Gardening Pattern

March 20, 2015March 20, 2015 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

Now that the snow has melted in the backyard, I have gardening on my mind. And painting outside! I can’t wait to have inspiration growing in the garden! My husband likes to call gardening “digging in the dirt.”

This gardening pattern, my March pattern, is the first I’ve painted in watercolor. The other two patterns (art/January and love/February) were painted in Photoshop. I limited the number of colors I used, so the items would be uniform. I scanned the illustrations and arranged them in Photoshop.

After I liked how the elements were arranged, I created a frame and duplicated the entire group several times. First, I checked how the items repeated left and right.

Then I checked how the elements repeated top and bottom. I had to make some adjustements when things overlapped.

I am happy with how it came out. It’s my favorite pattern so far. It’s amazing to see sketches turned into a pattern and looking so finished. Happy Spring! 🙂

Many Versions…

March 14, 2015March 14, 2015 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been creating illustrations for St. Patrick’s Day and posting to Instagram. For each idea I have, I draw/paint multiple versions to see which one I like the best. It dawned on me, the it isn’t just hand-lettering that takes “Practice, practice, practice.” I have to draw several “takes” before I create an illustration that I like. I also take pictures along the way to see how the illustration will look when it’s finished, and to make sure I like the background and how it fits in the shot.

This way of working is new to me. In the past, I’d sit down to create a painting, and try to make it work. I began working in this way since starting my themed postings (first Valentine’s Day, then St. Patrick’s Day). I doodle, I paint, I plan in pencil. I try again. I wouldn’t say it’s about getting it perfect, it’s more about warming up and trying different things.

I really enjoy following one theme. The first couple of days are easy. After that, there is the period where I’m like, “What am I going to do now?” In both cases, the more creative ideas came to me towards the end of the campaign. I guess it’s the time when I dig a little deeper. All the obvious ideas are out of the way, so I have to think harder.

This Valentine’s Day post was one of my favorites:
helovesme

This grumpy guy is my favorite St. Patrick’s Day post so far:

Finding my groove.

March 7, 2015 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

I’ve been all over the place this week, creatively speaking. With extra time on my hands, I participated in an online hand-lettering workshop, I painted with acrylics (for the first time in months), I created St. Patrick’s Day art, and I painted in my sketchbook. Even with all of these different projects, I’m realizing what I love and what my focus should be.

Not that long ago, I worried that my creative journey didn’t have a clear path. That I was headed in too many different directions. Back in January I wrote a post, “But where am I going?” As I mentioned in that post, I found the book, “Making Art A Practice: How To Be The Artist You Are,” very helpful. The Author, Cat Bennett, suggests that you analyze your work and look for connections in theme and style.

I’ve been looking through my work and I’ve noticed what current projects make me happiest. It’s funny because I started scratching away with the ink pen (on watercolor) on a whim, but each time I do it I love it. I feel like I’ve found my style. I won’t stop exploring other things – lino, lettering, patterns, etc., but I now have a focus.

Here’s a collection of new and old illustrations that feels like “me.”

Happy March! Time to pull out your green!

March 1, 2015 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

I’m planning another Instagram art series and I’d like you to join in the fun! The theme is St. Patrick’s Day. Include #mcrstpatricksday in your Instagram post. Join me for a day or all 17 days (March 1 – 17th). It will be fun!

I had a great time last month posting Valentine’s Day art for 14 days. Working within the same theme was really interesting. You really explore the theme as the days go by, and you come up with different ideas. I used several different mediums: watercolor, watercolor and ink, scanned doodles from my sketchbook and painted them in Photoshop, created a pattern, and a linocut.

Hope to see you on Instagram! Look for me: mycreativeresolution 🙂

Watercolor (Throwback Thursday)

February 19, 2015 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

After taking drawing classes, and falling in love with colored pencil, I decided to try watercolor. My teacher was the same woman, Eva, who I loved and who was very encouraging and supportive. You need that when you are starting out (or maybe always) – someone to recognize that you have something, a little bit of talent, that merits nurturing.

Imagine my surprise when I created my first watercolor piece and she didn’t like it. “No, no, no, you are drawing! You need to paint with watercolor.” Here it is:

I didn’t really understand what she was saying – that there is an unexpectedness and beauty when you let watercolors “do their thing,” when you add paint to a wet surface and let something magical happen! Shortly after, I created this painting below, of the elephants. I was especially proud of how the clouds came out. I let it “happen” by picking up the paper and letting the paint roll around.

It took me awhile to let go and loosen up. During the drawing class, I was trying to be perfect, to draw perfectly. Now, years later, I’m loosening up more and more and I’m finding that “not perfect” has a style to it. A style I’ve been aiming for, for years. Now, I enjoy letting the watercolor do something unplanned and then creating a piece around that.

As the years went by I started using watercolor pencils in some areas, to add detail. The first painting in this post, of my kids at the beach, is my favorite watercolor to date.

Click here to see my favorite watercolors.

New year – New banner!

January 1, 2015 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

Happy New Year!!! I am so excited to continue my creative journey into 2015 and I have so many plans. I have learned and accomplished so much in 2014. 2014 wasn’t the first time that I made a resolution to be creative. But, it is the first time that I stuck with my resolution! Because of that, I feel like I’m starting the new year in a brand new place. It’s exciting!

I hope you like the new banner I designed. As I mentioned previously, I wanted more of a logo and my bear illustration has become a symbol to me. I hope you are as excited about 2015 as I am. I can’t wait to share my projects with you and see your projects too! 🙂

What I’ve learned in the 2nd half of 2014 (about myself and art)

December 20, 2014 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

At the 6 month mark of My Creative Resolution I wrote a post entitled “What I’ve learned about art (and myself).” As I sat down to write this, I reread that post, and I realized a lot of those items are still the important things I’ve learned this year. But I do have a few items to add. Those “6 month” items were mostly about art. The items I am writing now, are what I’ve learned about myself.

I love working square
I love adding ink. This is so surprising to me! I used to think adding all those lines seems so tedious, but I’ve found – you get into a zone.
Watercolor portraits – soften the edges so the skin doesn’t look blotchy.
I love being creative. I love having a project in the works, or ideas for new projects, or both!
I’m affected by the seasons. I can’t help being inspired by what is around me, whether it’s Spring flowers, Fall leaves, Winter’s evergreen trees, or a day at the beach.
I like being spontaneous and working on what inspires me in the moment. I found my weekly checklist to be too much after a while.
In the past I was frustrated with wanting to develop a style. Now, I’m embracing the journey. I’m in no rush, and I’m having fun doing it.
I’m no closer to selling and I’m not sure selling is for me. I don’t want to be filling orders or creating sellable things. I want to create what I’m inspired to create.
I love blogging – see more below.

What I love about blogging:

It motivates me to create.
I love working on new projects. Each new idea sparks more and more ideas.
I enjoy writing.
I like thinking about my process – what worked, what didn’t, what was a happy accident, or a mistake to learn from.
I love the community and feedback.
I’m inspired by and learn from other bloggers and I am honored when someone says I do that for them.

I am bursting at the seams with ideas for making My Creative Resolution better, for me and you, in 2015. I hope you’ll join me as my creative journey continues. 🙂

A few of my favorite things…

December 12, 2014 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

Here are a few of my favorite pieces from 2014.

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Autumn Tree

October 11, 2014 | Eileen McKenna {my creative resolution}

I told you I was into trees! Trees and leaves! For this piece I started painting, very wet, with watercolor. After the painting dried (a little) I went back and added more color and some leaf shapes. When that was completely dry, I started drawing, in ink, the shapes of the leaves and the lines of the bark. Then, I added more color.

I love the style of this. It is so fun to doodle in ink. You kind of go into a trance where you are half paying attention. Sometimes it takes a little bit, but eventually I find my groove. I find it helpful to add the ink while I’m watching TV!

There were a couple of parts of this piece that were bugging me, so I did a little retouching in Photoshop. I don’t normally do this. I’m a Graphic Designer and spend a lot of time using Photoshop. I prefer to keep my art “handmade,” but I loved this piece and had to fix those nagging issues.

My steps:
I need to start clamping down my paper to a board or taping it. My paper buckles and the paint puddles.