Merry Kohn Studio

“Where the Mild Things Are…”

Merry — Mon, 14 May 2012 17:26:47 +0000

…with apologies and reverence, in memory of the amazing Mr. Maurice Sendak. Here’s something different yet again I thought I’d try out.

I have neighbors who’s home I walk by every day. A year or two ago, I saw a landscaping company parked in front of their house, that specialized in ponds and waterfalls. After weeks and weeks of them being there, they cleaned up and went away. I would hear water when I walked by but it was in their back yard. Short of climbing their fence I could only imagine what was back there.

A couple of months ago, I happened to bump into her and asked, quite brazenly, if I could see it. She very graciously invited me into their yard, and as I turned the corner, I was speechless. It was like walking into a forest glade. My first words were, “It looks like a place where fairies live!” My first thought was, “Oooo, I want to live here!”

Well, I couldn’t move in but the idea has been rattling around in my head so, for something different, I thought I’d try this. Though, invited to take picture of it, I haven’t been back to do it. I’d really like to, but I made do with this one for now.

Paris Skies Feast

Merry — Sun, 13 May 2012 21:54:46 +0000

This time I’m branching out a bit. Trying my hand at a computer assisted Paris one. Back to learning more; frustrating as well as fun.

Merry’s Fairy Fun

Merry — Tue, 01 May 2012 21:12:01 +0000

I suppose I should have a whole category for this subject. I remember as a little kid, poring over picture books about fairies, and elves and fantasy in general. I wanted to crawl inside them, they were so beautiful. I wished I could paint pictures like that, create little worlds of flying creatures. Eventually, that is exactly what I did.

So in life, when I feel weighed down, it is with real joy that I paint one of my little friends, put wings on her back and fly away with her. And sometimes, tell the truth, don’t you wish you could too?

Flowers and Fantasy

Merry — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 23:37:42 +0000

Not to be outdone by….well, myself, I took the last image a step further. I even added some new characters as I didn’t want the same little adorable creatures in recurring roles. Not all the time. It is not easier than painting though. It is just different. I can’t say, after spending hours and hours at this, that it is faster. Just different.

Some of my experiments with the paint tools, went horribly wrong. But some, wow are they ever great. My big challenge right now is not to take every element and give them a big glow, but I surely do love that feature. Like having magic at my fingertips. So thank you, for those of you who have given me the nice feedback. It is very much appreciated.

Just a note: if this seems a bit different, it is. I went back and tweaked it.

Dragon and Fairies

Merry — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 00:23:57 +0000

Two More Fairies

Merry — Sat, 21 Apr 2012 21:21:59 +0000

Aren’t Computers Grand?

Merry — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 23:47:27 +0000

For More Designs

Merry — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 22:17:48 +0000

I just wanted to let people know, if you are interested in seeing more designs for cards or whatever, I have several that I never posted here, but I did on my Facebook Merry Kohn Studio . Some turned out pretty well, and some, just playing around. But many odds and ends that I didn’t bother with creating a whole entry for here. To tell the truth, it seems enough like rambling to me.

Even as an artist myself, while I very much enjoy seeing the finished product of someone’s work, I do not want to hear about the process. Not interesting to me. As I have said before, the work should speak for itself. If it doesn’t, it probably needs more work.

For me, some of the designs are my version of scribbling. I have at least, refrained from updating the images every time I change the position of a flower. Not that I haven’t been tempted. I keep thinking how much better they look by moving this or that over just an inch or so.

With an actual painting, I can look at them after the varnish has put on and think, “I should have moved that mountain up a bit”, or, “I should have added more flowers “. With this I can simply go back and edit them. I am not sure if that is good or bad yet. I do know that in a painting, you can ruin it by not just stepping back sometimes and calling it done.

And, just so you know, this is the third revision of this one.

Angel and Fuji-san

Merry — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 22:53:51 +0000

Garden and Lantern

Merry — Mon, 09 Apr 2012 19:00:37 +0000

Here is my latest, all done on the computer. I do realize that graphic artists do this all the time, but for me it is a real eye opener to realize there is not much I do on canvas that I cannot do on this. Some of it is so much easier than painting it too. They are still “Merry paintings” though. It is simply another medium for me. In thinking back, I have tired almost everything in art at one time or another. This is just one more thing I am trying.