SciFi and Fantasy Art: Oldwood

Very... peacefull... makes me want to fall asleep, yet stay awake at the same time as not to miss any moment of it.

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Uh oh. I think you might be falling under a fairy spell. A sure-fire antidote is to sing a jingle from your favorite commercial. It drives fairies crazy!"

This's a nice little piece. For being so small, it portrays a lot. Nice gallery, by the way!

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Thank you! I am so happy that I did this pic since it loosened me up quite a bit. It was fun just to see what came out of my hands without allowing myself the time to *think* about it. It seems my hands were in a playful mood that day. *grin*"

I do believe I commented on this once upon a time, but it was lost with the time warp forever ago. This idea of gesture drawing really appeals to me. It's so hard to turn the brain off, though.

By the way, this piece is simply magical. I want to chase the sparkles.

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Sparklies! Wheee!! I have an unnatural addiction to them so it's a constant struggle to not use them in all my pics. *lol*

I must admit that it was a bit strange doing this kind of drawing on the computer. It's usually better to use a big piece of cheap paper and a Sharpie so that the movement is liberated and there is no way to erase. I also like using an egg timer so that I limit myself to 3-5 minute sketches. Sometimes I just pick an emotion and just scribble in a way that matches what I'm feeling. It's a great way to clear a block or work out frustration. Some thinking does usually come thru but that's normal and it's a great way to learn how to push away distractions.

I had a friend in school who was a dancer and she compared this kind of drawing to the way she would spontaneously start dancing to a song on the radio, just because. I thought you’d appreciate that sentiment. *grin* Scribble away!"

Wah... sparkly! ^^ I like the vagueness of the whole picture - it gives a very magical feel! And the light coming from the portal... makes me want to know what's on the other side!

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Thank you! I wanted this pic to be all about that feeling of awe one would experience upon seeing a magical portal appear out of nowhere. Very little thought went into it and I am pleased that the simplicity of it has some visual appeal...especially the sparklies! "

Woooooooooooooooooooow i canth say anything more than that

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "I'll take a good Wow anyday! *lol*Thanks!"

Woooooooooaahh! *stares transfixed at the screen* That's so pretty! *stares again*

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Almost as mesmerizing as your diamond glass pumps, eh? *lol* Thank you, Slip. I'm glad ya like it!

btw-I'm sooooooo excited about your stories! I need to catch up on responding to comments so I can have lots of time to read. Woo hoo! "

OMG!! what art program u use,this is umbeleavable!!! i love these colors and the atmosphere

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "I’m so glad you like this! Thanks!

I used Photoshop and I just laid down a lot of color very quickly and then I used the smudge tool to spread it around (like fingerpainting!). Then I added some embellishments, like the sparklies. My whole intention was to do a pic very quickly, without thinking about it too much. It’s very fun and relieves alot of artistic tension."

Hee, yay. I just happened to be on the start page when I saw this tagged as a favorite, so I thought I’d give it another visit.

I just did a gesture drawing (er...photoshop doodle thing) like this a few days ago. Unfortunately it probably doesn’t meet elfwood’s fantasy standards, but it sure relieved a lot of tension for me. I do most of my gesture work with chalk, but lately I haven’t been able to *shakes fist at the weather* so this made a nice alternative.

You know, I always looked a this as a portal luring me to another, magical world, but just now I almost wonder if a holy being is about to come out into our world, into this wood, and the sparkles have just lured us there to witness his/her arrival. There certainly is a sort of hold-your-breath sort of quality to this, like something incredible is about to happen. Those sparkles are building up to something, I just know it!

There are so many stories that one could come up with to this picture!

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Yeah, isn’t that cool? I love the reaction this pic has gotten and how it inspires the creativity of others. Like you said, there are many stories one could put to this piece and I find that to be incredibly rewarding.

I wanted to write more, but I keep getting an error. Apparently, not all of the bugs have been worked out of the system yet… *sigh*
"

wow this is an amazin pic. it practically mezmorized me!!! it has such a nice flow and glow to it!!! keep the flow going and the glow bright ^_^

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Thank you, Gabby! Your comment is very sweet and very poetic! "

So lovely.I would love to walk in it.

Barbara J. Wickham replies: "Thank you. I would have a hard time resisting the temptation."