A coloured pencil drawing of a lonely little Griffin. I’ve always enjoyed ‘storybook illustration’ or drawings with fantasy elements with them. I drew this picture to practice backgrounds also, as i don’t usually draw them and it’s something i need to improve on.
Toner, A (2013), ‘Safety’, coloured pencil and indian ink.
Another recent piece i did inspired by Marco Mazzoni. I absolutely adore how he leaves the eyes out of the faces of his figures and covers them with flora and fauna. I was experimenting with colours as well for this drawing and i am pleased with the outcome, but still not on the level i want to be. 🙂
Toner, A (2013), Bubble Syrup, coloured pencils.
‘Lonely Scarecrow’ is a coloured pencil and felt drawing i did when i was 13. This drawing did have a lot of meaning to me at the time, because i had just started High school and became very emotional and it reflected in my artwork.
I can see many flaws in this drawing now which if i could re draw it i would fix, but i like to also look on my past drawings and compare them to what i’m doing now. This picture was my first attempt at drawing an entire story on a page rather than just a character with no background or real meaning. I can remember how proud my dad was of me when he saw it finished. I can remember me drawing it too, i was staying with my Dad and was curled up on his couch and this poured out onto the page. I couldn’t believe that i had done this because it was something so out of my ordinary.
Toner, A (me), (2009), ‘Lonely Scarecrow’, pencil and marker pens.
My latest pencil drawing done with my trusty Fabercastell Polychromos. This idea came to me from looking at my owl collection in my room. Still inspired by Julia Sonmi Heglund, i created these two little characters in a simplified form of one of her many styles. I enjoyed playing with colours and working with a limited palette. I used burnt ochre, dark chrome yellow, magenta, light turquoise and walnut brown.
Drawn by Amanda Toner (me), ( 2013), ‘Barn Owl’, coloured pencil, indian ink and white out.
After starting my character design project based within our current course project for ‘Self Portrait,’ i’ve actually found outhow hard it is to describe myself. I started a little series of characters that reflected aspects of my personality, but after doing three of them, it’s hard for me to think of things that i am personality wise. So last night i doodled this up while jotting down ideas for my next few characters. This piece was inspired by Julia Sonmi Heglund.
Toner, A (2013) ‘Who’, indian ink and pencil
I’ve always written little poems down into various journals i’ve owned over the years. I’ve never really been serious about it, and it was more a way for me to vent rather than to create decent poetry. One of my inspirations for my poetry (and my art of course) was and is thee Mr. Tim Burton. I’ve already made a post about this incredible man, but this time i want to share one of his poems that i love, that belongs in a book of mine “The Melancholy death of Oyster Boy & other stories” Written and illustrated by Tim Burton.
The Girl who turned into a Bed.
‘It happened that day
she picked some strange pussy willow,
Her head swelled up white
and soft as a pillow.
Her skin, which had turned
all flaky and rotten,
was now replaced
with 100% cotton.
Through her organs and torso
she sprouted like wings,
a beautiful set
of mattress and springs.
It was so terribly strange
that I started to weep.
But at least after that
I had a nice place to sleep.”
Burton, T. (1997) ‘The Melancholy death of Oyster Boy & other stories’, New York, U.S.A, Harper Collins Publishers, Pg 59.
This is a piece i did late last year whilst being highly influenced by NZ artist, Misery. I also enjoyed working with water-colours at this time and would often sit on my couch at two in the morning, painting Misery style pictures. I still include aspects of her sweet characters into my work because i love the style and the simplicity of her concepts.
Painted by Amanda Toner (2012) ‘Watercolour Wonderland.’
Watercolour and indian ink.
I drew this up last night out of boredom. I was looking back at my ‘Thin Angel’ picture and felt like drawing another thin creepy girl, and this is what came out! I have fun drawing in this type of style, because it’s out of (what is now) my ordinary. Apologies for the bad edit job, i would give you my excuse but its a typical boring one. 🙂
Drawn with indian ink and coloured pencil.
Toner, A (2013) ‘Thin Royalty’
“Who am i,
Do i even know,
As each day goes by,
Do i continue to grow,
Do i change all the time
Or not even a bit,
Am i supposed to sit here
And just believe it?
Who am i as a person
What do i do,
Am i someone unique,
Who am i to you?
I feel lost sometimes,
Confused of myself
How many others out there
Have a cry for help?
Who am i,
I don’t think i know,
But right now thats okay,
In time it will show.”
– Amanda Toner
A little poem i just wrote concerning our project for ‘Self Portrait.’ It’s a difficult thing having to think about who you are, what you like and so on. On Monday we have to present a speech and slideshow about ourselves and i’m so stuck on what to do. I know i’m not the only one!
Character designs that reflect aspects of my personality.
No.3 : Caring.
After our last drawing class with Paula, i really enjoyed trying out Tim Burton’s style so i went home and played around with it again. For this character i focus on the personality trait: caring. I was stuck for ideas on what my personality is and how to apply it to character designs, so i asked some people to describe me in words. Someone gave me the word ‘caring.’ I feel like i am a caring person, especially when it comes to me taking care of animals. I take in sick, orphan, injured animals (that most often have been caught by the cat) and i try nurse them back to health. I care very much for all life and it is a passion of mine to take care of things that can’t take care of themselves.
Toner, A (2013)
amandajtoner 