Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from Liz Cleaves Illustration.  

© Liz Cleaves Illustration

Grandmother

© Liz Cleaves Illustration

Winter Fox Den

Greetings Everyone!

Here is the progression and completion of a recent illustration entitled Fox Den.  

Gentleman Fox 

Lady Fox

Inked

The Finish

All Images © Liz Cleaves Illustration

Finals Week

Its getting a little crazy around here, it's finals week! Everyone who is still in school, just starting out, or can remember back to the days of when they were starting their careers.  Here are some words of wisdom to keep you carrying on.  

 “Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work dis

appoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”

– Ira Glass

Happy Winter

 Been doing some experimenting with combining the watercolor and ink style with the the embroidery.  Keep your eyes peeled for more cause, so far the results are looking good. 

© Liz Cleaves Illustration

Sugar Rush!

 Thanks to my wonderful Illustrator friends for distracting me with Wreck it Ralph fan art. They all started drawing themselves as Sugar Rush Game characters and I just had to join in. Meet Dizzy Lizzy, the sweet and sour need for speed demon. Any one want to go a little off roading in Sugar Rush?

© Liz Cleaves Illustration

Breaking

It was nice to be able to relax.  The storm ahead is going to be filled with deadlines. Becoming in touch with your humanity before you have to start producing work like a robot.  Its having a reminder of who you are and what your interests are that inspire you to make the art that you make. And putting time back into the people who truly believe in you and your work.  Never stop creating,and never stop being filled with the things that give you creativity. Here are some of the influences that fill me over the break.