TRICIA TOONE | Artist & Teacher

Creature Self-Portraits

6th graders are creating symbolic self-portraits. Students are using animals to symbolize their personality traits. Their sculptures are a combination of those animals' traits.

Armatures are constructed from newspaper, masking tape, paper mache, clay, and wire. They sculpted the basic form from newspaper and tape. The wire provides the support. Clay allows for fine detail. Students realized that they need to distribute the weight so that the creature can stand. Some hid beans and rocks within the newspaper and tape to balance the weight.

After the "skeletons" are built, students will create the "skin" with paper mache. Finally, they will be painted.

Here's a teaser. There will be more images of all the sculptures as they develop.

Olivia's sculpture is a combination of a Llama, gazelle, and bird.

A New Way to Learn Color Mixing?

This turtle was carved into Balsa Foam and painted in acrylic paint by an 8th grade student who happens to be color blind. Concerned about his ability to mix color, he asked his friend to describe what colors should go into mixing the colors for his turtle.

Beginning with the dark green on the right side of the turtle, his friend gave very precise instructions on how much green, orange, red goes into each stage of the gradation. He coached him through painting the entire turtle.

In some ways his description gave better color mixing results than the color mixing on his own project. Perhaps the act of having to describe the contents of the color caused him to look "deeper" into the color.

Kyle Progress

Here's another Kyle update. I'm really trying to loosen up a bit on this painting and have fun with color. I've done some more work on his face, although it's not quite where I want it to go, yet. Kyle has very fair skin with some rosy patches that I would love to accentuate. At this point, I think his skin is looking too dark.

I've gone through a couple different background colors, until I decided on this one. The first one was a white background with various shades of violet and ochre. I liked the color vibration that it created, but the end effect was too "pastel" for Kyle's personality. He is a strong and determined Taurus. I think the darker blue-green is much more fitting. I am also hoping the the color contrast will help bring out the red of his cheeks and lips as I lighten his skin tone.

Monster Eats Orchid

Check out this video of Rick's newest guitar design, Orchid, in action. Although I'm not a musician, I can certainly appreciate it for the piece of sculpture that it is. Monster clearly appreciates it for its playability. (Like all skilled artists, Monster makes it look so "easy" — now I almost want to learn bass).

By the way, Orchid was designed for Halie, a budding musician. Of course, the smaller design doesn't seem to slow Monster down the slightest.

Kyle...you're on my website!

So, I got a call from my 14 year old nephew a couple weeks ago. Had a great hour long conversation. He filled me in on the good and bad of high school, things he's been excited about and involved in, the girl-friend status, family drama, etc. It was great to have a conversation where I forgot I was talking to my nephew and instead I was just talking to a friend.

Then he says, "Aunt Tricia, I was checking out your website the other day and I couldn't help but notice that...I'm not on it."

I took that as a "subtle" hint.

I drove down to the shore to visit, get some sketches, photos, and a color study. He very patiently sat for me while he baby-sat his brothers and sisters. Somehow, we managed to get a pretty good drawing despite three year old Jeremy determined to get hold of my charcoal and Power Rangers blaring on the television. (I do recommend to anyone drawing from a live model...no matter how determined and focused the model, the TV is irresistible and they will turn their head every 5 seconds)

Anyway, here he is... a work in progress.

This is the charcoal drawing that has been inked in. Notice the faint remnants of a few failed drawings, especially the huge ghost head. For some reason, I naturally draw huge. (The canvas is 24" x 30") I have to really work hard to shrink my drawings down.

The underpainting.

In this image, I've began to rough in the background and build up the right side of the face.

To be continued...

The Story of Stuff

Whether or not you agree with the narrator's message, I think it's worth checking out the illustrations she uses to make her point. I think this is a great example of how complexity does not always make things better. Sometimes the simplest drawing can communicate a point profoundly.

Some of my favorite sketchbook sketches have been the simplest.

This one I sketched as I was going through a difficult time in college. Trying to get some perspective.

This I doodled as I was sitting at a hotel job one late Friday night wondering why I was spending my time there and not doing something more meaningful with my time.