PatriciaKeeler took this photo for me (Thanks!).  Marilyn Pappas reported that there was a good crowd and some people took pictures of my piece. Of course they could've been taking pictures of the art surrounding it but we'll be optimistic.

At any rate, I'll find out soon enough if it sold (for charity) as Tilbury will return my original via my SASE if it didn't. Wonder if it garnered me any notice in the publishing community (I can hope). So was it worth doing even if I couldn't attend and schmooze in person? Yes, if only because it got me to sit my butt in front of my desk, with subject, deadline, size (almost like a real assignment) to create a nice portfolio piece. A people one at that! I now have 32 animals to 12 people illos in my portfolio. More people coming up soon.

For a close up of Moi at 9 art. 
To see my friend's art.
For scenes of the book launch party visit the CBIG Blogzine

  

Thursday, May 27, 2010

IF: EARLY!

Turtle Pond
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor
This image is available as a Giclée print.

Early one morning at the pond, Bird wishes Turtle a good morning. Here's my entry for this weeks Illustration Friday prompt: EARLY.

Not sure if Bird is early enough to catch any worms. I, on the other hand, have so many things I want to do that I better get up earlier... or stay up later. 

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

IF: Equipment


Baking Bunnies
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor

The Baker Bunnies are very low tech when it comes to their baking equipment but check out their nifty carrot grater. Here' my post for Illustration Friday weekly prompt.

For more examples of my art click HERE.


Wednesday, May 12, 2010

One Of Us Exhibit


Moi at 9
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor
Here's my original 6 x 4 postcard sized art for the One of Us Exhibit. A romanticized self portrait of myself at 9 doing one of my favorite activities: drawing in the garden with my cat, Gracie beside me.

Location: Book Culture (536 West 112th Street, NYC, USA)
Date: May 24 - 28, 2010.

The show: Original post card sized art, 6 x 4" by female illustrators. The assignment: a self-portrait - at any age, any media, any style, but must be 2D. The exhibit is sponsored by Tilbury House, Publishers. The launch party is on Monday, May 24th (the night before BookExpo), beginning at 6pm at Book Culture. The exhibit will remain up at Book Culture through the end of the week. Art will be for sale to benefit Powered by Girl.


Not sure if I'll be able to make the opening - so if you go - have fun - take pictures - and look for my painting.

Saturday, May 8, 2010

12 Week Challenge - Illo #1


Illo #1 - MOI at 9
FYI: see Zero2Illo.com for more info about the 12 Week Challenge.
My process? It begins with the assignment. In this case the assignment is illo-1 (6 people illustrations). As I also needed to create original art for the One of Us Exhibit (more about this later) - self-portrait, any medium, must be flat and 4" x 6". No problem -fits my 6 people illos parameters. Illo #1 would be me at 9. When I was 9, I loved to draw in the garden with my cat, Gracie beside me. I begin by doodling layout ideas in my sketchbook.
Once I've settled on a layout I rule out my paper and start penciling on tracing paper to size.


I use my lightbox to transfer the sketch to watercolor paper and refine the pencil sketch some more before I begin inking. When I've finished theink I scan it - just in case something goes wrong in the coloring step.

Before I begin to paint I tape the paper to my desk on all 4 sides to prevent my paper from warping. I like to start with my trouble spots like the girls face. There is not a lot of room for error in water color so I want to get past my tricky spots in the beginning. I put in all the shadows using either a bluish gray tone or a warmer brown tone -depends on what color goes on top. And then I keep painting - being careful to let areas dry so nothing bleeds or fuzzes unless that's the desired effect. When I think it's finished -I walk a way -take a breather and then comeback. Look it over and decide if I need to do any overpainting to adjust the color. For this piece I decided that the grass was too yellow & pale so I put a bluer green wash on the grass area. I wait until the piece is fully dry and then cut it off my desk. Scan - TahDah - here it is!


Moi at 9
© Diana Ting Delosh
Ink & Watercolor

Whew -1 down and 5 more people illos coming. Number 2 coming right up.



Friday, May 7, 2010

12 Week Challenge - Wk 1, 2, 3,

Found this neat Illustrations challenge at Zero2illo.com via Twitter! Basically the challenge is to take 12 weeks to make your illustration dreams come true. Unfortunately this Challenge began before I discovered it, so I'm jumping in somewhere in the middle. I'm fast forwarding through wks 1 - 3. May fill in with more details at a latter date -- or not.

WK 1 - ID your Dream Goal.
Easy -Children's Book illustrator! The broader picture to make a good living as an illustrator specializing in whimsical & decorative art.

WK 2 - Create a 1 page Strtegic Biz plan for my Project/art biz career
OGSM -Objective/Goals/Strategy/measures

WK 3 - The Biz
• Decide Biz structure: Solo player -Moi!
• Marketing Strategy:
- My audience? Art Dir, Editors, professional Art Buyers.
- My end users? Adults that buy kids books, products

1) Research where/what my art will be best received. Won't post my list of 10 companies here. Suffice to say that they will be trade pubs, Kids magazine, etc.

2) Plan 6 Portfolio Pieces to create for weeks 4, 5, 6. That's 6 illustrations "due" by Sunday May 23rd -that is if I'm to stick with the framework of the 12 week challenge.
I need to have more people pieces in my portfolio - show kids ages pre-school to YA. I've been telling myself that I need to add more people to my portfolio and here's my chance. 1 or 2 of my 6 illos will be a book jacket style art and another illo or 2 will be b& w interior style art. 6 People Illos coming up!

Well here goes. Wish me luck!