Dream

For quite a while I've wanted to make a new line of greeting cards but I didn't exactly know what they would look like. So when I started the 100 Trees project, I hoped some of the images would inspire or evolve into a card. I didn't want to pressure myself and expect every drawing I did to be that interesting, but I hoped some would. And it's working! In fact, as I keep going with making art in my sketchbook every day I've been able to zero in on a style that I like. It feels like it is MY style, I just had to get some unnecessary stuff out of the way, practice, think, learn the steps, and uncover this way of making art that has been inside me for a long time just waiting to get out.

Here is how the first card has gone. I started with this drawing above in my sketchbook (in which I misspelled leapt). I like this image because it's special for my daughter. Whenever we read Dream Animals by Emily Winfield Martin, she says she wants to ride the deer to sleep, even though there isn't a real deer painting in the book, it's just a constellation outline of stars.

Next I carved this stamp of Tessa riding a deer, some trees, and a moon.

Then I tried some painted layers. It wasn't working quite right.

So I went back to the white outlines with a richer purple background like the original drawing. I printed with white ink on top of several layers of purples and blues. Wow, that was the right way to go. Goodnight and sweet dreams! Now on to the next card...