An award-winning experiment finds a home

The Artdog Image of Interest

One of the nicest things that happened for me while I was at Westercon/MALCon (Myths and Legends Convention) in Denver earlier this month was receiving a blue ribbon in the 3D category at the Art Show. I feel very honored, because there was a lot of wonderful 3D artwork in this show.

The honored piece was a special, one-of-a-kind Artist's Proof (abbreviated AP) of the Common Cliff Dragon--Male collection of multiple originals. I called it the "spiny ridge" AP because in a fit of madness I experimented with cutting out each individual scale on the ridge along the dragon's back, then sculpting them to stand up slightly.

I took the second photo in December 2016 before I matted the piece. I have to admit it looked pretty cool, but it was a delicate operation, it took a long time, and when I'd finished I swore I'd never do that again. Granted, one should "never say 'never,'" but now I'm officially on record that it was a one-of-a-kind experiment.

A one-of-a-kind experiment that was awarded this wonderful honor, and one which also has now been "rehomed" with a new owner. The owner got some prize-winning new art, but I was the one who got to keep the ribbon!

IMAGES: Both photographs were taken by me, Jan S. Gephardt, of my own artwork. If you wish to re-post or reblog either of them you may, as long as you include an attribution to me and a link back to this post. Thank you!

A glimpse from Capricon 38

The Artdog Image of Interest  

Paper sculpture by Jan S. Gephardt, as displayed at Capricon 38, in February 2018.

I'm in Wheeling, IL, for the weekend, at Capricon 38. So far, it's been fun. I'll probably have more thoughts about Capricon in future posts, but here's a look at my Art Show panel, as it appeared before the show opened.

IMAGE: I took this photo, in part for this blog post. If for any reason you re-post it, please do so with an attribution and a link back to this page. Thanks!

Common Cliff Dragon--Male

The Artdog Image of Interest 
This month I've been posting some of my own artwork for my Images of Interest. This is a representative image from my edition of multiple originals titled Common Cliff Dragon--Male. It was recently listed in my Etsy shop, Artdog Paper Sculpture.

My three drawings from 2012, inked and scanned.

It was developed from three pencil drawings I did back in 2012, each created to overlay the one below. The "cliff surface" is one layer, the dragon's body is the second, and the dragon's wings are the third. Once the three were aligned on tracing paper, I inked them, scanned them, then colored each using Adobe Illustrator and a Wacom "Bamboo" tablet.

These are the pieces I cut out.

The artwork prints out as five different pieces: the border base (on heavier archival stock) with the title in the rectangle; the cliff face (sculpted and floated over the base), the body of the dragon; and finally two layers of wings, one more heavily sculpted and glued over the lower layer for a better 3D effect.

Here's the assembly process.

Then it's time to cut the pieces out, which I do with small, precise scissors (they go dull so much less often than X-Acto knives! Then I sculpt with clay-working tools on the flat surface of paper laid over corkboard, assemble the pieces, and it begins to look almost alive, sometimes.

IMAGES: All images are by me, of pieces of a paper sculpture made by me, Jan S. Gephardt. You may use them online, if you'll provide accurate attribution and a link back. Thanks!

"Coming Through!" multiple-original paper sculpture joins my Etsy lineup

I thought you might like to know I have a new limited edition multiple original listed in my Etsy shop.

I've listed two Artist's Proofs of the image Coming Through!, which features an assertive unicorn powering through a patch of day lilies.

These particular Artist's Proofs represent a very short run of two. The variations are lighter-yellow lilies than I've decided to offer in the eventual edition of 25, and a "floating" oval that is cut out and elevated above the backing.

I originally created the Coming Through! image in 2012, but I've been playing with variations on it ever since. In all its variations, it has been well-received at the science fiction conventions where it has been exhibited, but I'm hoping the Etsy listing will gain me a larger audience. Why not offer something in time for Christmas, right? (If I can get things matted, I hope to offer more soon).

Here's a look at some of the pieces I must cut out and sculpt, to create a Coming Through!

As with any of my multiple originals, each of these pieces is unique. Even when working from a digital output, the cutting, sculpting and assembly process requires individual, hands-on work. No two are exactly alike, although I do try to create a consistent edition once I find a combination that works for me.

The proofing process is the way I find that combination. These two proofs ended up not being practical for an entire edition, but I hope their unique qualities also will appeal to art-fanciers.

I score the back of each piece, then turn it over and work the front, each time I create a piece of paper sculpture.

I was an undergraduate art major with a Printmaking emphasis, so creating these multiple originals is second-nature for me. I spent a good part of my young adult life as a graphic designer (when I wasn't being an art teacher, a mom, or a writer), and I still use the Creative Suite to manipulate my images digitally.

If you count the 2011 Mail Piece Project's five multi-dimensional artworks as my first three-dimensional multiple originals (as I do--click on the links for glimpses of the New Year's, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter Mail Pieces--dang, I didn't document that series as well as I thought I had!), then Coming Through! is my seventh foray into multiple original imagery. The sixth (or first, if you count stand-alone pieces that aren't part of a series) was Common Cliff Dragon--Male, which I'll list on Etsy and feature here once I've gotten mats and spacers cut.

IMAGES: All images are photos taken by me, of pieces of my own artwork. You're welcome to download and re-blog them, but please include a link back and an attribution. Many thanks!

May: A Good Month to Re-Home Jan's Art!

Denizen of the Winter Trees, 2009

I love selling art to someone who appreciates it. 

I've been able to do that twice this month--and in each case an original found a new home where I hope it will reward the new owners with enjoyable viewing for a long time.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have scheduled myself for three science fiction conventions in May and June. So far, I've sold an original piece of artwork at each of the conventions I've attended.

Denizen of the Winter Trees
Demicon 25 was held in Des Moines, IA May 2-4, and my 2009 piece, Denizen of the Winter Trees found its new home there.

Treetop Primaries, 2009: more Twig Dragons.

Denizen was an important piece for me, when I made it in 2009. I had not done too many paper sculptures at the time, and I was still experimenting with my materials. I conceived the idea of creating small "fire-lizard size" dragons (Thank you, Anne McCaffrey, for the idea of fire lizards), which could perch on real twigs.  I had a yard full of twigs and sticks, courtesy of the large sliver maple tree in my front yard.

My 7-piece "Dragon Parts" stencil

I created a seven-piece pattern for making the dragon's body, head, and wings, with the idea that I could create a series of "Twig Dragons." I used the pattern like a stencil to transfer a pencil outline from the pattern to acid-free paper, inked and painted in the details, sculpted, and assembled the piece onto a real silver maple twig.  The background trees are painted with Winsor & Newton watercolors on Arches watercolor paper. It was a pretty labor-intensive process.  I only made one other "Twig Dragons" piece, the larger work Treetop Primaries, 2009.

All of my "Snowflake Dragons," as well as the multiple original Common Cliff Dragon-Male, 2012, are descendants of the Twig Dragons, because I adapted that original stencil design to create them.

Horsefeathers

Horsefeathers in 2012: finished, but with no background!

I have an even longer-standing love affair with horses than I do with dragons (in strictest honesty, there's more than a little "horse" in my dragons). Horses were my absolute favorite subject to draw, paint, read about, and write about, all the time I was growing up.  It's no surprise, then, that the fantasy "pegasus" or winged horse is a subject I've returned to many times in my career as a fantasy artist.

Black-Headed Heron,2012

Horsefeathers 2012 was mostly created during March and April of that year, inspired by the design I'd created for the wing of my Black-Headed Heron. I liked the way the wing had turned out, so I adapted the pattern I'd created for it, and made my horse's wing.

You may note, if you know horses, that this horse isn't the usual light, airy little Arabian normally paired with a set of pegasus wings in fantasy art.  No, this guy's a Percheron, with maybe a little Shire or Clydesdale thrown in there. The idea of a "heavy" horse with wings appealed to my sense of irony--and the icing on the cake was the hair on the feet. Those luxuriant, furry feet are called "feathers."

How could I resist?

Horsefeathers has a new home.

I am happy to report that, thanks to Signy Gephardt's helpful eye, I was able to find a framing approach that worked much better for my "heavy pegasus" than anything I'd previously tried: velvety black to set him off.  The proof that I'd found his best presentation approach came when I promptly sold him at ConQuesT 45, which I attended May 22-24, 2014 in Kansas City! He has gone home to live with the obviously-tasteful Terry Matz and Ken Keller.

As the paper sculptures have gotten more elaborate (and I've gotten better at making them), the complexity of the patterns has gone up.  Horsefeathers was created from 15 different pieces, based on tracing paper overlays of an original drawing. The pieces were cut from (acid-free archival) Canson colored paper, and subtle additional color was added using Prismacolor artists' pencils, both before and after cutting. Then they were sculpted and assembled.

Look for me at SoonerCon 23!
My convention-going isn't over yet, and I still have more artwork to sell.  My art and I plan to be in Midwest City, OK (Oklahoma City metro area) June 27-29, 2014 for SoonerCon 23. Perhaps I'll see you there.

IMAGES: All photos are by Jan S. Gephardt, of her artwork (and also her friend, in one case!). If you use or re-post them, please do so with attribution and a link back.  Thanks!