Friday, December 10, 2010

Illustration Friday: phenomenon



My submission for Illustration Friday's "phenomenon" is my Holiday card this year. I decided on a non traditional colour scheme to make it a little different and special :) I have been making cards for 30 + years in every combo of colours and so each year I try to make something a bit out of the ordinary.


Thank you to all the folks that came by this year to see my art and ideas! I was a little lax in posting this year and my fifth year of blogging here passed by and it means so much that you visit and check out my stuff and comment :) Thank you and have a lovely holiday season too!

Nowadays, "phenomena" are often, but not always, understood as appearances. They are themselves sometimes understood as involving qualia.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Illustration Friday: afterwards


This little house started out as an illustration on Arches and is printed and diecut and afterwards it becomes a garland of houses. It has one side that can be folded which enables it to stand alone or in groups and I used non-traditional colours for the holiday or anytime. Notice you slide the ribbon through the open windows :)



Thursday, October 21, 2010

Illustration Friday: spooky


Somewhere in the Transylvania countryside is the idea behind my submission for Illustration Friday's "spooky theme. I love this word so I did this last minute quick and dirty on stonehenge using acrylics and prismacolor pencils;)

2010 valerie walsh

Monday, October 04, 2010

Illustration Friday: beneath






This paperhouse is painted with acrylic paint, i used thread to hang the paper star, fashioned a clay doorknob and of course it all starts with a small matchbox ;)
all photos and art valerie walsh for Illustration Friday's "beneath" theme

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Illustration Friday: acrobat


My submission for Illustration Friday's "acrobat" is a painting I have done many times in many ways for lots of peeps. This is a version I did to a song by Los Lobos :) You know the saying "once in a blue moon" which means seldom or rarely? Well this is a lavender moon and that means as rare as it gets! The title of this painting is "Balance" which is required when you are an acrobat ;)

valerie walsh 2010

Wednesday, September 08, 2010

Illustration Friday: dessert

Did you know that a goat would consider a flower dessert? And deer do as well :) I have friends that raised goats in Topanga and the goat really will eat almost anything! They would stand on the roof of their shed which gave me the idea for this illustration. Many times I see deer and they are grazing on my neighbour's newly planted flowers or fruit trees and vegetables... It does make me smile and it has happened to me many times as well, it is always the same feeling SURPRISE!!! :D
This is a colour study for a painting called "House Pet" and I made this drawing in 1990 and did not use this idea for a painting until my 2004 HomeMade calendar. I changed the building and colours to pinks and greens but I have always enjoyed blue and purple together very much :) Was hoping to make something new because I love this word and have a good idea too but the time got away from me so this is my very late submission for Illustration Friday's "dessert" theme.
all photos and art valerie walsh 1990-2004 prismacolor pencil on stonehenge

Saturday, August 21, 2010

Illustration Friday: atmosphere


My submission for Illustration Friday's "Atmosphere" is a dimensional painting I made for Dee Dee, my sister in 1995. It is wood, formable foam board, acrylic paint and resin. This was a bit of an experiment in several ways, I wanted to go beyond the traditional shapes of paintings and create leaves that give the piece dimension sort of jutting out curving around and also by painting part of the leaf on the surface to add a faux visual continuity for the eye. I made a few of these round layered pieces and really enjoyed this look. This flower girl is saying "I like the air up here". What does it mean? I don't know it was just fun to make, love the colours and I like it :) sorry about the glaring white spot, I took this picture at my Mom's house. She has an entire room dedicated to my art and it is a Valerie Gallerie of sorts and this was sitting up on a shelf so I did the best I could because I frankly had completely forgotten about this image.

I am not sure if they make this foam board anymore I bought a ton of it and you could wet it and it would form easier into shapes that I wanted to make. I never see it anymore so I imagine it was not so popular, but it worked for me. I have found through the years that when I like a product I buy a lot of it because many art supplies tend to get discontinued...

Saturday, August 14, 2010

Illustration Friday: Star gazing

I have created hundreds of paintings in my 30+ years as an artist that feature or incorporate stars. This image was commissioned by a very close friend and she looked at my portfolio and chose to have me make a bridge painting that would include her husband, son and herself in the buildings. She likes very soft muted colours which is always a challenge as I tend to be quite colourful :) Yes this is subtle and subdued for me... She really loved the softness and the pastel quality of this and it is large and one of my layered dimensional paintings with resin. I did this in 2000 and I am always happy to paint something special for someone I care about. It is called "connection to love" and it is my submission for Illustration Friday's "Star gazing" theme.
valerie walsh 2000

Thursday, August 05, 2010

Illustration Friday: artificial


My submission for Illustration Friday's "artificial" theme is a facade called Home Front. This is a tough word for a homemaker :) I thought of a house in Florida with all the pink flamingos out in front but this has been done a million times or maybe an artificially sweetened Gingerbread House but I posted the real sweet kind before ;) I decided on this idea, as you can see; I finished down to the wire because I am working on other stuff but the idea is reminiscent of the old saloon type buildings propped up in the back.



art and photos valerie walsh 2010

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Illustration Friday: double

When I paint illustrations for cards, calendars and stickers I often have to make 2 of the same image and sometimes 4 if it is a seasonal item. I have a game I play with myself to see if I can make them look identical. Sometimes I have to make the same item in reverse and I enjoy this as well. Here are some examples of my submission for Illustration Friday's "double" theme.

1. Love Grows (greeting card)

2. Homes for the Holidays Stickers (spring/summer)

3. House Paint stickers (LOVE & Happy Birthday)








Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Illustration Friday: diary







I got quite excited about this word :) What sprang to mind is "Diary of a Mad Housewife" so I decided to make a moleskine into a house and use the idea of the text viewable through the door and windows ( I have done this before and loved it!) This helps the diary resemble the cover for Sue Kaufman's book. My version and my writings are modified from the original of course and illustrates the madness that plagues me in my constant creating of buildings and homes. My submission for Illustration Friday's " diary" theme is a journal called "Diary of a Mad HouseMaker.

photos and art valerie walsh 2010

Sunday, July 04, 2010

Illustration Friday: Giant


When you live in LA you tend to get asked to do a lot of unusal jobs. I have had my fair share of unique opportunities and I welcome them :) This illustration is from one of those very times. This took place in 1990 at Sunset Tower Hotel in Hollywood. It is a landmark hotel and in those days The St. James Club of London and Antigua bought it and operated it as such. My friend was the head doorman and asked if I could make a special remembrance for Whoopi Goldberg because she loved the hotel and had been staying there for some time and he wanted me to make a quick valgal version of the hotel to make her feel special. I only had a day to paint and I wanted it to look like the work I was into at the time. I was making 10 layered dimensional towers and castle-like structures for a show in Santa Monica. This illustration was mounted on a lovely thick piece of paper that I made. This place is considered a giant among the old art deco buildings and many wonderful people have stayed here including my mom and me :) we had a delightful and memorable time there.
Please watch this short film about Sunset Tower Hotel.
valerie walsh 1990

Friday, June 25, 2010

Illustration Friday: satellite



A natural satellite is a celestial body orbiting a planet, dwarf planet, asteroid, or star of a larger size. The most familiar natural satellite is the earth's moon; thus, satellites of other planets are often referred to as moons. My submission for Illustration Friday's "satellite" theme is one of my star chairs. I painted a lot of furniture about 20 years ago. The star chair was one of my first pieces of functional art and was created in 1990 for a clients house and you can see a shot of it in her home with a little painting I made right above it. Then in 1997 another woman I know was the costume designer for the TV show "Dharma and Greg" and she collected a lot of my work and she wanted furniture to go with my paintings so she would find antique pieces she loved and i would strip, prime and paint in fantastical colours and with my signature halo effect with blends. It was a ton of work but a valgal room with furniture and paintings looks pretty cool! It seems like a lifetime ago in a galaxy far, far away ;)


Thursday, June 17, 2010

Illustration Friday: Ripple

I feel happy that many of the people that collect my dimensional paintings usually say "Do what you want to do". I love that but have learned that there can be that very small percentage of folks that can be "difficult to please" :) This has prompted me to always make a little colour study or maquette of the image so that they can have a chance to decide they like or change my vision. This is a little (very rough) colour pencil study for a dimensional piece I have been commissioned to create and I am pretty excited because this is a place that we drove up to quite by accident and discovered and I always felt it would make a lovely place to paint. My submission for Illustration Friday's "Ripple" theme is titled "The Secret Fountain".

Saturday, June 05, 2010

Illustration Friday: trail


This is a Topanga box and I have been making them for a long time. They are made from upcycled wooden ginseng boxes. I handpaint them and they do not have houses on them. I have walked many a trail in these hills for 30+ years. When I look at the hills I think of all the beautiful days and dogs that have walked these paths with me rain or shine. Walking is one of my favourite things in life :D My submission for Illustration Friday's "trail" is a hand painted
Topanga box and the inside holds a special surprise ;)

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Illustration Friday: Equipment


You are not seeing things, come closer, this is the dance of the hammer and the nail. It is a rare treat to catch a glimpse of this elusive happening! My submission for Illustration Friday's "Equipment" theme is an illustration I made while the painting I am working on is drying so this is quick and dirty and down to the wire ;) This little painting on paper is called "Home Work". You cannot build a house without the proper equipment. The humble hammer and the nifty nail ;)
2010 valerie walsh

Art is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it.
~Bertolt Brecht














Monday, May 10, 2010

Illustration Friday: Fearless


The person that moves in here might enjoy living on the edge and could be considered fearless.
Or they could just be a bit crazy ;)

My submission for Illustration Friday's "Fearless" theme is a quickie called "hilltop house".

I have been away and now i am back. Cocoon would have been a better word for me but I had to miss last weeks theme so i was certainly challenged by this word as it does not come to mind when you think of a house or home. There are a few buildings in Topanga that remind me of this one :D
valerie walsh 2010

Friday, April 23, 2010

Illustration Friday: ahead


Spring ahead! My submission for Illustration Friday's "ahead" theme is a spring infused diecut gift tag. Have a nice weekend ;)
photo 2010 valerie walsh

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Illustration Friday: detective


I kind of drove myself a bit crazy with this prompt and since I am busy it was a good excuse to avoid it all together but in the end I remembered this painting and thought it is the kind of street that you would expect to see a detective. I had to post something...

My submission for Illustration Friday's "detective" theme is an acrylic painting on wood panel called "Rendezvous". Whew down to the wire ;)
valerie walsh 1985

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Illustration Friday: linked




I have made a lot of houses that are connected or linked but most of them I have already shown. Linked is a wonderful word and I can think of so many things I would love to make for this prompt. While the paintings dry, I made 2 houses that are linked. They are made of paper and paint. My submission for Illustration Friday's "linked" theme is "duplex" :D




Hope you are having a lovely weekend and please check out the brochure printing giveaway here, it is free :)


all photos by valgal 2010

Friday, April 02, 2010

Illustration Friday: dip

Well I'll be dipped! I cannot remember if I have posted this Easter card in the past? Probably not because it doesn't have a house ;) My submission for Illustration Friday's "dip" theme is a die cut Easter card that is vintage style. When you bend and fold the dip in the egg it creates a little easel to help it stand on it's own . I have always enjoyed dipping and dying Easter eggs. Happy Easter and or Happy Passover.


photos and art valerie walsh 2000

Friday, March 26, 2010

Illustration Friday: rescue


File this under "Emotional Rescue" my submission for Illustration Friday's "rescue" theme is a colour pencil drawing I made for Babs in 1989. I am diggin deep my peep, peep, peeps :D

Saturday, March 20, 2010

Illustration Friday: expired


The lease on this Pear Pad has never expired. Why? Because it's purrfect ;)

My submission for Illustration Friday's "expired" theme is a painting on Stonehenge paper for the King of Maybe and my friend, Fernando Pereira.



2010 valerie walsh

Friday, March 12, 2010

Illustration Friday: subterreanean






My submission for Illustration Friday's " subterreanean" theme is an idea that I started to work on quite a while ago, i think two summers ago I was planning on working out this painting called "DownTown" but I was sidetracked by so many other "Houscapes", paintings. greeting cards, etc. Sometimes this happens, I have a lot of ideas just not enough time to get it done. I try to use the summer as my time to do art and ideas that I have wanted to explore and I always have the best of intentions. I hope I can get back to this some time in the future. This painting shows me, I might have lived in Topanga a little to long. I started thinking the ants and bugs and rodents have little condos and it is like a little underground town. I am sure that I am right ;) On a side note sometimes when I create an image in a layered dimensional way I do a flat illustration as well so I have one version for a reproduction image and a dimensional image as well. So that gives me two unfinished pieces I need to work on :P Happy Friday!

Friday, March 05, 2010

Illustration Friday: brave


My submission for Illustration Friday's "brave" is a cropped version of my idea of "Home of the Brave". I had to crop an illustration I have already submitted before because I am pressed for time but I love to submit for the word :D it is a joy to play along each week! This is from my 2004 HomeMade calendar and it is called "Field House". I live in an area where the Chumash Indians lived.

I am taking care of Nomi and I walked her behind the house into the park and we stumbled upon

the most beautiful mushrooms. So I thought I might share a little slice of my world and it is very spring-like today :) Enjoy and have a lovely weekend!









art and photos valerie walsh 2004 and 2010