[Art] Black Swan as Firebird; Redux

[moonvoice]

Black Swan as Firebird; Redux






I swear to god I took like 60 pictures of this to finally get one that didn't completely suck. In the end there's me standing on a chair, with the camera in my hands and the picture on the floor, leaning precariously over it and hey presto! Magic. It's still a crappy photo compared to the awesomeness in real life, but sometimes the vibrancy of pastels makes my camera crap itself in terror. Trufax.


Black Swan as Firebird; Redux
Soft Pastels and Carbothellos (no fixative, glassine protected)
Mi Tientes standard size; 55 x 75 centimetres
July, 2010
Price for Signed Original; $335 USD.

Comments

[silverjackal.livejournal.com]

The colour in the feathers/flames is amazing, but I really love the blues in this. I love the effect of the shadowed leaves against the sky. It's a very soothing piece of art if you consider that the subject is on fire (even if this is a normal state of being). :)

[lupabitch.livejournal.com]

If that's a crappy picture, then the original must be mind-blowingly stunning! Just everything is amazing with this, the sparks, the reflections, the pale tail feathers peeking out from behind the wing. Just WOW.

[pyraxis]

Cool! I was about to ask what kind of fixative you used to keep the colors so bright and then I saw the bit about glassine. Is that enough to stop it from smudging during shipping? Do you recommend that people mount your pastels under regular glass if they're framing them?

I'm curious because I love working in pastels as well (though I don't have as awesome a set of Rembrandts as it looked like you do in your progress photos) and I've always used regular spray fix and then been frustrated when it messes up the colors.

- j-t

[merimask.livejournal.com]

Wow. It's just...wow. The treatment of the waves is so precise it looks more like airbrushing than pastels.

Stunning!

[donnalotus.livejournal.com]

I'm loving the blues! And the flames. I'm loving everything as usual :) I particularly like the leaves against the sky :D Fabulous as always!

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

The glassine needs to be fixed down with paperclips to prevent as little movement as possible in shipping (and the pastel picture is rolled pretty tightly and then taped - the roll falls out after 24 hours of being pinned down on a flat surface (I use phone books)).

There is no smudging on the picture itself, but a tiny bit of dust will come off on the glassine. But pastels shed small amounts of dust for the rest of their natural lives, even with fixative, which slows the process, sure, but munts the colours.

And yeah, pastel pictures should be mounted, preferrable with matt or double-mattboard, and under glass or perspex. Leaving them open, even with fixative, is daaangerous. :/

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Most of my firebird pictures are actually less dynamic, and mostly pretty contemplative. From the pelican almost flying in space, to the lyrebird quietly displaying in the middle of bushland, to the duck just making a small ball of fire by a lake.

Heh. I'm insane. I still want to do a 'Penguin as Firebird,' underwater of course, with bluish/white flames. *grin*

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

The original is way better than the picture. More detail, and a few other things, but that's okay. At least I got this picture, should've seen what I was working with yesterday! I almost cried. Lol.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

I had to rescue those waves too. I forgot to put the glassine on for like ten minutes when I wasn't working on it, and Maybe - the rat - ran over it. Pawprints!!!

That said, it seems to be some kind of natural law that if you have pastels, and you have cats, the two will always collide.

[moonvoice.livejournal.com]

Aw thank you! I like the leaves against the sky too. They were the easiest part, but I really like the way they turned out. Hoorah for easy things that look great!

[limiinal.livejournal.com]

So, so beautiful. I love how the texture of the paper comes through the leaves. :)

[erynn999.livejournal.com]

mmmmmmgorgeous, as always!

Wow!

[perzephone.livejournal.com]

I love the ember-like glow of the tail feathers. This is just gawgeous!

[tanwyn.livejournal.com]

Ohhhh shiny. I love the blues and the flames and... yeah, this is just full of awesomeness.

[acidrica.livejournal.com]

Do it. Please. That's the best thing ever. XD

[silverjackal.livejournal.com]

I think Penguin as Firebird would be very interesting. Rockhoppers show a bit of "Firebird" in real life, so why not? (Their punk rock eyebrows always make me smile.)

I had noticed that "quiet" quality to your other Firebirds as well. It makes me think of lighting a flame -- there's often a moment of stillness before it catches and you hear the "whoosh" of ignition.

[acidrica.livejournal.com]

I love it! I just can't stop looking at the feathers in the neck. :D And the reflection of the flame in the waves and off the leaves. Stunning.

[jkoyanagi.livejournal.com]

It's breathtaking! Definitely one of my favorites.

[bunny-m.livejournal.com]

+1 vote for this here!

[silere.livejournal.com]

love this! i love your firebird series in general. my favorite details on this one are the white wing feathers, and the neck feathers, and the sheer richness of the blue. yummy. <3

[elialshadowpine]

Oh my gods, that's amazing. *stunned*

[elialshadowpine]

YESSSSSSS.

[anrui-ichido.livejournal.com]

This makes me so very happy. The leaves in the background gently highlighted by the flames is a super subtle but gorgeous effect. :)

[naamah-darling.livejournal.com]

SO beautiful. And really quite unexpected. It didn't go where I was expecting it to go, and it's perfect.

[mirrorred-star.livejournal.com]

That would be awesome!

[mirrorred-star.livejournal.com]

I saw this on my flist and gasped- it's finished! And it's beautiful!

I love how the fire reflects on the leaves. And everything else in the picture.

[earthguardian.livejournal.com]

This is so SO BEAUTIFUL.

I am jealous of your skillz. <3

[ariestess]

That is absolutely breathtaking! The colors, particularly in the waves, seems so alive and vibrant.

[sidheblessed.livejournal.com]

Eeee ee *flail* This is just too awesome. It's so vibrant and alive and perfect.

[firehauke.livejournal.com]

please please please please please please please do penguin? I would so slap money on that sucker...take forever to pay off, but DOOD!

[firehauke.livejournal.com]

in case you couldn't really tell that I think this series is awesome (heh)...

Dayum girl that's a 'smokin' piece of art (pun is fully intended). LOVE IT!

[beatnikbetty.livejournal.com]

love it!

[kehleyr.livejournal.com]

Absolutely gorgeous! Love it!!

[sabr.livejournal.com]

OMG IT'S BREATHTAKINGLY AWESOME. SO MUCH SO I HAVE TO USE CAPSLOCK. OMG.

[erl-queen.livejournal.com]

Oh wow. The colors, and the way they *glow*... amazing.

[bodlon.livejournal.com]

I clearly need to win a lottery. This is gorgeous.

[bodylove.livejournal.com]

wow that is so incredible. I love the deep blues. magical and breathtaking.

[sheistheweather]

Oh, WOW.

[sistahraven.livejournal.com]

Absolutely fantastic.