Skipping Painted Stones
An entertaining art blog based in rural Iowa and written by author and artist Haley McAndrews.
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Last year, Jon and I went on a rare, kid-free, date night in Omaha. It was my job to plan what we were going to do, and I was pretty much at a loss - until the good old Facebook algorithm came through for me and suggested the Verse Immersive experience at the Amazing Pizza Machine in Omaha, NE. When I asked him if he wanted to go to the Amazing Pizza Machine, without our children, Jon asked me if I was serious. Yes, I was, and he was totally down for it too! We made plans to go eat a ton of food, then do two of the Verse Immersive Experiences. We decided on the Star Walk and the Art of the Future (of course!) Before I get into the Experiences, let me explain what Verse Immersive is. It's not virtual reality, which completely blocks out your view of the room around you. They call it "augmented reality," which still uses a headset but projects 3-D images on top of the darkened room you are in. So from the outside looking in, there are a bunch of strangers in one room, all with headsets on, wandering around with their hands out (you can interact with the 3-D images with your hands and by aiming your viewpoint.) The headset plays sound and music just for you, so everyone in the room can be doing their own separate experience. I thought Jon and I would be working together, but we were actually doing our own thing in the same room. Plus, you can still see all the other people around you in your peripheral, so you don't run into each other or the wall. We started off with Star Walk, which is educational about space and our solar system. Each experience is about 20 minutes long, and about 5 minutes into Star Walk my headset quit on me. The two teens running Verse Immersive basically said "Sorry about your luck" and were going to have me stand in the corner and watch Jon wander around, but when I pushed them with a "I paid for this, can't you do anything?" they restarted my headset and I jumped back in. The second experience, and the one I was most looking forward to, was the Art of the Future. The description from the Verse Immersive website says, "Art of the Future is an immersive augmented reality (AR) art gallery which brings you into the future of art! Wearing Augmented Reality glasses, you'll walk around the room discovering groundbreaking artworks that push the boundaries of imagination! Explore the latest trends in digital art, virtual reality, and interactive installations, and learn about the techniques used to create them. Test your knowledge to see if you can spot the difference between famous art pieces, pieces from up-and-coming artists, and AI generated art. Date night, family adventure, or solo excursion - Art of the Future is great for all ages and all groups of people!" Sounds super cool, let's do it! When we told the teens that was the next one we wanted, they said "Are you sure?" Now, we may not encourage interest in the arts in our country as much as we should, but could we maybe not actively try to discourage it? Yes, I am sure. Give me ALL of the arts experiences! I'll admit that we both ran out of time before we could fully complete the Art of the Future experience, so I'm not sure how it ends. I have mixed feelings about it because the experience was like a gallery space with a series of pieces of art, and you were supposed to guess if each one was created by a professional artist, and emerging artist, or by AI. The whole experience had a very pro-AI generator message, which was really disheartening as a human artist. I wrote a post a while ago about AI generators, and now that they have been out for a few years now, and have largely been used in immoral, copyright infringing ways, I am extremely anti-AI. To the point that we watched "The Creator," a movie where a man tries to save an AI child, and I felt nothing. (If you didn't know, I cry whenever I watch the Paw Patrol movies with my kids and just last week I teared up during a 20 second Uber Teen commercial, so it doesn't take much to turn on my waterworks.) A pro-AI movie? Nothing. Overall, would I recommend Verse Immersive? Yes, I would! The augmented reality technology is very cool. However, I would like to see the Art of the Future encouraging more contemporary art made by actual artists, and less focus on AI-generated art theft. Maybe the writer(s)/designer(s) could have consulted with a few galleries or artists to get a less biased message. I'm all for technology that makes our lives easier or better (we love our robot vacuum, Rosie!) but I don't want technology to replace or destroy the value in human touch and creativity.
I whole-heartedly believe that ANYONE can be an artist, but the theft of art with AI generators isn't the way to do it.
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1/15/2025 1 Comment The Value of Fan ArtFan Art!? Yes, this post is all about fan art and why I believe it's a valid art form. My own creative journey began with fan art and fan fics. The definition of fan art, according to Merriam-Webster, is "artwork based on popular works of fiction (such as books, movies, etc.) that is created by fans." Fan fic, or fan fiction, is referring to "stories involving popular fictional characters that are written by fans." Basically, unofficial creative works made by fans. I know when I was younger I made A LOT of fan art, and even wrote some fan fiction. In fact, the name DemoniCat (the name I used to post my art under) was the name of a little cat-robot I had designed as a teenager as fan art for some anime show about fighting robots (that I cannot for the life of me remember the name of. EDIT: It was called Medabots!) I only drew the robot once, but the name stuck with me and I gave it to my original character, DC, who I still draw to this day. My biggest defense of fan art is that it can be a gateway (as it was for me.) Don't get me wrong, because creating fan art and fan fics is perfectly valid on its own. It doesn't need to be a stepping stone on a journey to "real art." The creatives who make fan-creations shouldn't feel pressured to "be more original." The creative works they make are already art, just because they were created. Seriously, think about the love, passion, and inspiration they have - enough to want to create their own versions. I drew many DragonBall Z and Digimon inspired drawings. My style of drawing is still heavily influenced by anime (I think? I'm a little too close to my own art to be able to discern my own style.) The stories told in writing and visually through fans can be incredible! I know I've mentioned before the incredible feeling when someone really connects with a piece of your work enough to say "This! I feel this!" especially when it's enough that they will pay money for it. Fans drawing, painting, writing about, or even dressing up as (that's right, I see you cosplay!) is like that special connection multiplied a hundred times! Here's an example:  My first year selling at Siouxpercon in Sioux Falls, SD, people went crazy for my toaster art! One family bought some of my work, then came back the next day to give me a marker drawing that their son made for me. It was my first toaster fan art and I nearly cried on the spot. His drawing is framed and hangs in my studio right above my table.  Here's another drawing of toasters by a young artist - my own daughter, Emma. I didn't ask her to draw this one for me, which makes it all the more special. I especially love that she drew all different sizes of toasters, and their curly, kinky tails are the absolute best!  This little guy was given to me by Ms. Chevious. I can't express how much I love it, she even made little fork trees and added winged little toasts! It lives on my desk at work so I can see it five days a week. It's right next to my beloved LEGO Bonsai Tree and terra cotta Bob Ross bust (formerly a disturbing Chia Pet.)
I'll admit I have a secret dream of my fantasy books becoming popular enough that other artists will create fan art of my characters. Until then, I'll keep doing my own and being absolutely thrilled when someone else loves my toasters enough to create their own versions. I'll also continue to accept pictures and videos of kids reading my picture books because that, too, is extremely heartwarming. 🥰 11/12/2024 0 Comments Cover Reveal: Eisdreya: Leaving Lazea
As foretold in a post earlier this year, I am finally tearing the dark curtains down to reveal to the world what I've been working on for a few years now - a series of short stories and novel(s?) set in the fictitious continent of Eisdreya!
After indie publishing three children's picture books and one illustrated haiku book (I like to say Toaster Haiku is for all ages) under my actual name, I wanted a bit of a separation between my illustrated works and my non-illustrated fiction (which is meant for an adult audience.) The solution? A pen name, of course! When I decided to use a pen name, I was torn on how much of a secret it should be. I mean, nobody knew who Banksy was for years! But on the other hand, I've seen books in stores that straight up say "Nora Roberts writing as J.D. Robb" and what's even the point then? I know authors use different pen names for different genres... And while I do have a paranormal romance that I wrote in college and would like to resurrect some day, juggling two names has nearly been too much for me to wrap my head around. Before I get too deep in my struggle of creative identities (let's be honest, it's probably a future blog post) I've decided that for my own sanity I'm going to be totally open about being both Haley McAndrews and D.C. McAndrews. My first official release as D.C. McAndrews is a short story titled "Eisdreya: Leaving Lazea". The main character is a female water fairy named Rema A'Lazea (Ree-mah Ah-Lah-zee-ah) who dreams of traveling and exploring the world outside her small woodsy river town. But if she leaves, will she be leaving more than just her hometown behind?
I created the cover myself - and it's been a long time since I've put this much time into a single digital piece! I didn't track my exact hours of work for it, but I know it was around ten or twelve hours, give or take. It's the first time I've ever illustrated dappled sunlight, which was definitely a stretch for my Photoshop muscles.
My plan at this point is to release my fantasy writing as ebooks with the possibility of print in the future, but let's not hold our breath on that. I'm going to release two short stories in the Eisdreya series in 2025, with the second one to be announced yet. "Eisdreya: Leaving Lazea" is now available for pre-orders on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, etc. as well as being released to digital libraries like Overdrive. The official release date will be March 4th, 2025. I'll also be selling prints of my covers at my in-person art events (signed by D.C. herself!) You can follow me as D.C. McAndrews on Facebook and Instagram, or sign up for the Red Stone Art Studio email list to be one of the first to know when I'm working on new projects! 10/29/2024 1 Comment The Stories Behind my InkLove them or hate them, tattoos have been growing in popularity for a long, long time! I was 19 when I got my first tattoo, and nearly 20 years later I have... Hold on, let me count... I've been tattooed 9 times. So far. I haven't been able to secure an Artist Interview with a tattoo artist, yet, but it's definitely on my to-do list for this blog. I don't think anyone could argue that tattoos aren't a valid art medium. Yes, just like any other medium there's good pieces and bad pieces. Today I'm talking about mine. It hurts to get tattooed, a lot, and so every time I get tattooed I have to have a pretty good reason for it - otherwise it's not worth sitting through the pain. I'm not going to get too deep into the story behind each one, as I got many of them during some of the more emotionally charged times in my life. I can tell you that they are directly tied to the period of my life that I was in at the time (but feel free to psychoanalyze my dragon, I just got her done like a month ago!)  I love my family portrait and tree! My Family Portrait It's been some years now since I drew my monsters! I called them joyfulfigures, and for a while they were all I did! After my youngest was born, I painted a portrait of our family in watercolors, with each of us represented as a different colored joyfulfigure. Pretty much as soon as it was done, I knew I wanted it tattooed. I connected this one to a tree/knotwork band around my forearm. My tree represents growing up, as well as putting down roots, so it felt right to add my family there. My Swallow I'm not a sailor, but I absolutely love the symbolism in many of the designs. I have a stylized swallow with a bleeding heart flower in its beak on my left shoulder, and it's still one of my favorites. It was my second tattoo, but the first one I designed myself. I also have some nautical stars, and these tattoos all have to do with finding my way, safely, and finding my way home.  Now that's fresh ink! My Dragon My newest tattoo is a six-legged fluffy dragon, with lilies and bleeding hearts (the bleeding heart flowers reach back so it looks like my swallow has flown off with one) on my upper left arm. I've always wanted a tattoo sleeve, and this big line drawing is one step closer. It represents some of my passions: my love for fantasy, drawing, and plants/gardening. I also wanted this one to have a more feminine touch than some of my other tattoos.  A photo-realistic drawing of my tattoo, from my book Toaster Haiku. My Toaster It shouldn't surprise anyone that I have a toaster tattoo, but honestly this one's not my fault. Rach, my best friend of 25+ years, messaged me one day saying "I think I need to get one of your toasters tattooed." I said, "I'll get one if you get one - and I bet we could convince Mel to get one, too!" Sure enough, Mel was on board. I drew up a quick plain toaster template, so we could each customize it for ourselves. It was going to be amazing! I, of course, made mine into a demon-cat-toaster, as all my self-portraits are. I then went and got it tattooed on my ankle, saying "Okay guys, it's your turn!" ... And to this day, they've left me hanging. Now I just look like a weirdo with a demon-cat-toaster tattooed on my leg! Am I done getting tattooed? Absolutely not. I have two drawings set aside for my right calf, drawings that my girls did when they were each about 4 years old. Some of the absolute best tattoos I've seen are of children's artwork. The one Emma drew is of a person, arms held wide open, and Alex's drawing is of our garden with a rainbow shining over it. They are seriously the best, and in a few years I'll have them permanently etched into my skin. And I can't wait!
10/15/2024 0 Comments How to Photograph ArtworkThere are many reasons an artist needs to photograph their artwork; maybe they want to sell prints of it, or maybe they need to include images of their work with an application to a show or event. Maybe they want to share it online, or just want to document the work for their own inventory. Regardless of the reason, I've got some tips for effectively photographing your artwork!  Oh, this hurts to see. Use a high resolution. I would not recommend a resolution - or ppi (pixels per inch) - below 150 ppi. Ideally, you should use 300 ppi for any images used for printing, but 150 ppi will still appear sharp when printed. The standard ppi for images online (websites, social media, etc) is 72 ppi. This makes the image file size smaller for faster loading and viewing, but you cannot print images at this resolution without them getting blurry or pixelated. For my book illustrations that I know are going to be resized, I scan them at 600 ppi - but the final print file is set to 300 ppi. Remember, you can always scale your images down, but you can't make a crisp, high resolution image from a low-resolution one, so it's best to just start with a higher resolution file. You can change the resolution in your camera's settings or in your image editing program.  Not only is there a flash, but also my hallway and bathroom lights, too! Use good lighting. Different kinds of lighting will alter the appearance of your artwork - changing the colors and tones (like making whites look yellow or orange.) Our end goal when photographing our art is to have an accurate digital image of our work. Interestingly enough, sunlight is actually the best lighting for more accurate coloring. But not bright direct sunlight, which can cause harsh, unintentional shadows, but rather sunlight on a cloudy, more overcast day. Unfortunately, we don't always have softly diffused sunlight at our disposure, so we need to work with what we have. You may need to move your art to different rooms or walls, or even set up a lamp or other lighting to get a good photograph. Try not to use your flash, especially if the piece is shiny or under glass, as the flash will create harsh, dark shadows and bright white spots of light.  You actually wanted a picture of this gray bar, right? ...Right? Make sure it's in focus. I don't want to sound condescending here - a few months ago we went to a wedding for some friends of mine. They asked me to take photos for them, and I did, but when I took pictures of my own family with the bride and groom... Well, they looked great in the 2"x2" camera screen at the time, but when I got home and loaded them onto my laptop, every photo I took of my own family was blurry! 🤷♀️ So take a few seconds to zoom in on your photos right after you take them to ensure you have a sharp, properly focused image. If you can't get a crisp image when holding the camera by hand, use a tripod to keep it still. It might not be a problem with unsteady hands, but could be a lighting/shutter speed problem (anything slower than 1/60th of a second is likely to have some motion blur when hand held - but I'm not going to get that deep into camera mechanics in this post!) Take it out of the frame/remove the glass. This won't apply to every piece, but if your art is framed under glass, remove it if you can. Glass can create reflections that we don't want, which leads me to the next tip...  Oh, hey guys! Mind the reflections. If you can't take it out of the frame, it's not the end of the world, but you do want to take notice of any reflections on the glass (or any other shiny surface on it.) Anybody else remember the eBay picture of the shiny metal teapot that showed the photographer's reflection - and clearly showed him in just a pair of underwear? Well, that's exactly what we want to avoid! Oh, and don't forget to clean your piece beforehand to make sure your shiny surface is clean and free of smudges or fingerprints. Use a scanner (if possible.) This, too, won't work for all pieces - especially 3D or impasto paintings. But if your artwork is smaller and flat, you may want to use a scanner to get a high-resolution image for making prints. I recommend scanning the artwork prior to framing, just so you don't have to remove the frame again later on. Crop it. Don't be afraid to crop your image! You can crop out the frame, wall, or anything else in the background. We don't want a distracting background to take away from our artwork. We also don't want our prints later on to have weird edges showing on them. If you can't crop it out...  It's slightly less chaotic when I don't have a 6' statue in the middle of it, I swear! Make sure the background isn't distracting. If your studio is a hot mess like mine, it's probably not the best place for photographing pieces that will have a background in the image. Find a blank, neutral, or complimentary/contrasting wall or background to use. If the piece is dark, maybe it needs a light wall - or vice versa. * An additional note under this tip - If your artwork is unframed or on canvas, make sure you can't see the stand/support through the piece. Some years ago I saw some photos of paintings on easels, and while the lighting and focus was perfect, you could see the wooden easel through the middle of the canvas. Don't be afraid to edit!
Cropping, adjusting brightness and tone, even tweaking the perspective - all of that is fine to do! As a reminder, our goal with the final image is to have an accurate digital representation of our artwork. I promise you don't have to be a professional photographer in order to capture great photos of your art. You don't even need a digital camera, because many newer mobile phones have cameras that can take higher resolution photos than even my Nikon. Keep these tips in mind and your photos of your art will turn out great! |
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