My head has been all over the place. The “Virus Roulette” has me terrified. My past experiences with “upper respiratory” infections usually wind up with me pretty sick and on a course of antibiotics for secondary infections. I have been exercising daily, eating better and cutting sugar from my diet trying to make myself as inhabitable as possible. I pray it passes me by.
In the meantime, creativity is always my friend. I create every day. Here are some samples of how my days have been going…
Here’s some back pages of dailies. My head has been spinning the past few days. Trying to focus on art instead of everything else going on.
Today’s morning sketch utilizing the Sktchy App.
You can also follow me on Instagram for more frequent posts. @ginalento
Last week, Moo Kitty aka Bella, was sent on her way back to Catskill, NY. She came down to Florida with us as a standing cat and is going back to NY as a Cow.
Bella is part of an outdoor exhibit called Cat’n Around Catskill, which consists of fiberglass cat sculptures that will be on display this summer on Main Street in Catskill, NY. Artists submit designs and then they are “juried” by sponsors who pay to sponsor a design. The artist receives the corresponding cat (either standing or sitting) and they take it back to their studios to convert it to the design that was submitted
My “Moo Kitty” design is the standing cat converted to a Holstein cow. It took me several weeks to sculpt the cow parts and then paint it.
Here are photos with after and some of the “before.”
Ooops, forgot to post these!
Here’s a map I did for my portfolio…..Chincoteague is one of my favorite places to go. It has a small town charm and the added bonus of wild ponies. It was featured many years ago, in the story “Misty of Chincoteague” by Marguerite Henry. She wrote several books featuring Misty and this charming island. Misty is a big part of the island’s mystique.
I grew up reading the stories and back before the internet, the only way you could see these sort of places were to go there or view them through the eyes of a photographer or illustrator. I viewed Chincoteague through the illustrations of Wesley Dennis. The first time I saw Chincoteague and Assateague in person (the undeveloped barrier island to Chincoteague), I felt like I’ve always known the place.
Chincoteague will always have a spot in my heart and although I have only visited and painted there, I feel that it is a part of me and who I am.
I took a class to learn how to build up my portfolio for editorial work. It was a good class. I stepped out of my comfort zone and did the class projects on Procreate. I prefer to use the good old fashioned way to create art but wanted to see what I could do with digital media. Sometimes it is just easier to use digital because I only need to take my iPad with me as it allows me to travel light.
The subject matter presented to the class were articles about how bad cows (beef) are for the planet and how going vegan and planting trees could reverse some effects of climate change. Seems logical to me that growing more plants, planting more trees, especially food producing trees just make more sense, right? And in light of the current virus running rampant in China, it just seems to make more sense to avoid animal protein, wash your produce carefully and eat better.
Eating sustainably isn’t easy. It’s a tough choice. Especially since so many foods and recipes have something from an animal in them. When coming up with my idea I thought about the different species on the planet that would benefit from choices that I make. You see things in the news about animals like polar bears and koalas and you think to yourself “do I really want to be responsible for killing the planet and these beautiful creatures?”
Changing diet is just one change of many that need to be done. Buying green vehicles, living in a smaller footprint like tiny homes and even a home vegetable garden are just small ways of making a big change.
I don’t know but all I can do is my small part.
Yesterday’s photos are raw cat. Today’s photos show the gradual progression to cow.
I still have to add udders, a collar and cow bell and eyelashes. Then I have to tweak and sand it. I am trying to keep the sanding to a minimum. The Magic Sculpt dries like concrete. It’s amazing stuff.
I tweaked my original design by sculpting the entire cat instead of adding props like a leather collar, because I need to make the cow vandal proof. I also want the finished piece to still reflect the cat underneath so I am adding to the cat without taking the personality away.
