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Communication Arts Invasion!! Acrylic on collaged paper on canvas, 12"x16"

Yesterday I found out that these crazy creatures will soon be invading the Communication Arts 2016 Illustration Annual! To say this came as a happy surprise is putting it mildly– I think I alarmed my normally imperturbable husband by emitting something combining a shriek, a whoop, & hysterical laughter.

The news came at the perfect time, too, because I had just that moment been pondering my next painting & wondering if I ought to tame my ideas down a little. But I had so much fun working on Invasive, mostly because I had given myself complete permission to paint whatever came into my head. It seems odd really, how rarely I let this happen, when there is nothing stopping me but my own inhibitions. Now I feel emboldened to take another walk on the wild side!

The annual will be published in the May/June issue of CA, & as for the painting in my head, I’m hoping it will make its appearance before then!

Addendum: Here it is in CA, woohoo!

Infinite Monkey Acrylic painting on text collage on canvas, 6"x6"

Happy Year of the Monkey! In honor of the 2016 Chinese New Year, Shakespeare, the infinite monkey theorem, & antique typewriters, here’s the Infinite Monkey himself, complete with a background text from Henry IV Part 2: “Ah, you sweet little rogue, you. Alas, poor ape, how thou sweatest!” (Yes, I know the theorem usually refers to Hamlet, but who could resist that line?)

I happen to have been born in a year of the monkey (never mind which), & even though I don’t put much stock in horoscopes, I can’t help but find it delightful that nearly every description of the monkey personality includes the word “curious!”

This particular monkey is available in my Etsy shop, & also makes a fitting companion to last year’s Counting Sheep!

By the way, the typewriter in this painting was modeled on one that came with our house (which was built in 1927.) One of the many reasons I knew it was the right house for us!

Xenophile Acrylic on collaged text & map on canvas, 6"x6"

Today’s painting for A.Word.A.Day illustrates a pair of elephants forming a mutual admiration society for their respective homes & customs. Just painting this made me want to travel to Africa & India, so I guess that makes me a xenophile too!

Viridity Acrylic painting on text collage on canvas, 6"x6"

This is the time of year when I most crave the color green, so it was a pleasure to illustrate Viridity for A.Word.A.Day. And of course it was also a good excuse to paint a cat. :-)

Quacksalver Acrylic painting on text collage on canvas, 6"x6"

Today’s A.Word.A.Day painting is Quacksalver, a variant of the more familiar quack. This particular duck doctor is administering a terrifyingly large leech to his very unhappy patient. His office wall bears a dubious diploma from the Institute of Hirudiculture, conferring a degree in leechery. Three troubling vocabulary words for the price of one!

Pointy Invasion Warning! Painting in Process, Acrylic on text on canvas

It just so happens that the painting I’m working on is full of pointy elements, so once again I feel like Illustration Friday is reading my mind with their latest prompt! It won’t be long before I’ll be able to post the entire painting, but for now here are some process shots, gathered from Instagram.

The Motion of Plants Acrylic painting on text collage on canvas, 6"x6"

I was planning to post this image for Illustration Friday’s prompt “Ruckus” because the word immediately made me think of Festus & Mercury: Ruckus in the Garden by Sven Nordqvist, one of our family’s favorite children’s books. If you’ve never encountered this book, please get hold of a copy immediately! It’s a quirky, hilarious tale of an old farmer & his mischievous cat & their mad adventures in gardening.

This painting, of course, is a different sort of ruckus, inspired by my well-established love for tendrils.

I didn’t finish quite in time to post for “Ruckus,” but luckily it sort of works for “Outside” too!

The text comes from this delightful old book, a flea market find:

Zymology Acrylic painting on text collage on canvas, 6"x6"

What could be better at the end of a long hard week in the lab than a nice refreshing craft beer? And hey, if you’re a zymologist, you can call it research!

Why a goat (aside from those elegant horns that conveniently help form the “Z”, that is)? Goats have a long association with beer– specifically bock beer– thanks to a regional German accent.

Quoth Wikipedia: The style known now as bock was a dark, malty, lightly hopped ale first brewed in the 14th century by German brewers in the Hanseatic town of Einbeck. The style from Einbeck was later adopted by Munich brewers in the 17th century and adapted to the new lager style of brewing. Due to their Bavarian accent, citizens of Munich pronounced “Einbeck” as “ein Bock” (“a billy goat”), and thus the beer became known as “bock”. To this day, as a visual pun, a goat often appears on bock labels.

That’s all the excuse I need. :-)

Meanwhile, back at the lab– Curious Art Lab, that is– I’ve brewed up some prints of this image for you!

Scandent Acrylic painting on text collage on canvas, 6"x6"

Gardening is one of my favorite activities, but inevitably there comes a time each year when I start to feel like this. It seems one minute I’m blithely puttering along, & the next, absolutely gobsmacked by the rampant growth of our North Carolina Summers. No matter how I try, I can’t keep up, so I just do what I can & hope for the best. Even a ramshackle, overgrown garden is better than no garden!

I read quite a lot of gardening books, but I don’t recall coming across this word before. The moment I saw it on Anu’s list I knew just what to paint! And “S” is such a wonderful letter– it’s graceful & decorative even in its simplest form, & very amenable to play & elaboration, whether calligraphic or illustrative.

If you’d like to see this painting & its print offshoots growing in their Etsy habitat, I welcome you to a garden tour! {Original SOLD}

Klatsch Acrylic painting on text collage on canvas, 6"x6"

My name is Leah & I’m a coffee addict. Maybe it’s too many tight deadlines, maybe it’s just weakness of character, but I sure do love the stuff. It’s probably bad for my anxiety & sleep issues… okay, definitely bad… but still, so delicious & uniquely fortifying! Around this time of year I follow the traditional coffee advent calendar: one cup on the first of the month, two on the second…

To add to its charms, coffee is conducive to conviviality. And it may be more than the caffeine that does the trick. Check out this intriguing study.

I was introduced to the “kaffee klatsch” in college, where there were regular gatherings in various departments for conversation & coffee (the coffee was abysmal but the conversations great). The word always made me think of “kitsch,” which no doubt influenced this image.

It was quite a challenge getting the “K” shape in there. I finally made it happen, more or less, with the four arms (or should I say wings?) connecting in the center.

For extra kitschy goodness, there’s a little snippet of lyrics from The Music Man hidden in there. Can you find it?

You are invited to join the party at my Etsy shop!

Leah Palmer Preiss ~ Curious Art

Art, Lettering, Oddments & Curiosities