Illustration Contest

My husband is a copublisher of a German literature magazine called „spa_tien". The print & online magazine appears twice yearly.
The publishers are currently preparing a paperback book under the working title "was sind literarische weblogs?" ("what are literary weblogs?"). The book is scheduled for the 1st quarter of 2008 and will be available via bookstores in Germany and Switzerland as well as internationally via amazon.





The book will be an anthology of essays and weblog posts contributed by German writing authors – published and unpublished – who are running literary weblogs in the German writing blogosphere. The authors will contribute two texts each. The first text will be about their passion for publishing and writing a literary blog. From their own weblogs the authors choose a favorite (already published) text for the second part.

For this project the publishers are currently looking for illustration ideas and an artist to realize them. A series of about 7 to 9 images should illustrate motives about literature, text, weblogs, writing processes, etc. A contest will be arranged at my blog, to find the illustrator for this book.

Requirements:

• The participants should send in 2 images to show the character of the series. These two images will be rated and the winner will do the whole series of 7 – 9 pics. The illustrations, graphics, sketches, etc. have to be black & white or in grey scales with a size of approx. 350 x 175 px (Width/Lenght).
• Deadline: July 31, 2007
• Please send the images to this address !
  

Reward for the winner:

• His/her work will be published in a book (with a short biography and link to his/her webpage)
• A copy of the published book
• Extreme gratefulness from the publishers and the contributing authors as well
• Fame? ;)

Everybody can join the contest – pros and amateurs. It may be specially interesting for amateurs or illustrators who are just beginning their career.
Once every week I´ll post about 5 random entries with a link to the artists blogs. Further all entries with a link to participant´s website/blog will be shown here on flickr!

Have fun and be creative!


Publishers of spa_tien:
Hartmut Abendschein
Markus A. Hediger
Benjamin Stein

_____________________________________________________________

Thanks to all of you, for your suggestions where I could post about the contest and for linking to this page:
Tommy Kane
Teesha Moore
Justin Monson
Suzanne Buchanan
Karen Winters
Christine Castro Hughes
Rama Hughes
Penelope Dullaghan

EDM #13 - Your Telephone

Even if the topic is "Draw your telephone", I don´t really have a lot to say today.



FYI: The cell phone looks huge, but in fact it is credit card sized without the covering.

IFN: A Book I'll Always Remember (The Hucho Hucho Girl)

Illustration Friday Night´s topic this week is: "a book i'll always remember" (suggested by red-handed).

The stories I used to devour as a child were Asian tales. They were mainly Indian and Chinese. This picture was inspired by the story "The Hucho hucho girl" and the illustrations done by Irmhild and Hilmar Proft for the book "Die neunköpfigen Ungeheuer vom Zweidrachenberg" (published 1974).



The illustration was beautiful in black and white. But I wanted to color it, as the story is about the Hucho hucho (redfish) girl. Somehow the color really took away a lot from the original pic.

Die neunköpfigen Ungeheuer von Zweidrachenberg: Märchen und Volkserzählungen aus China. Bräutigam, Herbert (1974)

IF: Cars - Cadillac 59

Illustration Friday´s topic for this week is cars. I´m not really into cars. They should drive and be somewhat safe.



A Cadillac is something completely different. Ever since I saw a Cadillac 59 I´ve wanted to have one. Of course I would need to live in Los Angeles to profit from having one of them.
During my internship in LA, I spent quite some nights on the Mullholand Drive - gazing at the stars and enjoying the view over LA by night. The car we had to drive at that time was small and rusty and still we enjoyed the time spent in it.

BoundCon IV

So where did I buy this shoe? And why have I been absent so often the past week? The answer:
Last week our Swiss friends and their kids came to visit us. We enjoyed spending our time with them (shopping, eating, going out, Sealife, etc.). Saturday one of them went to a convention. He liked it so much that he told us to go there too.



So on Sunday, off I went with one of my best friends to the BoundCon IV. It is the biggest fetish convention in Europe with more than 500 exhibitors from the international fetish scene, international models, shows, bondage workshops with some of the best bondage masters and a lot more.
It was quite interesting as they had a lot of shows on stage and just a few visitors. So I could see everything pretty close and could get a good impression. I saw 3 bondage shows which were completely different, and which ranged from erotic and steamy to gross and my friend had to leave for the bar. (After drinking a vodka he managed to come back again.)
I had never seen something like this before and you can imagine that I was watching the shows with an open mouth. There were mainly male visitors there and apparently they noticed my wondering looks. I was glad when my friend came back.

I spent most of the time looking at the shows, so I didn´t have a lot of time to explore the stands with the bdsm items. There were so many things I had neither seen nor heard of yet. Devices - which I don´t even want to know what they are used for.
But there was one stand which I couldn´t pass... A shoe stand! ;) So that´s the reason why I am in the possession of a pair of ultra high heels now.

When we came back home I showed B. my shoes and a bracelet I had bought. He asked me whether I had something new for him too and he was disappointed when I said no. I guess if he had seen the stuff you could buy there, he would have been pretty happy that I hadn´t brought anything for him. ;)

EDM #1 - A Shoe (Amy, Amy, Amy by Amy Winehouse)

I won´t be blogging the next few days either. I´m currently sketching EDM #1 - Draw a shoe. It is not ready yet, so I´ll post only part of the whole pic. In fact, when I´ll post the whole sketch, you´ll have a better idea why I didn´t have the time to blog the past days. A little clue: I spent some time at the place where I bought this shoe. (Actually I thought that I would need some practice to be able to walk in them. But in fact it´s not very difficult.)
Due to several requests ;), I have posted a pic of the real shoes at flickr.



Talking about shoes, heels and "walking past his desk in heels": Here´s another great song (from the first album) by Amy Winehouse. Please listen to it.



Amy, Amy, Amy
by Amy Winehouse

Attract me
'til it hurts to concentrate
Distract me
stops me doing work I hate

and just to show him how it feels
I walk past his desk in heels
one leg resting on a chair
from the side he pulls my hair

(Amy Amy Amy)
Although I've been here before
(Amy Amy Amy)
He's just too hard to ignore
Masculine you spin a spell
I think you'd wear me well
(Amy Amy Amy)
Where's my moral parallel?

It takes me
half an hour to write a verse
He makes me
imagine it from bad to worse

My weakness for the other sex
every time his shoulders flex
way the shirt hangs off his back
my train of thought spins right off track

(Amy Amy Amy)
Although I've been here before
(Amy Amy Amy)
He's just too hard to ignore
Masculine he spins a spell
I think he'd wear me well
(Amy Amy Amy)
so where's my moral parallel?

His own style
right down to his Diesel jeans
Immobile
I can't think by any means

Underwear peeks out the top
I'll let you know when you should stop
from the picture my mind drew
I know I'd look good on you

(Amy Amy Amy)
Although I've been here before
(Amy Amy Amy)
You're just too hard to ignore
Masculine you spin a spell
I think you'd wear me well
(Amy Amy Amy)
so where's my moral parallel?

Creative energy abused
all my lyrics go unused

but when I clock black hair, blue eyes
a teardrop I fantasise

(Amy Amy Amy)
(Amy Amy Amy)
Although I've been here before
(Amy Amy Amy)
He's just too hard to ignore
Masculine he spins a spell
I think he'd wear me well
(Amy Amy Amy)
so where's my moral parallel?

(Amy Amy Amy)
(Amy Amy Amy)
Although I've been here before
(Amy Amy Amy)
He's just too hard to ignore
Masculine he spins a spell
I think he'd wear me well
(Amy Amy Amy)
so where's my moral parallel?

Want to tell me something about your weaknesses?

Search Terms 2

Another set of words which people searched for. (Mainly) Google brings them to my blog:

• Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Clito Ruiz y Picasso. (I wonder who would write the complete name of Picasso to find information about him. There seem to be quite a lot of people who know his complete name.)
• Is Amy winehouse Black or white? ( ;) )
• Are koi fish said to be lucky? (I think so.)
• Pill (Reminds me of the drug clonazepam, which also leads to my blog - though it is not mentioned anywhere??)
• How to make dragon snowflakes? (If you find out how to, let me know. I need some dragon snowflakes too. Badly!)
• Erotic uncensored
• Picasso phallic
  

It is really fun to read all the words the people search the web for.
(I have been absent here the past days. I´ll let you know soon what took my time away.)

Portrait Surprise

I check out a lot of blogs daily, but there are only a few blogs where I enjoy every single post. Today I was surprised pleasantly by one of my favorite blogs: logbuch - isla volante. I just discovered the island recently and I admire the joint project by three writers (sofffi täuscher-art, markus a. hediger, marea gomez) and a studio (rittiner and gomez)

Isla volante is a virtual island - somewhere, nowhere, out there, in the future and you can read about the happenings on the island, the people living there and about the visitors.
When I stumbled across the blog incidentally, I felt like I had found a little treasure, which I wanted to keep for myself. But I´m sharing it with you. The logbook always shows the same style watercolor painting with a few lines of text. Even if you do not understand the German text, take a look at the paintings. They are wonderful!



And today when I went to read the new entry, I immediately recognized myself and thought I must be dreaming. I had to look twice. It is an incredible feeling to be drawn by someone whose art I have been admiring daily. Thanks!

BTW: If you need the translation of any of their texts, just let me know!

Dita Von Teese: Blooming Dahlia (movie)

Dita von Teese is THE burlesque star. She´s a very fascinating artist and you should check out her website. She (who is the ex-wife of Marilyn Manson) is a constant source of discussion.
She starred (as Gala) in a movie called "The Death of Salvador Dali". I´m dying to see the movie, but it is not available in Germany. If you live in the States you can download the movie at iTunes for $2. The others can at least watch the trailer here!

I guess "The Death of Salvador Dali" cannot be compared with "Blooming Dahlia". But at least this strange short film is available for us Europeans too.



"Elizabeth Curt is going to a typical photoshoot for the dangerously sadistic artist Fritz Enoch, only to find there is nothing typical about it. Enoch's demanding oddities leave Elizabeth questioning her safety. But like so many Hollywood starlets, the hope of fame and money dance loudly in her head, drowning out any sense of reality." (Film description from www.ifilm.com)

Release Year: 2004
Credits:
- Star: Dita Von Teese
- Actor: Heath Russell
- Actor: Vincent Chase
- Filmmaker: Kyle Kleefeld
- Director: Kyle Kleefeld
- Cinematographer: Sean McCall
- Producer: Sean McCall
- Sound Recordist: Jersey Black
- Sound Design: Tony Agapiou

I Have Been Tagged! (1)

I have been tagged by Casey Toussaint of rue Manuel bis

7 facts/habits about myself:

1. I love the rain and the snow and love to get soacking wet. I was never fond of the sun. Last summer and 30 years old, I realized that this has changed. I grew fond of sunlight too.
2. I enjoy people who feel comfortable with me even if we do not talk.
3. Though my favorite tastes are spicy and sour, I can´t stop eating sweets.
4. I have done everything in life which I had sworn that I would never do. And it was the right thing to do!
5. My body has grown a double urethra.
6. I can spend the whole day in bed without feeling bored. (I guess the last time I did this was 8 years ago, before I met my husband and had kids.)
7. My favorite fruits are Pomegranate, but I don´t like peeling them.

The rules:

1. List 7 random facts/habits about yourself.
2. Choose another 7 bloggers to tag and list their names in your blog.
3. Leave your 7 tagged bloggers comments to notify them of their tagging and to direct them to your blog for tag instructions.

I´m tagging:

1. Africantapestry

2. Ces
3. Allotment Lady
4. Jana Bouc
5. nami-nami
6. Lauren Kate
7. Marta

The Portrait Party 2 - Justin Morton

Justin Morton sent in the first portrait of me. I was so excited to have a look at it. Check out his blogs about his art and about everyday life. You can have a lot of fun reading there.

My portrait of him:

Somehow I made him look like a thug.

And this is the portrait he drew:



And the link to the original pic.

My husband said: "You look a lot friendlier in real!"
My brothers: "The portrait makes you look like a 45-year old, tea drinking, boring aunt, which has grown quite fat!" (What kind of strange comment is that???)

Sorry Justin, for these comments. I was very happy when I had a look at it. I could recognize myself immediately and you have done a perfect job on my nose! :) And it is the first time someone sketched me and that is wonderful too.
I guess, all that counts is that the recipient is happy, isn´t it? And I´m definitely very happy with the exchange: tea drinking lady against thug!

The Kiss Of Death (ATC) IFN: the agony and/or the ecstasy

Edvard Munch, the gifted Norwegian painter and printmaker, was his country's greatest artist. He also played a vital role in the development of German expressionism. Many of his works concentrate on the themes misery, sickness, and death.



The above pic is my first entry for Illustration Friday Night. That´s another group which is similar to Illustration Friday, but it is an uncensored alternative where the drawings do not have to be cute and nice. :)



I drew this image from one of my favorites of Munchs art work.



The Cry (The Scream) probably his most familiar painting, is typical in its anguished expression of isolation and fear.

EDM #54 - Something Round (Cheeseburger)

Somehow I missed last weeks EDM challenge. So I´m handing it in a little late. My first thought when I heard last weeks topic (Draw something round) was a Bagel. But immediately after that I had a cheeseburger in mind.


I really love and enjoy eating! ;) I had a filling Greek dinner tonight, so my cravings for a cheeseburger have stopped for a while.

Search Terms 1

Web Analytic tools give interesting insight into your blog´s traffic patterns. The tools give data on the number of people visiting the site, the search engine used to arrive at the site and much more information.
For this I use Mint, which is an extensible web site analytics program. I don´t use it very often, but one thing I really enjoy is having a look at the searches which lead the people to my blog.

These are some of the search terms (mainly at google) which led people to my blog:

• salt pepper shakers from spain
• he came to hear the music
• I died a hundred times
• clonazepam
• Erotic vampires
• You love blow and I love puff
• circle of blood
• sexual flower painting
• pablo picasso crying

Some of them ("salt pepper shakers from spain", "You love blow and I love puff", "sexual flower painting") make me laugh and some of them ("circle of blood" "clonazepam"), really make me wonder why they lead to my site.
Before this I didn´t even know what Clonazepam was and I had to look it up. I wonder why this drug, which is a highly potent anticonvulsant (antiepileptics), amnestic, and anxiolytic, leads to my blog. The word doesn´t show up in any post of mine.

The Portrait Party 1 - Christine Castro

Christine Castro is the first artist of The Portrait Group group for whom I drew a portrait. I really enjoyed doing it and had fun looking at her websites Maganda.org and Darling Design. She is a nice lady.


Here´s the original image.

And this is the portrait she drew of me (I like the friendly look she gave me):


And the link to the original pic.

Venus

A few days ago, my husband and I were talking about a certain Venus picture. And I realized that the typical Venus image (Boticelli Venus/Venus de Milo) is not how I behold her. They are beautiful - without doubt. But somehow they are too pure and beautiful and the lustfullness is missing.



The picture was inspired by a woodcut. Unfortunately I lost the artists name. Does anybody know which artist I´m talking about? Please let me know.
(I misplaced my black Pilot G-Tec-c4, so for a change the cross-hatching is done in green.)

Gertrude Stein for H.!

Gertrude Stein and her brother compiled one of the first collections of Cubist and modern art. She owned early works of Pablo Picasso, who became a friend and painted her portrait. At that time Picasso was neither famous nor rich. The appreciation of the Steins and their picture purchases brought a little light into the poor life of young Picasso.
She had more than 80 sittings for this 1906 portrait.



"Everyone thinks she does not look like her portrait, but never mind, she will". (Picasso)

A man once criticized Picasso for creating unrealistic art. Picasso asked him: "Can you show me some realistic art?" The man showed him a photograph of his wife. Picasso observed: "So your wife is two inches tall, two-dimensional, with no arms and no legs, and no color but only shades of gray?"

Pablo Picasso

Today I found some old drawings and pictures in a box (still left untouched after our move). Most of them are older than 10 years and were made during art classes in school. One of our last assignments was to decorate some wall sections of the school's new recreational area.
Each of us got the same sized wooden board, wall paint and one brush. We had to choose a portrait, done by a famous artist and draw it in black and white on these wooden boards (which then would be put up together).
I really didn´t know which portrait to draw. Most of the students decided to copy realistic portraits. I hadn´t been a fan of Picasso so far but I wanted to do something different and so I chose a portrait done by him. It took a lot of time to draw this painting - specially with the wall color and with only one brush.



BUT: This is when I fell in love with Pablo Diego José Francisco de Paula Juan Nepomuceno María de los Remedios Cipriano de la Santísima Trinidad Clito Ruiz y Picasso´s work.
While trying to copy the image as detailed as possible I realized how much work there was in all of his paintings. And that opened my eyes to art, artists and their work. ¡Gracias a Usted, Signor Picasso!



"When I was a child, my mother said to me, 'If you become a soldier, you'll be a general. If you become a monk you'll end up as the pope.' Instead I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.” (Pablo Picasso)

I am really glad he became Picasso.

The Portrait Party

So far I have only drawn 3 portraits. In the average that is 1 piece every 10 years! ;)
Rama Hughes is a fantastic illustrator whose new weblog quickly changed my mind about this. His blog/group The Portrait Party was inspired by Tommy Kane, another great artist. (Check out their portraits of each other.)

Basically when you participate in the portrait party, you and a fellow artist pair up and draw portraits of one another. I guess that can be a lot of fun. So here is my pic and let me know if you want to exchange portraits with me.

H. R. Giger

Which famous person would you really like to meet? I have been asked this question very often so far and I always had the same answer: Picasso! He´s my favorite artist, though I do like many others too and the choice is hard.

But a few days ago I read an article about another great artist: H. R. Giger. And I realized that he would be the person I would like to meet in real (and maybe I´m lucky as the artist is still alive). Hans Ruedi Giger is an Academy Award-winning Swiss painter, sculptor, and set designer best known for his design work on the film Alien (which earned him an Oscar in 1980). His paintings often display fetishistic sexual imagery and are considered disturbing by many. His main influences were painters Ernst Fuchs and Salvador Dalí.



"Some people say my work is often depressing and pessimistic, with the emphasis on death, blood, overcrowding, strange beings and so on, but I don't really think it is." (H. R. Giger)

I was surprised when I read the interview with him. His artwork is very dark and he doesn´t seem to be like that at all in person. And though he is famous, he is still a humble person and that impresses me.
Every year I try to get a few days off from my family and this year I would love to spend the time in Switzerland. As soon as I have the chance, I´m going to visit the Giger Museum in Gruyère.