Day Two and Already Playing Catch-Up!

I was thrilled, shocked and delighted to log in today (love that lunch break!) and see that I already have four followers (thank you!) and umpteen views... how do y'all find me, anyhow?  Since the short period spent responding to Laura Harms' Challenge #3, "Eyes Wide Shut", was such a delicious break in my day yesterday, I decided I might as well take a few minutes to respond to Challenge #1, "Simplicity", and Challenge #2, "Double Strung", and be all nicely up to date!  Collections of things are always a delight and keeping up with each weekly challenge should also be quite inspirational, so voila!  Here are the fruits of today's labours.

First up is my take on Challenge #1, "Simplicity":

I found I really enjoyed this.  I've always worked with diagonally curving flourishes (some atavistic symbol must be calling to me) and I chose to tangle it with only one, repetitive yet free-form element.  Rather than shade the tangle, I also made the choice to simply lay the "shadow" on the "ground" of the illustration.

I like the open airiness of the finished piece and yes, it did please me with what I view as its simplicity.

What do you think?  Did I interpret the challenge well or would you advise something different?  What does simplicity mean to you in your own artwork?  Do you find it a positive or negative descriptor?  Do you respond or back away from it as a challenge?  Do you know why you react the way you do?

Always food for thought.....

Next up is my response to Challenge #2, "Double Strung":

By drawing the string with two pencils, you "double your pleasure, double your fun!" (with apologies to Doublemint gum!).

I used to do this for calligraphy and illustration purposes years ago and had managed to forget just how much fun it can be!  I liked being able to use more patterns and adaptive shading.

Have you tried double stringing yet?  I do recommend it as a wonderfully fun way to shake up your art.

You can check out the challenges on Laura's website at http://www.iamthedivaczt.com/ where so many talented artists have shared their work.  It's both inspiring AND challenging - a double-header, Laura; way to go!

Again I apologize for the poor quality of the materials used and the photos.  I hope to improve both shortly.

Happy Wednesday!