Could Not Resist

A fun challenge was posted by a friend on Facebook today:

1. Go to wikipedia and hit random. The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.
2. Go to quotationspage.com and hit random. The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.
3. Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”. Third picture no matter what it is, will be your album cover.
4. Use photoshop or similar (picnik.com is a free online photo editor) to put it all together.
5. Post it with this text in the "caption" and TAG the friends you want to join in.

I thought, "Hey, that sounds like fun - let's see what can happen in a totally random project!"

So here it is - my album cover. 

I grunged the band name, "Gower Report", weathered the photo with a photo of rust that I had shot last fall, and just plain had some fun with the layers. I think I may have to do some more for a portfolio project!

Folded Pen Practice

I decided to get out my trusty folded brass pens, which I had neglected for too long. Sitting dejected on the shelf, they were begging to be played with, dipped in the watercolors and gouaches of palettes from past projects.

Out came the paper - various watercolor - hard and cold press and Canson Mi-Tientes. Music of the blues genre, mainly Bonnie Raitt, helped get the creative juices flowing. In the process, I remembered how a little Schminke powder in the paint can really gunk up the pen.

It was a fun, playful afternoon!

Mock Logo Designs...combining my calligraphy with Illustrator and photographs I took earlier...

I finally got the time to sit down with my calligraphy and photos I took of different textures a few weeks ago, combining them Illustrator.

This one is an example of my calligraphy combined with a photo of rust...

calligraphy with some colorful rust...

calligraphy with fabricated metal...

calligraphy with rust on black background...

calligraphy with rusted metal & 3D extrusion...

calligraphy with rocks on black background...

calligraphy with yellow sandstone...

I have other photos of textures that I'll be using later this week, creating more mock logos, etc. For me, it's fun and challenging to come up with different effects. I hope you enjoy following along!

My Web Site

I invite you to visit my web site:
www.loritews.com

Get This Party Started...

Good morning!

I've contemplated creating a blog for some time now, but wanted everything well-thought-out before starting. That kind of thinking as only delayed this, since I'm always busy at something - family, art, life.


So here it goes - I'll start with some practice sheets that I've been working on (actually having fun with)!
I am going to use Gothicized Italic in some projects I have in my head, but knew I needed to refine it first.

I find that I like to have a theme to my practice - it allows me to concentrate on the lettering and not have to think about what word is coming next. Sometimes, the "theme" is simply a stream of (un)conscious thought. (I have to be careful when I publish those!)

When practicing, I also find it is helpful to play music that loosens me up, relaxes away any tension, and allows me to really enjoy the process of making letters. You may find me listening to anything from Clapton to ACDC, Prince to Jeff Lorber...

The party has started...