Britt Howe

Zoo Trip / Class Painting Demos

2010-06-04T10:02:00.008-05:00

I really have been having a hard time recording everything art wise in the past couple months; simply because the amount of classes I've taken on has / will be getting even more abundant! Which is fantastic, but hard to keep track of all the activity! Anyway, here's a few pages from the Zoo, and two demo paintings.

May 2010 Zoo Trip

2010-05-14T23:44:00.006-05:00

Happy Birthday Dad

2010-04-21T20:48:00.003-05:00

My Dad loves these scratch art / claybord things-so I make sure I get him one every so often.

Class Project Examples

2010-04-06T14:23:00.013-05:00

Here are some examples I've done with the kids I teach- ages 5-12. All types of classes here, such as; Cartooning / Comics, Drawing to Painting, and Mixed Media walk-in classes at Ridgedale Mall. Having a blast with them, and incredibly impressed with their observation skills at such young ages. It makes me wonder what kind of art student I was when I was 5.

Solo Zoo Trip 3.29.10

2010-03-29T20:18:00.011-05:00

A windy, chilly, but incredibly *SUNNY* day at the MN Zoo made for some sleepy animals. And in turn, perfect models. Felt a little bit off my game drawing wise, but at least I made the trip and noodled something out. Hopefully next time I'll have a buddy to go with!

New Adventure Book 1 FINALLY done!

2010-02-26T02:02:00.002-06:00

BUY MY ADVENTURE BOOK!

Breaky Breaks.

2010-01-16T17:38:00.003-06:00

Breaks at work.

2010-01-02T23:06:00.002-06:00

Cover design Final

2009-12-16T23:24:00.001-06:00

Thumbs for the cover. :)

2009-12-10T21:58:00.004-06:00

Wondering when this children's story will ever EVER be finished, I have been spending my breaks at Blick noodling and thumbing.

Spanish Immersion Class #2

2009-11-23T10:42:00.003-06:00

Teaser Baidir. <--Amazing short teaser of an animated / anime film that was posted by Rashad on my facebook. I had to share it with the blogging world as well. Reminds me SO much of Meredith!!!!

Also! Today my clay class kids practiced their slab techniques and made fish/elephants/mice, we even had a 'barbarian snail'. A little more of a mess this time, but most agreed they liked this class better than the pinch pot class. It'll be fun trying to think up what we'll do next week. I'm thinking coil pots.

Dr. Sketchy's November 2009

2009-11-23T00:33:00.006-06:00

Spanish Immersion School Clay Class!

2009-11-16T11:20:00.002-06:00

I officially love my new job. These creations are from the 10 yr. old artisans at the Spanish Immersion School in New Hope. We only have an hour with them on Mondays 8 am - 9 am, but these master's proved they could work under pressure. :) My personal favs are the 'beached whale'(according to the artist),the crab, the kangaroo, and the turtle with the huge head. Too much fun.

Peter Driben re-creation.

2009-11-04T21:53:00.004-06:00

Recreation of a Peter Driben Illustration! Done for a local burlesque advertisement / poster. Driben's stuff is incredible, (as are most of the classic pin-up painters) but Driben in particular has that vintage edge over many. It was a fun challenge to create 'my version'.

Breaks.

2009-11-02T23:19:00.003-06:00

Haven't gotten a chance to do much drawing for myself....minus a small handful of sketches during my breaks at work.

Gatos.

2009-10-13T01:19:00.001-05:00

http://catsinboxes.com/cat/458

Cats in boxes. Love this site.

http://blogs.discovery.com/daily_treat/2009/10/transcontinental-kitty-cat-ships-self-1000-miles-.html?smid=FBAPL-FWP-TBG

Also- a cat who managed to ship himself cross country.

Zoo Trip October 2009!

2009-10-04T22:25:00.007-05:00

After battling a dizzy, spinning, icky morning feeling, I finally fought back and got a few decent sketches in with my Blick girls. We even survived a violent song bird attack while drawing the Takin-success!!! Hahaha. The Amur leapords and the grey wolves were out- which never happens and was an extra treat. And the bears were a joy to watch romping in the water, per usual. I think they love the performances they put on as much as we love watching.

Replacement piece

2009-10-02T22:40:00.002-05:00

Didn't like the way my graphite piece turned out, so I made a new one. Might try a graphite piece one more time before I submit my forms for the show.

Preping for The Wildlife Art Show

2009-10-01T00:03:00.005-05:00

So I just finished up my pieces for the Nature and Wildlife Art Show: Breckenridge Chapter House on October 25th. Come visit and buy some prints!!!! I'm selling the originals too :) It's in Brooklyn Park, starting at 12:00 pm until 5:00 pm, then on the 27th from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm.

Anyway, I'd love to see visitors, so here's the address: 8816 West River Road, Brooklyn Park. website: www.breckenridgeikes.org

Dr. Sketchy's September 2009

2009-09-27T23:53:00.007-05:00

Sweet Pea: Sweet as Pie, Tough as Nails.

Dr. Sketchy's this month was great! I even won a contest and got a piece of Sweet Pea's Pie :P It was delicious; mango + strawberry! Thanks Sweet Pea!!!! I was happy with my last couple poses, it took me awhile to warm up today.

Pilot G-2 gel pens.

2009-09-21T23:56:00.004-05:00

Realizing I haven't sketched in pen in awhile, I set out on a pen quest. Good thing I didn't have to go far since I work in an art store, and stumbled upon the Pilot G-2 gel pen. I like it so far, going to make a value scale just to become familiar with it's range. So far though I'm a fan, you can get some good variation.

Beautiful short film.

2009-09-17T23:34:00.002-05:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uj4RBmU-PIo

I'm a dirty filthy stinkin' liar.

2009-09-15T21:47:00.006-05:00

So, when I posted before saying I had 1 illustration left in my new children's book, I was totally wrong. NOW I have 1 illustration left, for the interior. I have yet to design my intricate border to contain the text, and the cover / back designs. I also forgot the very first page in the book, how I'm not sure, but my best defense is that I get distracted when using pretty colors. Don't judge.

1 More left!

2009-09-04T18:04:00.004-05:00

Got another illustration done! Almost finished, I can't wait to add text. Here's to finishing the last one tonight. The written stuff / sketches are my notes for the last 2 halves of the story-I never would forgive myself for making a really long story, so I have to keep it to only 3 books. 3 just seems like a good number.

Road Trip

2009-09-04T17:45:00.007-05:00

30 Hours in the car from Minnesota to Arizona. Oof-tah. Brought Bill down to UAT, tried my hand at speed sketching cows, horses, pronghorn and all kinds of random ranch items. It's really hard when they zip by so fast, but it was fun to try and remember what I had seen. I got some better results with models that stayed a little more stationary, like the cliffsides, mountians and my sleepy sister.

Nearing the end.

2009-08-27T17:38:00.001-05:00

Another page down. About 2 left, then text.

Jazz and the birds.

2009-08-26T20:05:00.007-05:00

My cat Jazz and I spend many hours watching the bird feeders that we've hung outside on my mom's porch. It faces a swamp, so we seen TONS of native birds including Gold Finches, Downy Woodpeckers, Ground Finches, Black-capped Chickadees, and the occasional Pileated Woodpecker. Most of the drawings are of Gold Finches on my nyjer feeder. The birds (surprisingly) were better models than Jazz was, she hardly sits still while watching them-I don't think she gets the concept that if she sits still they'll fly closer to her. I did catch her napping after all the excitement though.

Double Page Spread

2009-08-24T22:02:00.003-05:00

Got some more pages done for my next children's book. I think I only have a couple pages left to finish, then add the text. This process is so fun, but ever so long.

Zoo Trip August 2009

2009-08-11T21:36:00.013-05:00

Another fun MN Zoo trip! This time I was by myself for some of the day, but then Bill, Amanda and Ethan joined me around 1:30ish. I can already tell I'm getting my money's worth with this membership-Going to try and go again this week on one of my days off! I learned the names of two of the grizzlies; Sadie and Kenai. I guess Sadie's the expert tree climber and Kenai's the great fisherbear. Such personalities. I couldn't help myself, I had to go back to Discovery Bay and draw more sandtigers. I swear I'll force myself to draw different animals next time! I did however discover the moray eel-last time he was hiding.

Naps are wonderful

2009-08-09T23:53:00.004-05:00

Not only do I like taking naps, but I like it even more when my pets do. They are perfect little models. (except when Drake my dog starts to dream, kicking and snarling-as he did when I started his sketch, sadly he got up before I could finish it.)

When you get caught with your hand in the cookie jar....

2009-08-09T23:47:00.005-05:00

Came home tonight with the answer to why my suet in my feeder has been disappearing in record time. A masked thief had crawled up the tree and was promptly stuffing his face with suet. In honor of his comical expression when he finally noticed me and my cat watching, I sketched :)

Saying Goodbye

2009-08-05T12:24:00.004-05:00

Drew this for my boss who lost a close friend over the summer.

Inking practice

2009-07-30T14:23:00.002-05:00

Trying to ink every day to strengthen my weaknesses. Here's what I did yesterday.

Dr. Sketchy's July 2009

2009-07-30T14:09:00.003-05:00

Every month across the USA (and I am told other countries), a burlesque life drawing extravaganza is held at local bars, called Dr. Sketchys! I go every month (or try since I've been home) with my co-workers for a beer and life drawing. It's the perfect way to spend the last sunday of every month. I was very pleased with this month's model, but then almost every month's model is great,....I'm rarely dissapointed by this location's Dr. Sketchys. Despite what people first think about the event, it is indeed tasteful, and provides some great opportunities to draw people in situations you don't normally get in life drawing sessions. But don't be fooled, it IS burlesque, and it IS saucy!
I lost my marker pad this time, and I'm GLAD I did. I forced myself to work in pencil, and rediscovered my long lost love for it again. There's just nothing that can stand up to it folks. Graphite is beautiful.

2009-07-25T02:50:00.007-05:00

I've been working with two new characters that keep popping up in my sketchbooks-trying to work hard and not make the story/characters similar to Princess Mononoke or Pocohantus. (even though those are big influences). Still working out the storyline, but it's going to be full of crazy animals, tree hugger themes, and midwest humor.
Just finished another page in my children's book! More graphic looking than the previous page, I'm afraid my consistancey has been compromised. Might have to redo it, or go back and rework a few areas.

Zoo Trip!

2009-07-23T20:05:00.010-05:00

Another fun day at the MN Zoo.

Got a good amount of sketch time in, whilst battling the chaotic crowds of summer schools. My boss and I had a great time, and plan on taking advantage of my new MN Zoo Membership many times over.

I got a good seat this time to draw sandtiger sharks-one of my favorite characters at the zoo. I was sad to see no sun bear on exhibit though, his wrinkles are so fun to draw.

I love zoo days. It just never lasts long enough.

Freelance Work

2009-07-15T01:29:00.011-05:00

Here's what I've been up to lately concerning my freelance work:

While I've been penciling, Heath Foley has been digitally coloring. There are some changes being made to Genghis Khan's features, as well as a few other minor details on other pieces.

Heath is a very fast colorist, which makes it easier on me and I can take my time penciling. It's also been nice to work with a friend even if they are 1/2 a country away.

First Post!

2009-07-14T17:39:00.000-05:00

So! My first debut on blogspot. Hooray, cheers all around. I'm a Minnesota artist, with a B.F.A. in Sequential Art from SCAD. I'll be using this blog mostly as a process portfolio, throwing out my ideas/ in-progress projects for anyone and everyone to dissect and destroy! I'm sorry ahead of time for the collection of grammatical errors that will ensue-I'm better with the pictures not the words. :)

I sketched this last night, and remembered the saying from an art history professor at SCAD, and always liked how it sounded.

Recently graduated (Spring 2009), I'm beginning my adventures as a freelance artist. My first project is for The Cleveland Museum of Natural History-drawing dinosaurs and mongols! Well no that's not ALL I'm drawing. The project is a 10 page educational pamphlet that will be given to schools in Mongolia, to prevent the illegal sale and trade of dinosaur bones. Really cool project, I'm proud to be apart of it. I'm penciling it, and my good friend Heath Foley (who hails from Peachtree City, GA) is my colorist.

As the project is nearing the ending mark, I will do my best to post what I have finished!