The Forest Spirit: An Illustration

the forest spirit illustration by kelci crawford

The Forest Spirit is more than just a spirit – she is a deity. She has been around since before written history. Her name has been lost to the ages, but she is forever present within the trees. When she moves, she moves slowly, thoughtfully, but deliberately. And when she is found, she will guide travelers by testing them – fail the test, and you are taken out of the forest, forever unable to find it again. Continue reading “The Forest Spirit: An Illustration”

Art for My Dungeons & Dragons Campaign

For those of you who don’t know yet, I’m nerdy enough to be the Dungeon Master for Dungeons & Dragons and run a home-brewed, not-based-on-any-campaign-books campaign.

So it falls to me to illustrate some things for the campaign, which I can totally do, and I’m happy to do so.

A good chunk of the campaign takes place in a section of the world called The Weird Wastes. This is a realm where all the magic in the world exists, because it bleeds from a place called The Rift. The magic in this realm can cause things like pirate ships to sail in deep forests, trees to be colored various shades of blue and violet, and for the boundary between desert and arctic to be a literal line in the sand.

The Weird Wastes also allow for unusual creatures, like Pom.

pm dungeons and dragons spirit sketch Continue reading “Art for My Dungeons & Dragons Campaign”

The Voice and The Messenger: A Painting

For the last two days I’ve been working on this new painting to submit to a local art gallery. They’re holding a show themed around “Visions & Shadows,” and “explorations of the unknown.”

So of course I had to make something for it. (The show is also set to open on my birthday, so that motivated me, too. But shhh – don’t tell the committee that.)

painting in progress
Step 1.

I’ll be showing the step-by-step process of how I made this painting during the course of this blog post. Of course I made an initial sketch in my sketchbook of the idea, but I didn’t scan that in or take a photo of it because… I didn’t think to. Continue reading “The Voice and The Messenger: A Painting”

Warm-Up Sketches

I’ve been getting into the practice of doing warm-up sketches before I sit down and do work.

I really like doing this because it lets me practice drawing silhouettes and spirits…

one-eyed spirit in silhouette

 

Or I could practice drawing and cross-hatching in pen and ink, while also practicing referencing a collection of photo references…

51414_Tribal_Woman

Or refresh my memory on using India ink and brush…

india ink sketches of tigers in water

Or I can practice some costume and character designs…

sketch of woman in goth assassin outfit.

My point is, art is a skill, and to keep that skill fresh, I have to practice.

With warm-up sketches, I do use reference photos sometimes. I’m ok with this.

Using references actually helps me include them in my visual memory.

So next time I draw something and I’m away from the computer, I can rely on my visual memory to help me.

It’s handy!