Happy Birthday Max!

Our friends' dog turns one today. I made him (them) a card to celebrate his youthfulness and his approach to chasing balls. He starts with a run...and then right before the ball, there is a terrific pouncing form he adopts before getting the ball. It makes us laugh. Happy Birthday Max! You're a great dog!

Front

Back

At the Gym

The amount of hair this woman had wrapped up on her head was amazing. Everything about her was so visually interesting, from her bandanna on her dark hair to her powder blue sweat pants. But what on earth could the fanny-pack be for?

A Maxident

My friends' dog Max is still finding his way through the world...chewing up video games and controllers, mysteriously disposing of batteries, shredding books, and consuming entire boxes of nice expensive treats. His owners call these events "Maxidents".  He's such a cutie and a very very nice dog. And as a bonus, he's so very inspirational for drawings!

Today at the Allergist...

This is the first time I've ever drawn someone live. I was sitting across from this guy at the allergist and he struck me funny. First, he ran into the building. But there is no hurry at the allergist...you sit and wait, get your shots, and wait some more. (Or if you're like me you just leave.) He was busy-fingers on his phone while he waited, with occasional glances up around the room. I had to make sure it wasn't obvious I was drawing him. He looked like he could go golfing at any moment's notice.

A Visual Running Log

It's been too long. I haven't been drawing as much as I'd like to. I am trying to fit it in my days like I fit in running into my days...which made me think. What if I drew a little "entry" of what I did as a workout every day? Then the two would go hand in hand and maybe I'd draw more consistently! So, that's what I'm going to try to do. A simple pen and ink sketch with some hopefully fun copy explaining what I did. Definitely a different approach to the running blog, and hopefully a good exercise in some quick drawing.

Here are the first two days. And a link to my running blog where I'll be posting them. Perhaps I'll only post the more interesting ones here. Or maybe, on my rest days, I can draw something completely different and that will be posted here.

Chevette Postcards

Here is a series of illustrations I did for a friend who helped out greatly with the remodeling of our kitchen...giving up a few weekend afternoons for holding, leveling and drilling fun!

He has three Chevettes and is a fan. One is a '76 burnt orange one, which is the star of these drawings. On the backs of the pictures, I have small descriptions like postcards do, as well as a stamp indicia area. Rather than showing all backs, I've put the copy in the caption under each photo. I'm giving them to him tonight, in some sort of envelope I guess, deemed as postcards. I hope he finds them entertaining!!

The Chevy Chevette. A low-cost, lightweight, and readily available compact.
It'll drive you happy. (Straight from the old ad campaign.)

The Chevy Chevette at Easter Island. It's not a myth. Or made out of volcanic ash.

The Chevy Chevette at the Great Pyramids of Giza. It's all about scale.

The Chevy Chevette at the Great Wall of China.
At 43 MPG highway/wallway, the Chevette will
only use 90 gallons of gas to travel the 3,889.5
miles of wall. Economical fortification.

The Chevy Chevette at Niagara Falls. During the summer months,
100,000 cubic feet per second of water actually traverses the falls, some
.01% of which is not water but the Chevy Chevette.

The Chevy Chevette at the Chandelier
Drive-thru Tree. Inspiration found among the
Avenue of Giants.

The Chevy Chevette at the Bonneville Salt Flats. Lightly salted and flat out.

The Chevy Chevette at Stonehenge. Monumental. Megalithic. Chevy-rific.

Birds!

Looks like I'm drawing birds these days. A few personalities...

Kitchen Bird

I'm going to try to start posting small sketches more regularly. We'll see where it leads (and how often I do it). I really need to start drawing more regularly. Just get stuff out there.

Here is Kitchen Bird.
Kitchen Bird is a rare bird found only in kitchens with cheap, patterned linoleum flooring. KB prefers non-stick pans and wearing dish gloves while ordering supplies online. KB learned how to cook from watching Julia Child and Justin Wilson shows in the 80s. It is currently seeking a contract with the Food Network.

Mom's House

This is the house that my mom was born in. It is her birthday present...her birthday was October 24th. But in my typical fashion, I wasn't happy with the drawing and spent more time on it redoing a lot of things. Below is what is being printed on canvas and will arrive at Thanksgiving dinner! Happy birthday, Mom!

White Flower Tree

5.5" x 8.5" pen & ink, digital color
© 2010 Stephanie Smith

Trail Tree

5.5" x 8.5" pen & ink, digital color

Copyright © 2010 Stephanie Smith

Also, I've now joined the Cincinnati Illustrators blog. Check it out here. My plan is to post things there as well as here, such as art and maybe some graphic design related things.

5.5" x 8.5" pen & ink, digital color
Copyright © 2010 Stephanie Smith

Willow

5.5" 8.5" pen & ink, digital color
Copyright © 2010 Stephanie Smith

Trees to Flowers

8.5" x 5.5" pen and ink, digital color
Copyright © 2010 Stephanie Smith

Cupcakes

10" x 8" colored pencil on bristol
© 2009 Stephanie Smith