Denise continued creating illustrations but did not have a style she could call her own. About seven years ago, Denise realized that although she was enjoying a creative career as a graphic designer, she had stopped doing anything simply for the joy of creating. When Denise was a child, she drew constantly. In college, she was never without her sketchbook. But as an adult graphic designer, she got to a point where she couldn’t remember the last time she had drawn for fun.

This was when Denise decided to start drawing again. She gave herself an assignment and a deadline each week. She had no client to please and no creative director to impress. Denise described how she regained her joy of creating artwork:

I loosened up, experimented, played with color and as I kept going, week by week, my style began to emerge. Even now, my style is continually evolving. As I worked, I posted my illustrations to a blog and after a year or so, I began to garner attention. I was invited to show work in a few art galleries and then had a couple of solo gallery shows. My works were included in the Society of Illustrators New York’s 51st Annual Show, the Society of Illustrators Los Angeles’ Illustration West 50th Annual Show and most recently, the Communication Arts Illustration Annual.

Most of Denise’s pieces left me with the impression that she was trying to narrate a story. In her own words:

I have described my work as glimpses of a grand and sprawling tale that has yet to be written. I like the viewer to wonder at the story behind each piece — to imagine what could have proceeded the scene or what may happen next. I tend to envision specific scenes, often when I am unable to get to my sketchbook. I create entire pieces in my mind and when I find myself with a pencil in hand, the entire illustration just tumbles out. The story meanders, with recurring themes and characters, but I let them do as they may — and even I am curious as to what the future might hold.

Denise was kind enough to answer our questions about her work.

Animals and their interactions with human beings are the focus of most of your artwork. Is there a theme that you would like to convey to the viewer?

Even as a young child, I was fascinated with animals. I was especially drawn to the unique or unusual — narwhals, aardvarks, sloths. I am still intrigued by the sheer wild-ness of beasts. Yet I long to be surrounded by them. So I play with the juxtaposition of wild things — snakes, bears or wolves — with infants, innocent and unafraid. And I play with the animals’ scale, their surroundings and sometimes grant them human attributes. Perhaps I am silently conquering deep-rooted fears or imagining an unachievable utopia.

Please describe your creative process and who has inspired your creativity?

I always begin an illustration in my head. I may think about an idea for days, soaking up tiny details in my surroundings — something I’ve read, a song lyric, a conversation. And when I’m quiet and still, the images come to me. And then I draw. I use a very sharp pencil and I draw. And when my drawings please me, I scan them. I work digitally, playing with layers — pushing and pulling the colors, patterns and textures. Working digitally allows me the freedom to play — to work until I am happy and when I feel that the piece is complete.

And as far as who inspires me? I wouldn’t be where I am without my family. My husband has been a driving force in my illustration career. He initially convinced me to start drawing again. He helps me with self-promotion and he cheers me on daily. And then there’s our son, Oliver. Oliver is six-years old and helps me to slow down and to see the world through his eyes. I am surrounded by their love and support and am inspired by them both.

As an illustrator, how do you market your artwork?

My illustration career has only recently taken off. I’m still learning a lot about the business, but I’ve found that networking has been the most useful (and enjoyable) marketing tool.

I attended ICON (the Illustration Conference) in Providence, Rhode Island this summer. While there, I was able to meet and discuss the business with many well-established illustrators. I was also fortunate enough to meet several art directors who responded favorably to my work and who gave me plenty of helpful self-promotion tips. I really learned a lot in one weekend!

I plan on attending more conferences as well as becoming a member of illustration societies such as the Society of Illustrators New York and the Society of Childrens’ Books Writers and Illustrators.

By doing these things and by continuing to market my work, I’m hoping my illustration career will flourish and you’ll find me happily drawing and creating in my little corner of the world for many years to come!

If you would like to contact Denise, please click here.

“Rebounds”

Elise believes that art is another way of looking at the world, but in a more sensitive way. Her roots in theater manifest themselves in her work, where her physical approach in painting and drawing are a reflection of her background in buto, dance, and improvisation. A distinct feature of her art is the presence of dramatic characters wearing masks grotesque expressions, often appearing in colorful action poses.

She enjoys using ink and watercolors because they are delicate and evanescent while providing strong color to the work. Mixed media and collages lend to the fun and absurdity she likes to portray in her art, and likens it to the childlike discovery of playing with whatever one finds.

“Carry”

The multi-layered appearance of Wilk’s art is a product of her superimposition of different realities. Influenced by surrealist and Dadaist forces, the artist is intrigued by what is readily visible, what is transparent, and what is hidden. Although she doesn’t think about these when creating her images, it is often the result when she combines different materials to create something new.

Elise is interested in design and book illustration for children and adults, as well as producing work for books and publications. Her process begins with quickly drawing images and noting ideas, followed by collecting the necessary documentation (photos, text). She generally uses the materials she creates on paper and then finishes off with the computer where she composes from what she calls a “merry mess.”

Below are her submissions along with her own words.

“NYLA”
Nyla is a little girl living in a bear. I created this image for a personal picture book. It is a poetic ballad inspired by the Inuit and their animism.

“GRAND-MOTHER AND WOLF”
A passionate relationship.

“ELIS”
A self-portrait about nostalgia and creativity

“SPACE”
How I imagine the future

“SECRET”
I notice that I like to represent faces when I draw, and consider it a very powerful metaphorical tool.

“HIGH”
This image is about egocentricity expressed in a grotesque and surreal way.

“RETURN”
This picture make me think of Japan. It reminds me of a graphic novel about a man who has to live as an adult in the body of a child.

“BILLIE”
Spring arrived and I wanted to draw its arrival as I was listening to a song by Billie Holiday.

GRAND-MERE
This is about the quest for eternal youth and is part of a larger series of surreal visual comments.

“THE EATER”
About life and love

More of Elise Wilk’s work may be found at http://elisewilktatin.blogspot.fr/

Thank you, Elise, for giving us a chance to show your work.

A lot has been written about the beauty and culture of India so I didn’t have to ask her why she chose the country as a subject. What I wanted to know was if she anticipated on her first visit that she would be able to capture such stunning photos of its people, and at what point she discovered the wealth of images waiting to be documented.

Paula visited India for the first time without any assumptions. She had heard people’s stories and had seen photos in travel shows and magazines but never really knew what to expect. While she had her own preconceived notions of the country, she never thought she would fall in love with it.  She became smitten by its people, the food, and seeing these through her lens, she realized how misguided her ideas were about a nation that was different each time she returned.

Paula writes:

It’s also really hard to think about India as one place because each part I’ve been to meant something else and made me feel different things. Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu took my breath away. The stunning scenery, gorgeous weather, and really kind people have made it impossible to forget. Mumbai overwhelmed and shook me to the core. It truly is a maximum city. Congested. Full of contrasts and contradictions. Over-stimulating and begs everyone to just surrender. I gripped my seat during every rickshaw ride; my nose bled when I shot the Gateway of India. Really, my senses and taste buds have not been the same since. Ahmedabad introduced me to real heat, poha and new friends, and being in Bhopal recently has reminded me that there’s so much more I must learn about different cultures, belief systems, life and people.

She describes the pivotal moment when she discovered the feast for her lens:

When did I know exactly? It was during a short stroll my first morning in India. The minute my friend, Stuart and I, walked the streets of Coimbatore en route to Kodaikanal, I knew. From the bright street food frying in a giant wok of oil, to kids playing cricket on the street, the women in their beautiful saris staring back at me in my striped T and jeans, the kind, oily men wondering where we were from, to the many old doors with huge padlocks and rusty bicycles and Ganesh and complicated electrical wires, up to an old, tiny barber shop (Stuart got a haircut) near our hotel, it was evident to me that my camera and I may end up in some kind of photography coma from everything I could capture behind the lens. Street photography and shooting portraits are my two favorites forms now for sure. India is totally to blame.

Paula Guinto answers some questions for Creativation Space:

CS: How do you capture your subject’s expressions? In the photos, they are always staring dead straight at the camera, but they aren’t posing. Instead they seem to be watching you in a way that would make me self-conscious. Do you ask them for permission? How? You have taken so many photos of their people. Can you tell us one good story about one memorable subject?

PG: It depends. More often than not I didn’t ask or didn’t need to. I’d just shoot from the hip or when they were not looking depending on what kind of picture I wanted to take. Thing is, they almost always didn’t seem to mind regardless. I would make eye contact, motion to my camera and intuitively know it was all right. This was most true with the kids and younger people. There seems to be some fascination with technology or seeing themselves on the screen. Also, often enough, they asked me to take a snap of them and over and over again. And the intense gaze they have, I think it comes from the same complicated fascination. A complex combination of experiencing technology, observing the voyeur back and understanding this need to stare because they do it too. There was a mutual curiosity that involved a bold, locked gaze.

CS: I love the photos of children and how you capture their candidness at play, and also the beginnings of how they stand for your just like the adults. What is the difference in photographing adults and children? How do you get children to stay still and focus on the camera that way?

PG: The kids are lovely to take pictures of because they are absolutely willing subjects. They love the camera. They are curious about it and  about you so they don’t mind at all. They rush to have their photos taken and ask you to take them in different poses, alone and in groups. And it’s enough that you take a snap of them or that you show their images on the screen. It really makes them happy. The adults are a bit shyer, especially the women. They are curious too but are a little more reluctant to be photographed, so when I’d get the feeling they would mind that I take their photos, I just wouldn’t shoot or charge from the hip and hope I get a clear, focused shot.

CS: As your audience, I always feel your work is such a gift because it transports a moment and immortalizes it. Is this your intention? How do you keep your eye sharpened and alert to possible photos you want to capture?

I find it easier to share my photos more than my prose or poetry for some reason and it has allowed me to document and tell my truth with a small letter “t” every single day. I think what writing and photography both allow me to do is collect, preserve, remember, learn from and honor my perspective. They’ve allowed me to discover my voice, believe in it and share things that are important to me. They have also kept me honest, bold and extremely grateful. I think I am sensitive and alert these days for snap possibilities because I am finally paying attention. To light, to composition, to textures, surfaces and lines, to moments I don’t want to forget. I don’t take my surroundings for granted and I anticipate, remain incessantly expectant of special snap worthy instances. I’d like to think that because I am expectant, I am more or less ready for those ‘decisive moments.’

Paula shared some photos with us along with her own thoughts on the particular captured moment:

“A middle aged couple sitting by the Bandra Promenade under an umbrella. It was such a sweet and tender scene. It was also funny because the wind kept on threatening to blow their umbrella away.”

“At the Palani Murugan Temple, three young girls called my attention and asked to have their picture taken several times. They were so beautiful and intense and so curious. I didn’t have time to ask them too many questions because they were more intent on knowing about us. Where we were from, what we did, why we were there. I guess we really stuck out like sore thumbs.”

“At the Haji Ali Shrine in Mumbai. My friend, Sacha and I met some ladies before going home and there was this one beautiful girl who we couldn’t help take snaps of. She didn’t mind at all and I think she was flattered that we thought she was stunning.”

“In Bhopal. I was shooting these kids right outside a mosque where my friends were praying. And Javed, my new friend, came out and gathered all of them for a picture. It showed me what a great teacher and awesome heart-driven person he was. Such a lovely moment.”

Paula Guinto tweets via @paulaguinto and blogs at http://fatcatkittycat.tumblr.com/

Saskia made this piece based on her own photographs, beginning with tracing key lines of the face, and experimented with colors before she started painting. She notes the difference between digital art over traditional art in that digital art “allows you to endlessly tweak your colours without making a huge mess of your painting and palette. When I’ve got all the features, shadows and highlights in the right place I put away the reference image and work on the painting some more to prevent it from becoming an exact copy of the photograph. I want my paintings to be personal and unique, not a reproduction of something else.”

A portrait of the folk singer Sam Beam of Iron & Wine

Saskia’s use of colors is unique in that it appears to mimic the effect of light on the subject as a tool to magnify the smallest details.

Portrait of Eirik G. Bøe and Erlend Øye (Kings of Conveniece),

She also enjoys capturing images of her favorite musical icons in her paintings.

Portrait of Georg Holm, bassist of Sigur Ros

“Raven of the Slain” (Portrait of Søren Hammerlund of Valravn)

“Olafur” (Portrait of Olafur Arnalds)

Obviously a lover of music, her pieces are her way of saying thank you to her fellow artists for their music and inspiration.

Saskia also answered the following questions for us below.

Tell me a little bit about yourself. Are you in school in Holland?
When did you start drawing/painting? If you are/were in art school,
can you describe to our readers what its contributions are to your
work? Why does your website say you’ve changed your mind about
becoming a professional artist?

I am 24 and no longer in school. I studied English Language and Culture at Leiden University, and never really wanted to go to art school. I took an introductory course at the Royal Academy of Arts in Den Haag after high school and felt right away that this wasn’t the place for me. Art school puts so much pressure on you; you have to be unique, you have to stand out, you have to have a message you want the entire world to know about. I’m not like that at all, I just want to doodle pretty things that make me happy. And I really believe you don’t need to go to art school to become a successful artist.

I’ve been drawing on paper for as long as I can remember, but started making digital art about seven years ago. My parents gave me a drawing tablet for my birthday, and I absolutely love the limitlessness of the digital medium.

I didn’t so much as change my mind about becoming a professional artist as
realise I could actually make money with drawing. Turning your hobby into your job must be truly wonderful, and it is my dream to someday illustrate a book.

What is your process in creating art? Do you start with an idea, or
a fixed image in your head? Do you find sometimes that the finished
product is completely different from your original idea?

I always start out with an idea. Very occasionally I just start sketching and it turns into something really good, but that rarely happens. My imagination is limitless and my drawings skills are not, so my drawings almost never turn out the way I envisioned. Sometimes that annoys me, but most of the time I can accept that ‘different’ does not necessarily mean ‘bad’. More often than not my process of creating a picture is very experimental, especially when I’m painting in Photoshop. You can fiddle around endlessly with the composition, contrast and colours. When working with graphite on paper I usually set up a more careful plan first (and subsequently get very frustrated when I can’t get it exactly right).

Your work is dynamic and diverse. Any tips for our readers on how
to remain creatively inspired?

What works for me is to keep challenging myself, set goals and work towards them, and to not lose track of why you are drawing in the first place: because you enjoy it.

Below are some pieces Saskia submitted to Creativation Space along with her words on the subject.

Sherlock
A digital portrait of Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock. He has such a striking face and it was a real challenge to capture it. His Sherlock is not a very nice man, and can be really unnerving at times. I tried to capture that.

Cellist
A perfect example of an experiment that turned out really well. I don’t often work with ink or pastels because they are so uncontrollable compared to graphite, but this just goes to show all you need is a bit of courage sometimes. I drew this on a particular difficult piece of cello music that I was trying to master at the time, and I became so frustrated with it I put aside my cello and started drawing instead, because I knew that, at least, I could do without failing miserably.

Fågel i fjarran
I am very interested in myths, legends and folk tales, and I once read that back in the old days girls would ask the cuckoo how many more years they would have to wait for their true love, and old women would ask how many more years of life they would get. Each ‘cuc-koo’ meant one year. I thought that was lovely, and I made this illustration to go with a Swedish song that tells the tale of a young woman waiting for her true love, asking a cuckoo why he will not come.

Mr Robin
Just a fun little painting that I had printed on postcards and sent to my friends and family at Christmastime.

Saskia Dekorte’s art may be found on Deviant Art and on her website.

“Problem?” (Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock)

Jeremy Baum’s earliest memory as an artist was as a child sitting on his father’s lap as he drew his favorite cartoons for him. Jeremy is a Pittsburgh-based artist we found on DeviantArt. He attended art school but opted not to mention the institution as it is under litigation. Jeremy believes that some college education and exposure to art school was immensely beneficial to his craft. He was exposed to influential ideas and like-minded people but advises young artists that a degree in art is only useful if one aims to be an educator. Otherwise, Jeremy believes that a couple of art classes should be enough exposure for young artists to figure out what excites them and to educate themselves from there.

“Kubrick” 9×12 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor marker on bristol. Copyright 2009.

We were initially impressed by the degree of detail and realism in Jeremy’s portraits. We asked him about his process in creating portraits and he said that he sometimes uses a photo for loose reference but mostly draws from memory or from his own face in the mirror, beginning with loose pencil sketches, outlining in ink, and then laying down the colors and the final hatching.

“Bankrupt” 9×12 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor markers on 11×14 bristol.

Most of his illustrations are done using ballpoint pen and Prismacolor markers on Bristol, which prove to be a medium that suits his skill. His art is both realist and surreal, combining bold strokes and dreamlike concepts fit for graphic novels and speculative fiction illustrations.

“Angela’s Dream” 9×12 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor marker on bristol. Copyright 2009.

Fortunately for us, Jeremy is an artist who has taken the time to analyze his creative process. He says he often works with his own dreams and images that come to him through the course of day-to-day thought. In his words:

“Jung made the distinction between direct-thinking and indirect-thinking and how most people tend be more oriented towards one over the other. I identify myself with the latter far more over the former, whereas instead of thoughts being a narrative of words, my stream-of-consciousness tends to be more like a series of images.”

“More” 8.5×11 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor markers on 11×14 bristol

When Jeremy was younger, he got very frustrated about not being able to portray a work exactly as he envisioned it, but now he appreciates the journey between those two steps. He knows the value of having a finished piece look similar to the initial vision, but knows that this doesn’t happen often and recognizes that envisioning an idea and creating from it are two separate acts.

“Confusion”  Ink on bristol.

Jeremy cites influences from heavy metal magazines and Robert Crumb, as well as his father’s stash of books he would read when he wasn’t home. Aside from those, Jeremy Baum gains inspiration from comic artists such as Milo Manara, Moebius, Windsor McKay, Marc Hansen, Tom Scioli, Dave Sim and Ed Piskor, painters Egon Schiele, Gustav Klimt, HR Giger, filmmakers David Lynch, Stanley Kubrick, Martin Scorcese, Woody Allen and David Cronenberg, and writers such as Stephen King, Fyodor Dostoyesky and Cormac McCarthy.

“November” 9×12 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor marker. Copyright 2009.

The company of like-minded artists is important for beginners who are just starting to mold their craft. Jeremy urges beginning artists to find out where others congregate for events to be surprised how sociologically different it is there than anywhere else.

Jeremy is currently working on two different comics right now: “Extravagant Traveler” which is about UFOs and “Adamnothing,” a collaboration between Baum and Argentina-based comic artist, Diego Tripodi. Jeremy is also in the process of designing a tarot deck. For more of his work visit http://madbaumer37.deviantart.com.

“Refreshment” 9×12 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor marker on bristol. copyright 2009.

“Joni” 9×12 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor marker on bristol.  copyright 2009.

“Trial” 9×12 ballpoint pen and Prismacolor markers on 11×14 bristol.

Martina had always used pencils for her drawings until she attempted the use of watercolor. Surprisingly, she fell in love with the quality of drawings and continued creating artwork with watercolors and ink on paper. To learn more about Martina, please click here.

Sara Skosberg just completed three years of art school in Gothenburg, Sweden, and is currently seeking a conservator position. Drawing has always been a passion for Sara since she was four years old, but she didn’t really put much time into it until a few years ago when she decided to pursue her craft full-time.

According to Sara, the woodprint appearance of her work is not intentional, and that I was not the first to mention that observation. She enjoys working with ink and Promarkers after spending a lot of time drawing using pencil as a teenager, but is still looking for the perfect medium with which to use her ink and markers.

We asked Sara what her process was in creating art and she said that to her it is a mindless thing, a feeling that she allows to take over. She doesn’t decide what the outcome is and is as excited about the result of her work. On the downside, she shares what many artists feel as a common dissatisfaction with their work, a desire to do better. But artists know that this self-awareness is critical in their creative development.

The artist shared the following works for exhibition at Creativation Space:

“Birth” was the first that struck me as I was perusing a random board on Pinterest. To me, the piece reminded of the simple illustrations found in old books, presumably made for ease in reproduction or printing. It has the appearance of being simply black and white without any midtones, where all parts of the drawing relating to nature have a certain pattern of shading except for the subject that is drawn only as an outline and is white. It draws the eye to the middle of the painting and to the subject. The texture of the medium also plays a part in this piece, where one can see the quality of the paper, its color and fiber seeping through the drawing, adding such a character not provided by the simplicity of the drawing.

“Through Me” is a painting that raises questions. It is consistent with the bold strokes of the artist as well as her plays in texture. I especially admired the singular quality of the hair of the subjects. It fuses them together as one unit.

“Feeling Something” follows the tradition of “Birth” in its wood print quality, but with color. I loved the detail of this piece as well as the choice of animals.

“Owl Queen” looks like a classic textbook illustration if there was one.

Special thanks to Sara Skogsberg for sharing her work and answering our questions! We are looking forward to your artistic journey.

“River Dream – Sold” acrylic and mixed media on canvas 32″ x 48″

Sara Roizen is an artist and licensed creative arts therapist. She received a BFA in Painting from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Masters in Art Therapy from Pratt Institute.

According to her website, Sara’s approach focuses on the process instead of the finished product. She works spontaneously and intuitively in the studio in a form of dialogue between herself and the materials.  Because of this, Sara considers her art a form of self-discovery. The process is a constant self-exploration that reveals feelings of which she was previously unaware. She believes that this method of artistic expression parallels the way that art therapists work with clients.

Recently, Sara had gone through a hand surgery on her dominant hand. During the recovery process, Sara is learning how to use her left hand to make paintings and drawings. Creativationspace will post more of Sara’s new works when she is ready to showcase art work made from her non-dominant hand. To learn more about Sara, please click here.

“Hungry Ghost II” acrylic and mixed media on canvas 11″ x 14″

A number of Erin’s photographs feature her image or body parts. She says that she uses her own image to convey the conceptual and personal side of the story. According to Erin, including herself in the photo allows her to have better control of the output and seeing the photos come to life.

Erin paints as a hobby but focuses on photography as her main medium. She considers herself to have been a creative and quirky child who has always loved art, and this has allowed her to grow into the artist identity and the person she is now.

Erin is open to artist collaborations and exploring potential projects in the near future. To find more about Erin, click here.