Aveline

Lady Aveline

as tumultuous as the seas to which she is bound

30" x 40" oil on wood panel
(click image to see it larger)

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It felt so different to paint a background this time. It definitely changes the piece. As did adding the stars. Somehow they brought her to life, she was no longer just a figure on a dark background, she became Aveline. I actually started to dream about her and we swam through icy waters together. Her hair doesn't often dry, but I caught it on a rare occurrence and tried to recapture it to the best of my memory.

Her octopi and jellyfish would hardly sit still as they caressed her neck and danced on her arms. Even the sails on the boat seemed to gently ripple in a phantom wind. She once referred to ships "stains on the sea". (I shudder to think of the fate that fall on the ships she meets)

One compass spun wildly, but she never looked down. I could sense her chestnut eye longing to look, as it often betrays her. Ophelia's skull is the only part of her that remained motionless. Somehow frozen over her heart.

"el mar conoce nuestro amor"

the sea knows our love

Tattoos made of squid ink and urchin needles (she couldn't escape the sea if she tried)

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And now for a few progress pictures:

At one point I was using tweezers to pick off cat hair. It was pretty ridiculous. I think I'm done using oil mediums, everything sticks to it. Everything.

drawing her tattoos

ahahaha this was in the early stages of Aveline. The night I drank too much wine and got silly. by myself. on a friday night. (i'm really cool) and texted way too many work in progress pictures to my best friend (sorry morgan)

I didn't use a primer this time as I usually just use it on the exposed portions. There wasn't any exposed wood on this piece, so I opted for no primer. For some reason this particular piece (cherry wood) was being really difficult. The oil wasn't soaking in properly, like the wood was way too smooth and just wouldn't grip the paint. I had to repaint her face like FIFTY TIMES. It was all very irritating. But it was all worth it in the end.

Next up, the sea witch La Femme Naufrage // Lady Shipwreck, mother of Aveline and Ophelia.

But first, got to finish three illustrations for Volcom, two for a canadian magazine, get ready for a show on the 15th and my solo in february! Goodness gracious I need a clone / assistant.

Hope your holidays were lovely!! Etsy shop will be reopened next year.

xx

C

Pirate Silhouette Giveaway

Time for another Facebook exclusive giveaway!

I'll be giving away this original silhouette. You know what to do!

(well, if you don't, click this link and leave a little comment on the picture.)

6" x 8" ink on paper

Etsy Sale + Work in Progress pix

Hello darlings. Did you have a delicious Thanksgiving? Good. Me too. In the spirit of sales and all those annoying things, I'm offering 10% off all orders through my Etsy shop until Monday. This includes all original silhouettes, original drawings & prints. (So stoked Etsy is finally allowing coupon codes, makes it easier for me to treat you all!)

Just enter the code: 

ILOVEYOU

at checkout for your discount.

I'll also be hosting another giveaway on my fanpage soon. I do giveaways every 1,000 fans, so we're almost there.

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I haven't had a ton of time to be able to work on my painting as I've been cranking out these silhouettes for the past week or so. Which is fun, but I'm dying to finish this piece! So, here are a few more sneak peeks of miss Aveline. I started on her tattoos the other night, which is my favorite part. I am so loving octopus tattoos right now. They're more cartoon-y on my silhouettes and more realistic in this context.

I kind of like her in black & white. Sort of tempted to experiment with some black and white paintings at some point.

Anyway. She's coming along. Next I'll be tackling the compasses on her shoulders. I'm also really proud of her mermaid scales, which you'll see eventually.

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Got a few shows opening next week:

Dec 2nd - 111 at 111 Minna, San Francisco

111 artists! massive group show. fun times will be had. i'm super excited to be showing next to some reallllly stellar artists.

Dec 3rd - Snowflakes & Candycakes @ 323East, Royal Oak, MI

will not be attending this one. it's a little too far.. someday I'll make it out there!

Dec 4th - Mezzanine, San Francisco

an even BIGGER group show. 200+ artists, fashion designers, photographers, etc. party time.

Okay. Now back to work. 

xx

C

NAUTICA

She's all done, for the moment. Minor tweaking is inevitable.

click to see it larger 

24" x 30" oil, watercolor pencil & ink on wood

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Here's a song for you to listen to while I go in to far too much detail about my painting process:

The Innocence Mission - Rain (Setting Out in the Leaf Boat)

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Finished her up yesterday. I'm a big fan of the size, it's a little larger than my normal oil paintings, but still manageable. I had a lot of fun playing with nautical elements, as that world fascinates me so much. The mermaid tattoo is inspired by art nouveau designs. The quote says "fair winds and following seas", which is a traditional mariner's phrase, it's like a farewell/blessing. It gives me chills a little bit.

Throughout the painting process I go through many emotional ups and downs. Mostly switching from "this isn't working, you've lost your touch, Charmaine" and "you know you'll get it eventually, just keep at it". Well, eventually it gets to a point that I'm comfortable with and I take it to the next step.

Here's a little bit about my painting process: the longest part for me is the conceptualizing. I spend a lot of time on the computer sketching in Photoshop, playing with colors and themes. Since I work from photo references I generally draw on top of the photos so I can change the hairstyles, clothing (or no clothing), etc. Once I feel good about the image I'll start sketching it on the wood. Even though my paintings are highly planned out, I leave a lot of room for changes and improvising.

After I'm happy with the pencil sketch, I start with the skin. I guess you could consider my technique more like "finger painting". I like to blend the colors together with my fingers, I find it's a much smoother result than using a brush. (My flesh color palette consists of Yellow Ochre, Alizarin Crimson, Burnt Umber, Titanium White and Ultramarine Blue.)

Once I am satisfied with the skin, I start the hair (my favorite part). I start by blocking in most of the color and shape with flat black oil paint. Once the black dries a bit, I bust out my India ink and draw in individual strands, just to give it more life.

The tattoos are predominately black watercolor pencil. I know, water and oil don't mix, but somehow the pencil works great on top of the oil paint (once it has dried a little bit). To get the color hues, I mix a lot of paint thinner with the oil so it's nice and transparent. I suppose some linseed oil would work too. If I feel like it needs more definition then I'll go in with my ink to get some darker lines. 

For the blue halo, I was in a bit of a predicament. I felt like it really needed it and I wasn't going to be happy if it wasn't there, but it's difficult to get a smooth and even color when painting with thinned-down paint directly on the wood, as it soaks in so quickly. Then I found an old bottle of Bleached Linseed Oil buried in the depths of my art drawers. It adds a nice gloss and transparency to the oil, which made it really easy to use directly on the wood. It's also thin enough where I could paint directly on top of the hair to get the blue behind it.

Anyway. Yeah. It works wonders. I wish I had used it for the skin! I'm going to experiment with it on my next painting that I'm starting tomorrow. Yes, more tattooed ladies coming up!

Well, thanks for looking, hope you like her.

xo

C

nautical ladies

watercolor, gouache & india ink

Here are some Aquatic Siamiese-Haired Mermaid girls for you. Another from the series of pissed-off ladies. They probably don't like the fact that I give them crooked teeth and heavy eyelashes.

Anyway, how are you this morning? (Or I suppose it's afternoon now? When did this happen) Are you enjoying the rain? Our wisteria flowers are still blooming and they smell so sweet mixed with the rain. I'm drinking mango black tea with cream, honey and some vanilla. It's like, ridiculously delicious. The last inch or so is always the sweetest, so it's a little syrupy at the moment. And on another note, I brought home some chocolate with pop rocks for Joe (ok, and me). SO GOOD.