April showers bring May canvassers...

I love spring, but I hate that it means all the street canvassers come out in full force. Especially the ones who look dirty and bored and give you attitude.

Art is long.

As a kid I devoured art and comics. In grade school I read Doonesbury (even though I didn't understand much of it), Calvin & Hobbes, and most of the Sunday comics. In middle school and most of high school I was immersed in fantasy and sci-fi novels, I hit onto early/classic comics like Batman, Superman, and Green Arrow. I fell in love with Batman really quick, though I haven't stuck with the most current stories, but he is in my heart, along with Cat Woman. I came upon Wonder Woman and Captain American later.
In high school, my funky art school, so much art was thrown at me I almost drowned. That's when X-Men, Ghost World, and Maus showed up. I never really liked the name, but I found out about "graphic novels" like Love and Rockets by Jaime/Xaime Hernandez (he is one of my heroes and favorite artists all wrapped into one) and Doug TenNapel's work (Black Cherry mostly), along with Jim Mahfood who draws like I wish I could draw.
At crazy, hipter art college, I fell in with an awesome comic/nerd crowd and they fed me Scott Pilgrim, Bone, Pride of Baghdad, and countless others. I was going to comic book releases, I was in a comic collective, I read almost nothing but comics for awhile. I love the world, the culture, the booming rise of women in the comics industry.
I love comics. I am an enthusiast. I just wish I wanted to make them. I don't. I've made a few and printed two or three which failed to make any thunder; looking back I think they mostly didn't sell because my heart wasn't in it.
With that, though, I feel that some people are just made for it. An old friend of mine from college is booming: Just check out all his stuff, he's fantastic http://terryblas.com/thegnerdpodcast/archives/4.

I am an illustrator, but for now I feel dormant.
I have been having some strange mental problems, which are most-likely self-imposed. And doubt and regret and depression.

I find now that I am out of school and on my own (as they say) making art falls into a lower bracket. I do it for the kids at work, which is awesome, but once I am home I feel consumed with bills, and food, and drama, and roommates, and roommate drama, and all that other crap that's out there. I want to figure out how to find my level. It's hard and it's taking a lot to not quit my relatively stable job and just move to somewhere new and just sit around painting in my underwear all day trying to start over and be different. But I can't. Can't or won't? Probably mostly can't.

That being said, I'm uploading art today.

Love,
Nat.

If my life is mine What shouldn't I do?

Tiger Lily is not mine, but I still like to draw her.



Penguin!




Birdie!



Viking!

More Crayola nonsense!

Nat.

Mini me.

So, I did these way back when: http://nathaliesart.blogspot.com/2009/04/personal-injury-art-therapy.html but I think it's time to revisit the concept in a slightly more positive light. Instead of being about recovery, these ones are about living out my life so far. Most of my life is great, except for the being poor and not having the job I want. But those things can and will change.

Love.

Nat.

Mid-fish

So, sometimes I like to look at my stuff when it's at a halfway point. It's interesting to compare pencils to inks to color. Here are some pieces I'm about mid-way through.

Nat.

pencil stuff!

So, over the last two or three weeks at work I have watched Disney's Alice in Wonderful about 5 times. All the way through. And few times I've watched just the beginning because the kid doesn't have enough time to finish the whole movie. Long story short, themes get stuck in my head. I had to let it out. I always thought the queen of Hearts would've been younger. Kind of a Marie Antoinette thing, where she becomes queen super young. It makes her a sort of careless and self-absorbed leader because that's a rough role to impose on someone so young. Also, Disney has a way of portraying evil people as fat and cranky, or super thin and sallow... I don't think that's true of her either.


Fionna! She is from an episode of Adventure Time! where the sexes of all the characters are switched. Now, I love the heck out of Fin (the original lead character), but I kinda love Fionna more. So, I show it by doodling her a lot.

LOVE
NAT

Adventure Time (in Crayola) !!!

Zombie pirate?


My favorite Chameleon from Tangled!


Bluebird of Happiness


Spring colors.


Some monsters LOOOVVVEEEEE grape popsicles!


Moody Tink. "Getting too old for this shit!"


Fox.



Sheep.


Unicorn.


Pig.


Made-up bird! Bespoke ornithology? Whaa?


Goldfish.


Fancy pretty seahorse!


Posh Mr. Lion.

Not a lot to clarify for this post. So, I'm a 25 year old who loves crayons. I work with children who enjoy taking home fancy, colorful pictures, but when they leave, sometimes there isn't much for me to do. Coloring passes the time, and sometimes I kinda like what I end up with. My favorite in this set is probably the seahorse.

Comments please.

Love,
Natty

Also, I got a haircut. It's weird, but I like it.

2" x 3"

Quite a time ago, I bought some of these small cards to draw on. I found them amidst the rubble of art supply clutter and decided that I should do something with them. These are 4 of the ones I've done so far. More to follow.

Feedback is cool. Thanks.

-Nat

Sketchbook locations

Soooo, I have been doing most of my drawing at work.
Which seems kind of backwards to me.
Only, I get more opportunity to draw there than at home. At least lately. The last few weeks have been pretty busy, will some of that extra spicy drama thrown in. I'm not a drama person, but it seems to be able to find me pretty well. I've been having some trouble with roommates, my house, my roommates friends (ex-friends) and just personal issues including bizarre insomnia and stress fatigue. I've also been trying to get out more and be social while I have time off from work. Only problem is that this leaves less time for writing, drawings, scanning, and blogging.
One day I will find balance, right now I'm just trying to tread water and be relatively happy.
So I brought my work sketchbook home with me today.
Because I work with children 5 and under, I keep that sketchbook really clean, but now that it seems to be my only sketchbook, and I've been hurting to draw more of my ladies, I have brought it home to do some scanning and to add less PG rated material.
Hopefully, by the end of next week, I will have had some time to draw, scan, and post some of my stuff. No, I will. I will. Don't worry.

Just a heads up. I'll post my crayola stuff too.

Love,
N
a
t



Music: Hustle Rose - Metric

I need more tattoos! Why so spensive? Grr.

I get paid to do this?

Sweet!

So, I work with children ages 2 to 5 and I find myself drawing with crayons a lot more than I have in the last, let's say, 15 years. I get requests, which I love, but I really love drawing with a kid. I love to see what they draw or what they ask me to draw. I also really like drawing a picture and having them help me color it. Sometimes I am just drawing while they watch movies or something and then they ask me what I'm doing and ask if they can draw too. These are my favorite days at work. Here's an example:

A girl named Kayla saw that I was coloring a unicorn.


She got all excited and told me all about how she LOOOOVEES unicorns SO MUCH and how my unicorn was the most prettiest unicorn she has ever seen. So, she asked me if she could draw a unicorn too. She gave me her drawing:



It's my favorite drawing at work. I put it on the wall with the other drawings kids give me. Not to sound rude, but it really is my favorite.
I think her unicorn is better.

Love,
Nat

Adventures in childcare. Oof.

music: Spring And A Storm - Tally Hall
movie: Snow White & the Seven Dwarves
book: Virals by Kathy Reichs and rereading Barry Ween by Judd Winick

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

This is going to be an interesting year. I am hoping to stop mucking about and finally pull on my artist gloves. I went completely awash last year. 2011 was completely focused on my job and paying bills and stressing out. I had good times with friends and family, but I feel a sense of vacancy and urgency all at once. I need to do art. MORE. NOW. I've found myself so significantly starved of artistic outlet that I am hopelessly addicted to the Crayola crayons at work. I have a work sketchbook and I knit, but that is barely keeping me afloat. I had a small burst of steam within the last three months, making gifts for Christmas and such. I painted a couple birds, a cat, and several pin ups. Delicious. My days off, more recently, I find myself focused on Skyrim or Netflix or sleeping. All of these things are good, but they are also not completely necessary in great quantities. Also, I am aiming to have my scanner up and scanning by the end of the week. I will flood this blog with images. I will !

Good luck to me!
Love to you.

-Nat

Thinking about getting a dog... in the future sometime.

The aesthetics of dogs is a very personal opinion. There are hideous dogs out there that people actual love and look for, but it's all based on taste. And there's absolutely no pleasing everyone. I love dogs. I have wanted one of my own, since I moved out by myself. They are wonderful pets and friends. Here is one of my list things of dogs I like. I hope to get one of these breeds in the future, but humane society mutts are perfect if they have a good personality too! Demeanor is more important than looks, but these are my top picks.


The samoyeda is a beautiful dog. Known to be more friendly than the husky, I think they have great faces and figures.


My favorite dog shape ever. Reminds me of Edward Gorey. These dogs are brave, protective, and loyal. Not good for multiple dog homes.


The boxer has won me over, especially because of my boyfriend's parent's boxer Ben. They are friendly, energetic, and extremely happy. I can't be sad for very long around Ben.


I have loyalty to airedales because my mother owned one for about 15 years and she was one of the most kind and friendly dogs I have ever known. I am biased, but I would definitely recommend them as a breed. Quite energetic and a bit ditzy, but they can be trained pretty quickly and they settle down when they are about 4 or 5 years, so if you buy one who is an older puppy they are easier to handle.


Irish Terrier. A smaller dog, and rascally, but cheerful and pretty. High spirited and very energetic, so they need a lot of exercise. Would definitely need a big yard or a large field nearby to keep this breed happy.


Wire-haired fox terrier. Adorable. Another smaller-sized dog, like the Irish Terrier, I really do prefer medium-sized dogs, but these dogs are very friendly, loyal, and very cute. They are a bit hyper, and would probably need 2-3 walks a day, but I am in love with them.



Border Terrier or Pharaoh Hound. Smaller than I would prefer, but I have think they have one of the friendliest faces of any breed. They are very energetic and wiggly, but also nice and protective.

I also like cats, but there is just something so wonderful about being greeted by a smiling dog face when you get home. They really do seem to like their people and I've seen very strong bonds form between a human and a dog. There is a stronger bond than with cats. And my boyfriend is not allergic to dogs... :D

Love,
Nate.

Art soon. Promise. Been making a lot of art, but scanner is having problems.

Messing About

So, to follow a line of thinking from earlier today, I would like to post a list of favorite actors and actresses. Most of whom has done films which have influenced my art and tastes in movies. I've narrowed it down to my top 10. Doesn't really feel art-related too much. But I've always admired really good actors/actresses and used to want to be in plays more, but I've resigned myself to the fact that my memory just isn't good enough. Acting is an art. And a hard one that takes over your life. These are actors/actresses who I appreciate and have found there films to be mostly consistently good. I will update art posts this week.

1. Christoph Waltz
2. Peter Dinklage
3. Lee Pace
4. Brendan Gleeson
5. Chiwetel Ejiofor

1. Penelope Cruz
2. Rachel Weisz
3. Audrey Tautou
4. Tina Fey
5. Paula Malcomson

Each of them have been in movies or shows I've loved and ones I've hated or had no interest in. It's strange how the media can also influence a personal opinion of an actor/actress briefly enough to have you miss a couple of there films or want no part in their newer stuff. I also find it harder to like and appreciate actresses. Which miffs me a little. My feminist side gets all sad. I love women and there are plenty of one-off performances I really like, just not very consistent performances in wide-variety who I find myself to go back to. The same can be said for actors, too, I suppose. But I find it to a lesser degree. I'm not sure why. Maybe I expect too much from actresses and I am rarely won over by the damsel-in-distress take which is so, sadly, still the case all too often.

Love,
Nat.

Art posts to follow soon.

water, which is lower than all things yet stronger even than the rocks.

Don't worry. I will never forget you. Look. I've been drawing and everything. I've just been out in the wide world trying to fend for myself too.
I am still a cashier and I still hate it. But there have been a lot of improvements.
My boyfriend and I had a terrible fight, but we got through it and we are better for it. Stronger. I have convinced myself that I can admit that I have depression and I am seeking medical help. Stronger. I am applying for more jobs. I am applying for food stamps on Friday so I don't feel so stretched out because of money... I hate when money makes me cry and get all anxious. I am hanging out with friends more and I feel better for it. I am also trying to get some more alone time with myself. I feel crowded a lot and I get stressed when I don't have proper time to clear my head. And the bus rides no longer feel like enough alone time. Stronger. I am making an effort to listen to more happy music. I am trying to read more and watch good shows. I am ignoring commercials and people who make me mad. I am ignoring people who are mean for no reason. It's a waste of energy. They don't matter. I am trying to have more fun at work. Trying.

I love you and I love art and I just wanted you to know that I am still here and I am still making art.



















"I'm an artist first"

Nata <3

music: Be My Yoko Ono - Barenaked Ladies