Showing Tag: " painting" (Show all posts)

Three black dogs (and working fast)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Tuesday, November 15, 2016, In : Creativity

Sometimes a short, fast creative session can yield great results. These three black dogs could easily have taken me weeks of agonising over creating the designs and carefully painting them. But instead they were completed in a single afternoon. And they're amongst my favourite pieces from this year :)

We were given a brief in our last studio drawing class to design a set of three pieces featuring either cats or dogs, that would be of an appropriate nature to emblazon the sides of a large trans...
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#ICAD2016 week 8 round up

Posted by Sally Cummings on Wednesday, November 2, 2016, In : Creativity

Eep, I've been so busy finishing up my art course that I'm weeks (months!) behind in posting about all the things I want to write about before this year is out. It's just been a massive year and a great experience, and I have so many ideas I just want to jump on straight away :)

But - before I get sidetracked and start writing about all of that, here is my final weekly index card wrap up from the 2016 Index-Card-A-Day challenge. I managed eight weeks' worth of index card art, reaching a total ...
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#ICAD2016 week 7 round up (and marbling)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Tuesday, September 27, 2016, In : Creativity

Here's my seventh weekly set of index cards, and my second last little collection for 2016. After the fun of creating collage postcards for my art course, I decided to explore it a bit further in my index cards, and you can see some of the results of mixing paint and found images here.

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2016 Week 7 round up

My favourite piece from this week's set was the marbling shown in the centre card. I had just watched a Creativebug tutorial on Facebook about paper marbling using shaving cream and food colouring, and realised ...
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There was a crooked man

Posted by Sally Cummings on Wednesday, September 21, 2016, In : Creativity

One of the elective subjects I chose in my arts course this year was Illustration & Imagery. Fairly early on, we were given a brief to complete a series of illustrations to accompany a nursery rhyme. I chose "There was a crooked man". If you don't know it, I've included the text below:

    There was a crooked man, and he walked a crooked mile,
    He found a crooked sixpence upon a crooked stile.
    He bought a crooked cat, which caught a crooked mouse,
    And they all lived together in a littl...
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#ICAD2016 week 6 round up

Posted by Sally Cummings on Sunday, September 18, 2016, In : Creativity

Okay, here's another week of index cards to round up. This post is quite late, as I finished these cards about a month ago and have since completed the daily challenge for this year. At the point that I completed this set I had equalled my total number of cards from last year, and then continued on to finish after eight weeks (56 cards). So it's good to know I've been able to push this challenge a bit further each year :)

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2016 Week 6 round up

As I look at this set and the ones before it, I can really see how my us...
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#ICAD2016 week 5 round up

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, August 15, 2016, In : Creativity

I'm running behind both on creating daily index card art and blogging about it. I finished this set a few weeks ago, and have completed more since. I'm not sure yet if I will complete the full 61 cards (I've never managed it yet) or choose my own finishing point.

I remember that this lot took quite a while to create, as I agonised over a few of them for several days! The trio of flowers in the top right of the photo took me ages to finish - I really liked the design I'd come up with, so I took...
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#ICAD2016 week 4 round up

Posted by Sally Cummings on Thursday, July 14, 2016, In : Creativity

I had a bit more time at home to work on this set of index cards (school holidays!), so it was a good opportunity to get messy and play with paint. In fact, I've just looked back at all of my weekly collections for the last three years, and this is the only set that features paint on every card for a whole week.

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2016 Week 4 round up

Something else occurred to me as I was looking at these cards, though, and that is that only one of this week's card uses paint alone - the rest all incorporate at least one other medi...
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Triptych

Posted by Sally Cummings on Sunday, July 10, 2016, In : Creativity

For one of our assignments in first semester we were tasked with creating a triptych (a set of three works that are designed to be displayed together), with a focus on the principles of composition, including balance, proximity, use of positive and negative space, etc. The subject matter was completely open, but we were restricted to using black, white, and one colour only.

It can be so hard sometimes to come up with a creative idea and get started. For this project my mind was stuck on wantin...
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#ICAD2016 week 3 round up (30 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Thursday, June 30, 2016, In : Creativity

I'm running behind on the index card challenge (and #blogjune too), as I really needed a few days off after the semester finished. I'm not really worried about trying to catch up or keep up, though, as long as I just keep going.

To that end, I've started carrying some basic art supplies around with me, and several of the cards in this week's batch have been started or finished when I've find tiny pockets of spare time. Some of the cards were started while I was waiting for a lift, and then fin...
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#ICAD2016 week 2 round up (18 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Saturday, June 18, 2016, In : Creativity

Another seven index cards done, so another weekly round up. A collage of the second week's efforts is below :)

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2016 Week 2 round up

I thought I would find it much harder to do the index cards while I'm also spending so much time and energy on my arts course. But so far I'm actually finding it a great outlet for doing my own thing creatively.

In my course I am constantly pushed outside of my comfort zone, while here in the index card challenge I am free to play around with the patterns and colours that I love. I'm n...
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Cherry Tree in Autumn (13 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, June 13, 2016, In : Creativity

I'm totally in love with the colours on my cherry tree right now. Every time I catch a glimpse of it through my laundry window, or step outside my back door, it makes me feel happy. A reminder of the beauty in the world.

Love the golden colours on my cherry tree right now!

Last week I desperately needed some inspiration for an assignment on modernism that I was really struggling with. I had ideas, but just couldn't pull them together and move forward. One of my friends suggested taking inspiration from a landscape, and suddenly everything came t...
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#ICAD2016 week 1 round up (8 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Wednesday, June 8, 2016, In : Creativity

I just realised I've already done my first seven cards for this year's Index-Card-A-Day challenge (#ICAD2016), so it's time for a weekly round up.

I've been posting them each day to Flickr, and also to Instagram and Tumblr. A collage of the first week's efforts is below.

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2016 Week 1 round up

Again, never easy to make time to do these, but it's such a worthwhile activity for switching gears, engaging creativity and developing skills. It's a bit like a shared daily sketchbook habit, really.

I had a few leftover wa...

Art student

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, May 30, 2016, In : Creativity

Wow, time has really flown this year! All of a sudden #blogjune has come around again and it's time to dust off all the draft blog posts that I've been cogitating on (sometimes in writing, but mostly in my head) and hit that publish button again and again. But before that starts, I just wanted to share some long overdue news properly ...

This year I've taken a year off work to study visual arts full-time :)

As many of my friends will know, I love creating and making. Although for many years I'v...
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#ICAD2015 week 6 round up

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, October 5, 2015, In : Creativity

Well it feels like ages since I last posted, and I guess it has been. I finished my last week of index cards over a month ago (I decided to stop at 42), but I haven't blogged about them until now due to a curious reluctance to turn on my home computer ...

Anyway, here's the sixth 'weekly' round up collage of #ICAD2015 (Index-Card-A-Day) cards:

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2015 Week 6 round up

I was really pleased with this final set, which includes a few designs that I like a lot. The centre card is a particular favourite, but I also love the...
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#ICAD2015 week 5 round up

Posted by Sally Cummings on Saturday, August 15, 2015, In : Creativity

I'm still trundling along with the index card creativity challenge, even though July is now over. I'm not going to try to make it to the full 61 cards, but I haven't quite decided on an end point either. Maybe once I've completed 42 cards (6 weeks' worth). Or maybe a little longer ...

Here's the fifth 'weekly' round up collage of #ICAD2015 (Index-Card-A-Day) cards:

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2015 Week 5 round up

There are a few in this batch that I was really happy with. Doodling is still my fallback position when I'm creatively stuck, but I...
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#ICAD2015 week 4 round up

Posted by Sally Cummings on Sunday, July 19, 2015, In : Creativity

June flew by, as it always does. I managed 20 blog posts, and a similar number of index cards. I'm pretty happy with that, considering everything else that was going on at the same time.

At the very end of June I came down with a nasty virus and chest infection, and everything ground to a halt. I still have a very sore throat and I'm not sleeping well, but I'm starting to find my feet again.

Yesterday I finally finished my 28th index card, so I can post a new weekly #ICAD2015 (Index-Card-A-Day)...
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The unusual experience of having a photo featured on Flickr Explore (29 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, June 29, 2015, In : Technology

So an odd thing happened yesterday. One of my index cards was featured in Flickr Explore, and it was a very interesting experience ...

I first realised something unusual was going on when I started getting phone notifications for 'likes' (favourites on Flickr) at a much faster rate than usual, and from people that I didn't know. There were just 3 or 4 to start with, and my first thought was perhaps I was getting spammed. I actually had a quick look at Explore on my phone, but couldn't see my p...
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#ICAD2015 week 3 round up (26 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Friday, June 26, 2015, In : Creativity

I mentioned my battle with watercolours last week, and in this week's #ICAD2015 (Index-Card-A-Day) round up you can see some of the results:

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2015 Week 3 round up

I've been trying to master the swirly abstract watercolour background effect. Nope. That isn't going to happen apparently. But I keep trying, and sometimes the effect is quite pleasing. Unfortunately the two cards with eye motifs (one in black fineliner, the other using masking fluid) required me to do the watercolour background last. No second chances! S...
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200th post :) (25 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Thursday, June 25, 2015,

If my enumeration is correct - and I think it is - this is my 200th blog post!

So I made an index card to celebrate the occasion :)

Short and sweet tonight.

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#ICAD2015 week 2 round up (20 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Saturday, June 20, 2015, In : Creativity

Well, it took me a little longer than two weeks to create two weeks' worth of index cards for #ICAD2015 (Index-Card-A-Day), but I'm catching up :)

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2015 Week 2 round up

I nearly didn't post the first index card I made - the one that says "Be brave" on it. I wasn't at all happy with how it turned out (apparently I can't write in a straight line, even on lined paper!). And then I tried to 'fix' it by adding some arrows, but they came out all wonky. Anyway, after nearly binning it, I gave myself a stern talking to abo...
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#ICAD2015 week 1 round up (7 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Sunday, June 7, 2015, In : Creativity

I've just finished my first seven cards for #ICAD2015 (Index-Card-A-Day). I've been posting them to Flickr and also to Instagram this year. A collage of my first week's efforts is below.

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2015 Week 1 round up

It's always difficult for me to think up ideas for this. Even when I have them swirling around in my head, it's not easy to work out the execution. And then to whip something up in an evening after work / commute / dinner / etc. - especially when I'm trying to write a blog post every night too! So sometimes I ...
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June is here again (1 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Monday, June 1, 2015, In : Creativity

And with June, comes the annual #blogjune daily blogging challenge! I'm taking part again this year, and like last year I'll also be doing the #ICAD (Index-Card-A-Day) challenge over June and July.

Sadly last year my Mum's health suddenly worsened, and she passed away at the end of June. Of course this brought an abrupt end to my participation in both challenges as I concentrated on spending time with my family, grieving, and finally administering Mum's estate.

I did create a few more index car...
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#ICAD week 2 round up (15 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Sunday, June 15, 2014, In : Creativity

Another week of #ICAD (Index-Card-A-Day) has passed, so it's time for another round up of my week's creative efforts.

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2014 Week 2 round up

The second week was a little harder than the first week, as I hit a few creative stumbling blocks. I'm trying to do something different each day, and that will keep on getting harder as the challenge progresses. The central card in the above collage was the result of feeling frustrated at my own lack of technique (and sometimes imagination too).

But I'm persevering, because some...
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#ICAD week 1 round up (8 June)

Posted by Sally Cummings on Sunday, June 8, 2014, In : Creativity

The first week of #blogjune and #ICAD (Index-Card-A-Day) has drawn to a close, and as promised in my first post I have put together a round up of my week's #ICAD efforts.

Index-Card-A-Day (#ICAD) 2014 Week 1 round up

I have found the Index-Card-A-Day challenge to be a lot of fun, but also surprisingly challenging. It's been a long time since I've put pen or brush to paper on a regular basis - and it showed! I felt quite clumsy on several occasions, especially when trying new techniques or media.

But that's the point really. It's about exer...
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