Katerina was born in Greece and came to the USA with her family. Her art is soft and sweet, reflecting probably what is in her soul. She is not only a good artist; Katerina is a wonderful person, always taking time to encourage other artists to continue with their journey and having nice words for everybody.

How did you end up in the USA?

As a youngster with my parents and brother, when they moved from Greece to the U.S. in the late 70’s.

How long ago did you start drawing professionally?

4-5 years ago.

Your favorite medium seems to be graphite. Why is this?

Since I was little holding a pencil in my hand just came naturally to me. I love the control I have over it. Also, I don’t think there is any other art medium with the exception maybe of oil that can get a traditional artwork to look so real and lifelike. It’s amazing what a simple little tool like a graphite pencil can do. It’s so versatile; you can create so many different textures and soft shades of gray.
I love detailed work, and pencil is the number 1 art medium for details. It also helps that you don’t need an easel or any special equipment to create; you can do pencil work even on your knees. And the best part? No clean up or washing art tools afterwards!

Why do you choose monochromes?

I love the simplicity and beauty of it.

What is your technique in your colored pieces?

I like to use colored pencil with pastels, alone or with wet medium. For the last two years I have been using watercolor more frequently, painting backgrounds, laying light washes on portraits or figures, then going over details with colored pencils or watercolor pencils. To bring out highlights I use my white charcoal pencil, white gouache and sometimes white acrylic.

What tools do you use to transform traditional pieces into digital files? Do you think the digital file represents your original faithfully?

I don’t think any digital file can do justice to an original drawing or painting. Scanning alone can be very tricky sometimes, getting it to match original colors. The originals are always so much more beautifully vibrant and detailed in person, but we have to rely on digital resources to post and share our work, and for that I’m grateful.

I have Paint Shop Pro 8, a graphic software program that I scan my work through and prepare my files for the Internet. I also use the program for making prints, designing wallpapers and graphics for my website and designs for my art products.

How do you feel about digital art, and why you choose to stick to traditional media?

I think digital art is beautiful. I have many favorite digital artists who do amazing work, but digital art is not for me. I like working with art traditional media to bring my artwork to life. I like the feeling of holding traditional pencils and paint brushes in my hands, sketching and creating on paper or canvas, and getting messy sometimes.

What are ACEOs and why you make so many? Is there any advantage to them over other sizes?

ACEO stands for “Art Cards, Editions and Originals”. These cards have one main rule — they are 3.5 inches by 2.5 inches, the size of a trading card. Working so small can be faster, which is an advantage, but it can also be very tricky. You need control and a steady hand to draw or paint so small, it can also be eye-straining.

I love ACEO’s. I got into doing them a couple years ago, trading with other artists, and got addicted to them. I love the fact that i can draw or paint something that inspires me and I know it won’t take me forever to finish it. You can quickly build up a little ACEO gallery. They are very popular and highly collectible among ACEO collectors. I now sell original ACEOs on eBay, and ACEO limited art prints from my website. They are affordable and collectible.

How did you get in the business of portrait commissions?

I advertised on my website, galleries, etc.; accepting commission requests; also letting people know off-line. But I find online advertisement works the best for me; so many people from around the country and world can see your art, as opposed to a small number of people.

What do you think is your strength and weakness in art?

I think my strength is my pencil work/shading, capturing emotions and expressions in portrait work, my patience… once I understand how an art medium behaves/works, I tend to learn fast. My weakness would be perspective and backgrounds. I would love to improve on adding more difficult backgrounds in my artwork.

The eternal debate: finger smudging, yes or no?

LOL… I know it’s not recommended, but I do smudge/blend with my fingers now and then. But i always make sure my fingers are clean.

Do you have a favorite piece? Which one?

This is so difficult for me to answer. Favorite pieces tend to change because I do new art all the time and with new artworks come new favorites. I like fans of my work to pick favorites.

How does your family feel about you being an artist?

They love my art; especially my mom. She’s my number 1 fan.

How does your religious life influence your art?

It influences it in a very positive way I think the sensitivity, softness people often comment in my artwork definitely comes from my faith. My religious artworks are very special to me.

Where can the readers buy your art?

My website where I sell my originals and prints. Other online outlets where I list my art for sale are: ebay, etsy and zazzle

What Others Say

Katarina’s work is just great. There’s something very magical about her creations. Every work she does evokes emotion, and that’s what every artist is shooting for. ~Brian Duey

Katerina is easily one of the nicest, most caring people I know. When I first met her, what struck me most was not only her passion for art and her dedication to it, but also her sincerity and helpfulness towards other artists and the fans of her art. She’s a talented portraitist who has a knack for capturing unique emotion and setting in her pieces. Her art has a unique touch of innocence and candor to it that you just don’t find too often nowadays. I’m very glad to call Katerina my friend and colleague. – Maria William

Kat is just one of those persons you wish the world had more of. Kind, caring, and an all around amazing character! I love her and am happy that I met her! – Ida walker

All art in this article is copyrighted to Katerina Koukiotis

This is a cute sweet snack that is super easy and cheap to make and it really looks lovely.

For abour 12 large ghosts you will need:

3 egg whites

3/4 cups sugar

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Preparation:

Set the oven to 200 F (150 C). Separate the egg whites from the yolks and beat them adding the sugar gradually. Add the vanilla extract and finishe beating until the whites are stiff and make peaks when you lift the beaters.

Cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Prepare the ghosts by dropping two spoons of egg whites one on top of the other. Make sure that they don’t spread a lot, but let random shapes form. This will make each ghost unique and add personality to your snacks.

Place them in the oven and bake for 90 minutes. After they are done, turn off the oven, and crack open the door of the oven so they keep drying. Paint eyes and mouth with food coloring or get creative with decorative things you have in your pantry.

Well, let me know if you try these. They are super cute and yummy!

Rita Ria, as she chooses to be known on line, is an artist born in Germany. She works mainly in pastels doing fantasy portraits which she infuses with life, especially the eyes. But her main asset is her unconditional kindness and support to fellow artists. Hit by hard times, she has kept a positive outlook and has always had kind words for those in distress.

Rita, when did you start drawing?

I just can’t remember… I always had a pencil / crayon in my hands. I didn’t draw all the time — but often.

Why do you choose to do a medium perceived as “difficult” as pastels to work?

Actually I started with a pencil, but soon I wanted color. So I bought some colored pencils. I still had the feeling, that I miss something, so I bought some watercolors. Then I found the book “Painting animals that touch the heart” from Lesley Harrison. IMMEDIATELY I had to buy pastels, tried different kind of paper and stick now to velour paper. I love it.

One big advantage of pastels is that I always can immediately stop and start later again. This is very important for me, as I most time draw during daytime, when I have a little free time at the office (my husband owns it). But when there is a phone call or I need to type something, then office work always has first priority.

When I was in a museum and looked at original old oil paintings, there was another painting, which had no cracks and I asked why. They told me, this is as old as the oil paintings, but it is a pastel painting. It still looked like it was fresh done!

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres by Rita Ria

When did you start doing digital art? Why did you give it a try?

I am a curious person. I wanted to know if I could do something nice digitally and I always thought this “UNDO” button was something most wonderful, as pastels are not very forgiving when doing something wrong. And as I had Photoshop installed at my computer, I just needed to start and give it a try.

What is your preferred method, traditional or digital; and why?

First I need an idea. When I like this, I search for good reference, do the outline (most important with pastels, as I mentioned, it is not forgivable) and then color it. Digitally I still try: I do outlines, I try to block in colors, I do a speed paint and then refine it, I think I still haven’t found yet my best method for this.

You do portrait art with a twist. Why do you choose fantasy portrait over just copying the photo?

I just think it is more interesting. An artist did once a portrait of me and I was so very delighted, that I was changed into something mythical there, that I decided I would love to do the same. And I try to add the person’s character or love into that fantasy portrait. For example I know a man who just loves insects, so I added HUGE insects crawling on him: I had the idea, that he is some kind of druid and the kings/queens of insects visit him to show their respect.

Pierres Leadership Convention by Rita Ria

Most of your portraits involve fellow artists. Why do you choose this?

I “know” the artists — be it virtual or in real life. Therefore I like to portrait them; and because the artists usually like the twisted/fantasy idea in the portrait.
“Normal” people like “normal” portraits they often find it strange to be portrayed as a wizard/queen or something…

What is the process you use, from when you select the artist that you want to portray till completion of the portrait?

First of course I ask for some high resolution photos. I most time ask for more then one photo, to get a “feeling” for the appearance of this person. And I always ask them if they like the photos, because if they don’t like the photo, they usually don’t like the artwork. Then I ask them what is their favorite color, flower, animal or fairytale, to get an idea into what I could change them. Sometimes, not too often, I see a photo and know at once WHAT the person is and then I only ask if my idea is fine for them.

Then searching for reference, like in my example for insects, then I do a sketch — when I like this, I start with the outline on my paper and color it.

Lurking Titania by Rita Ria

I would say your biggest asset is how much life you give to eyes in your artwork. How do you achieve this?

Maybe because I always start with the eyes when I draw a portrait. When I don’t like how the eyes turn out, I stop and start new. I think the eyes are the soul of a person. When the lips or nose are not perfect this is not so very important for me, but the eyes must be perfect.

Any tip for pastel artists out there?

When you like to paint on velour (which is completely different then on other paper) I highly recommend the book from Lesley Harrison.

And what makes it also much easier: use pastel pencils! Gives you a lot more control for the details (like eyes ). And of course: NEVER GIVE UP when the first results are not as you wanted them. You should see my first drawings.

There are a few humorous pieces that I just love, like the phoenix baby. How was that idea originated?

I saw that free stock photo of that little bird and it just SCREAMED to me, please draw me! I finished the bird and was not sure what kind of background I want for it. I wanted a fire red background, but was not sure about it. When I chatted with another artist, I asked for his ideas. We had a nice brain storming and together we found this idea. That red reminded us to fire and very soon we knew this is a phoenix bird. Sometimes it just helps to listen to other ideas, even when you don’t agree, you know what you don’t want, which also helps.

Queen of Sheba by Rita Ria

Any favourite piece?

Many. For example, I like my “Queen of Sheba” because she got so much expression. Or my “Tutanchamun 2005″.

But I also like my digital work, because usually I was bolder because I always knew I could change it anytime without ruining it.

Could you please tell us about your family project? How was it conceived? What challenges and advantages you find about working with your family?

The family Struchholz is doing books.

My husband writes it, my daughter is painting pictures of the story, I do the capital letters (for example, as trees) and some ornaments and my youngest daughter gives us support and ideas.

The first book is printed in German and already translated into English, but not yet printed.

The story for the second book is finished, almost all paintings done (except a few), the translation is running and I am working at the last letters and ornaments. We had planned to have it printed till fall, but we are not sure, if this is possible. The second book is a lot bigger then the first one, and the story is more exciting and has more adventure.

How it happened:

It’s often the many small details that lead by chance to something greater. That’s exactly how it was with our book project. First, there was an article in the FAZ (A German newspaper) about the 300-year-extinct bird with the title “Dronten oder Dodos” (Dodos or Dodos). Upon reading the description of the birds, Veronika our daughter let out a sympathizing cry, “I’m a dodo!” Afterwards, she continued doodled funny humanized dodo sketches on paper. Shortly before Christmas 2007, these sketches prompted my husband to think up a short story to go with them as a special gift for our second daughter Regina . Out of just a few pages and a pair of quick sketches a manuscript emerged. After the whole family had enjoyed the story, we decided to make the effort and take the risk of releasing it to a wider public full of imagination and humour. Our motto was: A long, long time ago, it could have been the case that dodos really were clever birds…! ]

(Something you should probably know: The dodo (Raphus cucullatus, “hooded night bird”) was an approximately 3 feet tall, flightless bird which lived exclusively on the islands of Mauritius and R´eunion in the Indian Ocean . The dodo lived off of fermented fruits and nested on the ground. It appears on the coat of arms of Mauritius . Unfortu­nately, due to human stupidity and imported predators, it died out at the end of the 17th century.)

Challenges and advantages working with family:

Of course it is easy to change things or ideas just as we work on it.

It’s a huge advantage that my husband can order just another painting or want a painting changed. The whole family can bring in ideas. And we have no real deadline. It is all up to us, when we will publish the book.

It is a challenge, because my husband and I have a fulltime job and our daughter Veronika who’s doing all the paintings started her exams at the academic high school. That means, she also is very busy with learning, homework and preparing for school.

Whenever I have a little free time in office, I work at the Capital letters for the book or make little paintings digitally, which will be printed in the book as some ornaments.

And of course, when we can’t sell the books, we have no money left for our daily bread – LOL – no, but it’s all our risk and we lose a lot of money when we can’t make it successful.

You get an idea about it when you read a little excerpt and see some paintings from the first book here: www.struchholzkunstgbr.de

Maned Wolf by Rita Ria

Lately you have been doing quite a bit of photography, and I must say that you are a great nature photographer. What brought you to start doing this?

Lately I had so much work at the office, that I didn’t find time to do any artwork and I had in family death and illness, which gave me some kind of art block. I couldn’t d any artwork, but missed it. And last year I got this wonderful digital camera. So I took it and “painted” with the camera instead with my pastels.

How do you deal with the hard times? Do they affect your creativity or willingness to do art?

Yes it does. Never thought it would do.

Especially in the last year, when my nephew died by accident at age 18 and several members of the family got some serious illness, I couldn’t be creative.

I have some great ideas what I would like to paint next, but I don’t know when I start.

Are you open for commissions? Where can we contact you?

Of course, I always feel happy, when somebody loves my art that much, that they order something may it a book cover or a portrait.
Contact me at my website: www.struchholz.org
or visit/note me via www.rita-ria.deviantart.com
or just write an email: elfeura(at)web(dot)de

Rita by Katerina Koukiotis
Rita is one of my favorite pastel artist and a good friend

I love her pastel portraits, through her work you can see all the dedication and devotion she puts in her work,i love the fact she’s not afraid to try new and different things with her art ether be her traditional art , her digital or photography, she always tries something new and challenging.

Not only is she an amazing artist but a very humble person who always is there supporting her fellow artists, Rita is one of the few artists i know that takes time to post a comment or offer support to fellow artists galleries.

I had the pleasure doing a portrait of Rita a few years ago , she also makes a good model and vice versa she did a beautiful pastel portrait of me which i have hanging in my house every time i see it I’m reminded of her beautiful work

Jenny Dolfen
Rita is probably the most tireless commenter on the entire internet! She knows everyone, everyone knows her, and she has such a friendly way about her that, just by knowing her, you’re led to put off losing your faith in the goodness of mankind.

James McPartlin
I’ve known Rita both as an amazing artist and a friend for quite a few years now, and she is one of the loveliest people you could ever wish to know, as well as being a gorgeous and talented lady she also has the sweetest nature imaginable!
Her superb pastel creations range from intricate still life and nature studies to beautifully realistic portrait compositions often with a fantasy or historical twist, her incredible accuracy with likeness is plainly evident in the many celebrity portraits that she displays amongst her artworks!

Ha it doesn’t end there with her though, as well as her pastels she also creates wonderful digital paintings that push the boundaries of her skills to even greater heights! … she can even turn her hand to artistic photography as shown by her many beautiful floral and wildlife photographic compositions.

Another wonderful side to this lovely Lady is here never ending support and encouragement to all the artists and people she comes into contact with…you can almost feel the kindness and positive vibes that radiate from her words!

A remarkable Woman, a remarkable Artist

I always feel that I have so many blessings that I should be doing something to help those that have been hit with bad times. October is the breast cancer awareness month, and I have been trying to do some art about it for the last 3

Venus Amazona (c) Constanza Ehrenhaus 2009

years. However, due to poor planning, not remembering on time and lack of time, I am never able to do that. This year I remembered early enough and I started drawing in late August. I thought I was going to be done well in advance, but the truth is that I have been so overloaded with work that I could only work on my Venus on and off during short periods of time about one day a week, if at all. So I just finished her (Click on her to see the full size image)! And I am rather happy with her, she is not perfect, but I wanted to keep a lot of the anatomy errors of the original Venus, and she still looks elegant and graceful.

I recently read a very sad and bitter comment from a woman who had survived breast cancer and had a mastectomy. She was absolutely enraged about this Barbie doll that was beautiful and honoring breast cancer survivors. Her point was that the doll was beautiful and had her breasts and she did not, and did not feel beautiful.

This is my tribute to all those women that have gone through mastectomy. I chose Venus by Botticelli as my muse, since she is a representation of ideal beauty. Even having gone through a mastectomy, a woman is still a woman, and she can be beautiful. Beauty is more than breasts, she can still be elegant and graceful, still womanly and gorgeous. It is in each of us the choice of feeling pretty regardless of having lost a breast. Do not give up feeling like a woman, being a woman!

This illustration is available as a print, and all the profits will be donated to foundations that fight breast cancer. Besides, the digital file has been donated to the Susan Komen Foundation for them to use as they see fit.

I am in the process of planning a wedding and part of that process is the election of cards to send as announcements,

The announcement cards we got from Luna Grove!!

invitations, etc. As the artist I am I first thought of designing them myself, why not? But then I realized that illustrator and graphic designer are two very different things, that at the end making custom cards can be as expensive or more than ordering them made, and that when you are working two jobs and hitting 13 hours a day you have little time left to play with designs.

Having several artist friends that married not that long ago I just went to twitter and asked where did people buy stationary for weddings. And Mary Layton, also known as Rhiamon in the art community, passed me the information that she actually has a store which sells social stationery! What a joy!!! My husband and I are very much of the opinion that we would rather to buy from a friend than from an unknown person and we headed for her online store: Luna Grove. I was absolutely taken aback by the huge diversity of cards. There is something for every taste and budget, and the quality is very good! So I found a variety of cards that I liked and then we just had to match tastes with the husband

So… I have a Ph.D. in biology, right? You would think that the fact that I am a scientist and all that jazz makes me rather smart… well, I confess that when it comes down to wedding girly stuff I am a complete bimbo. I am ashamed of the lack of capacity that my brain has to solve the most simple problems… and Mary has been amazing! She has answered every single cry for help that I had about the most silly things like “O_o What type(s) of card do I actually have to buy? There are so many of them!!!”, and every time, very patiently she has explained things to me while making me not feel like a silly person. Thank you, Mary!! You can see the cards we got to the left, they are very pretty, and when you see them in person they are even more beautiful!

So, if you are planning to get some stationary for your social event, go over to Luna Grove! Check their stuff out and see if there is something you like, Mary will make the experience very pleasurable!

But Mary is also a traditional artist, and her art is absolutely beautiful and elegant, it can be found in Blue Moon Atelier. It is a mix of art nouveau, celtic and classic styles and the combination is amazing. I am the proud owner of a print of the Nouveau Belly Dancer that you can see

(c) Mary Layton

to the left And I love to see it every day. I got it in an auction to help a non for profit and Mary, very generously, donated all the profits of the purchase.

Unlike many of my fantasy artist fellows (myself included) Mary’s range of themes is very wide and she also does floral art and landscapes, and she sells a huge variety of products through her webpage and several stores. If you want prints, bookmarks, jewelry, journals, perfumes, or if you are into tubes, Mary has it!

Besides that, her art has evolved terribly through the years. You see, she always had a very nice sense of elegance, but her technical skill has improved very much, and her late art is absolutely stunning!

So, if you know Mary, pass by her site and say hi to her. And if you did not know her, what are you waiting for? Go see her wonderful, elegant art! You will not be disappointed!

I suck at time management. The semester started and I am now working two part time jobs in two different universities. As you very well know, two part time jobs are much more time than one full time job… and less benefits, of course. So I spend most of my time grading, preparing material, attending faculty meetings, teaching, and holding office hours.

Besides that I kind of take care of the house… I am rather embarrassed to say that hubby is doing most of the housework except the kitchen and cooking, which are still my domain. Also, I am wedding planning, which is a lot of long hours of not much to finally get one thing done, and I have to exercise as part of my migraine management program. I am at a point in my life where I cannot afford not to exercise anymore. And then the extras: keep in touch with family, care for the cats, read a book to relax, bond with hubby, and perform my Make a Wish tasks. Which are not things that I can put aside and ignore, they need to be done.

The resultant is that my art suffers. I really miss sitting for hours during the summer to just draw; now there is so much to do! And I am hardly managing to have the strength in me to sit down and draw when I have some extra time. I find that after 3 weeks of intensive work, with not one day off, it took me about 2 days to recover and sit down with my tablet again. Thank God it’s Thursday! I do have the time today, and I am not as overwhelmed as a few days ago, so I plan to jump on my tablet after doing some of my teaching tasks.

But I have noticed how much I do suck at time management. I really cannot fit one hour a day to draw, when I know I should be able to. If any of you can offer some ideas, I will be happy to listen!

Karyn Lewis is a multifaceted artist that juggles being a mother with making T-shirts, postcards, abstract art, concept art, running a few blogs and providing fellow artists with invaluable help. Her sense of composition, colors and values provide her artwork with excellent quality. Let me introduce you to this wonderful woman

What is your education background?

I have a Bachelor of Fine Arts, Drawing, from Colorado State University, with a minor in acting and directing. I also studied creative writing I school.

What do you feel that you gained from going to school to study art instead of being self-taught?

You don’t have to go to college to be a great artist, but I do recommend it. What you get from a college education is formal training in art technique, theory and art history from people who *mostly* know what they’re talking about. They provide you structured lessons and feedback. But the most important thing that an art school provides to budding artists is a network and culture of art.

Working in group of other artists, being able to watch them paint or draw or sculpt, being able to talk about your work with your peers or instructors is all invaluable stuff. Now with internet forums, chat and IM’s, it’s a bit easier to duplicate that camaraderie of sharing, but it’s still better to do it one on one, face to face, art to art.

If you hate the idea of college, or you can’t go back, books, online tutorials, galleries and communities are great to help you develop your skills, but I’d also recommend joining a local art or regional art group, perhaps through your local museum. Many regional art groups will do live drawing or other group activities and classes. And that’s a great way for artists of all skill levels to practice and mingle with other artists. It’s also a great way to network with local artists, which will help your career. Even though I’m long out of college, I make it a point to take outside lessons when I can afford it and have time, just to keep my skills up and to have fresh perspective on my art from others.

You have a multiplicity of styles, from design, to abstract, to realism, among others. Is there a reason for you to explore all that diversity of styles?

(c) Karyn Lewis

There’s no one reason… If you look at my college studies from the first question, you might notice a trend. I pretty much love anything to do with the creative arts. And I’m really curious. I love to “know” stuff. Part of that learning process is doing. For example, when I was in college, I had a professor who touted abstract painting. That’s all he taught, and all he wanted us to do. He was stuck in the 60s, man. LOL. At that time, I pooh-poohed abstract art. I thought it was all a gimmick, you know, something that people with no artistic talent did, slapped a fancy artist statement on it, and were able to hoodwink the snobby New York Gallery scene. But when I actually sat down and tried it, I realized that it was just as hard to pull off successfully as realistic or naturalistic paintings were to do. Sometimes even harder! And all the same rules of color, composition, etc., applied to abstracts. So much for my early theories that abstract art was easy!

Is there any style that you enjoy more than the others?

It honestly depends on the day. Some days I’m in an ‘abstract’ mood. Or a ‘graphic’ one. Or I want to paint realistically. On those days, that’s the style I like best. Whatever the muse dictates, that’s what I’m into at the moment.

Is there any style that you would like to develop more?

All of them! That might sound like a cop out, but I feel like I have so much to learn in every style of art. I used to take private pottery lessons. I would love to get back on a wheel and throw some pots. But I don’t have the budget or the teacher to do that right now.

I am trying to refocus my portfolio toward children’s art, and I hope to aggressively pursue this in 2010.

(c) Karyn Lewis

Thanks! I am my own worst critic, and I think that my realistic work isn’t up to snuff, and so I am usually frustrated by it and put it away, or scrap it and go on to something else. This hyper-critical perfectionist side of my art and writing has been known to get in the way a lot. It’s actually something I’ve been working on – learning how to quiet the internal critic.

How do you feel your style has evolved in the last years?

I think it’s hard for me to call that one. I do think that the more I’ve mastered my art programs, like Photoshop CS3, for example, the more diverse art I’m able to do. I’ve been recently obsessed with textures and vectors. No matter what style I work in, I have a very tight controlled, graphic feel, and I am always rebelling against that. Recently I’ve been embracing it, and I think it shows.

I love your flower series, how do you achieve that look? Can you share your technique?

(c) Karyn Lewis

Each flower in the floral series starts out as a snapshot that I’ve either taken, or which has been donated by friends/family. They are basically photo-manipulations, since I use the photograph as a base for the finished art.

Basically, I take the photo into Photoshop CS3, enlarge it, and then on a new layer, I create an ‘ink drawing’ of the photo by drawing right over the flowers. I’m tracing the contours because I want to keep the shape of the plant as close to the photo as possible, but I’m trying to be liberal in my lines, and what elements of the flower anatomy that I want to highlight. I also try to keep it fairly fast and loose, so it looks hand drawn, which it is! It want it to have a pop-art, urban vibe, rather than organic which is why I trace the photo. I want the structure of the drawing to feel like the photo I’m working from.

Once I have the drawing done, I transform the colors of the original photo using photoshop’s curves and other image adjusting tools. I custom build half tone screens and add textures using different grunge brushes. The background is treated very abstract, and in many ways these flowers are closer to abstract work than realism because I am concentrating on the way color and texture interact in unusual ways. Many, many false starts, layers, adjustments and tweaks go into these until I find something that I feel is harmonious, but stylized, and I spend several hours on tiny adjustments.

How did Billy’s arrival affect your art career?

He’s just turned two at the time of this interview, and I can say that right now, I’m finding it challenging to be a stay at home mom and meet all his demands. LOL. Now that it’s spring, he wants to be outside and away from my PC, which makes it hard to work! Also, I have chores and family time obligations which further cut down on my actual work hours. I think this is something that most art moms, or stay at home moms, run into when they try to juggle mommy time and career time.

If Billy has affected something in your life, it is certainly not your entrepreneurial facet. How many projects do you have going on?

LOL. I don’t even know. Honestly, I try to get as much online exposure for my art as I can, which means participating in online art communities, galleries and forums as well as taking advantage of the myriad companies online that can help artists sell their work.

(c) Karyn Lewis

Can you tell us about “Koncepts by Karyn”?

Koncepts by Karyn was one of the first online stores I set up to try and showcase my work. I originally wanted to sell greeting cards and art prints, but as you know, I can’t just settle for one thing. I saw that selling t-shirts could be fun and profitable, and I just kept creating design after design. Now you can buy my work in several different online stores in several different themes, from holidays to weddings, kids stuff and more.

How did “Moms that make stuff” come to life?

http://MomsThatMakeStuff.com happened because I was spending a lot of time reading journals on DeviantArt by people still in their twenties who were living the art life, cranking out work, basically, what I had done in my 20s before I had a family. There were many people who took for granted what a gift they had, how incredibly lucky they were to be able to work on their art as hard as they wanted or whenever they wanted. I was a jealous, and I felt left out and like I was getting farther and farther behind artists in their 20s because I just didn’t have the time (or energy) to work that I used to. Until you have kids, you never truly appreciate the conflict they can put on your “me” time. You think about having kids, and you know it will be hard work, but you truly don’t understand just how much work (and joy!) they are until you have them.

I know art dads have a lot of demands on them as well, but I still think in many cases, moms really bear the brunt of child-rearing, at least in the early years. I wanted to create a support network of other women going through the same things.

(c) Karyn Lewis

Has the current economy affected your business?

Sadly, yes. Sales are down, and although they’ve risen slightly, people still aren’t spending money like they used to. Hopefully things will pick back up in 2010!

Are you planning to exhibit in a brick and mortar art gallery?

I am trying to focus on getting art up at local venues here in my neck of the woods. I’m supposed to have a few pieces up at a local gallery in July, and I’ve started joining and showing my art in local art groups in my region. This is something that I intend to broaden in the next year.

What about writing? You take part in Nanowrimo each year, what are you working on?

Currently I’m working on a Regency romance novel and a YA science fiction story. I love writing! I’ve wanted to be a writer as long as I’ve wanted to be an artist. I started writing my first novel about the American Revolution in the fourth grade. Sadly, I never got past that first chapter. LOL.

What happened to your cats’ comic? It was a lot of fun!

Like so many of my projects, my cat webcomic, Kitty Wars, isn’t dead, just on hiatus until I have more time to dedicate to it.

Where can the readers buy your art?

The best place to start is my web site, http://karynlewis.com. There you can find links to many of my online stores.

Karyn by Cris Griffin

Karyn is one of the nicest, most savvy people I know.  She has a great eye, a lovely sense of color and light, but foremost, her design skills are a great source of jealousy for me!  She’s a multi-talented artist who not only creates visual wonders, but literary and dramatic as well.  A true Renaissance woman!

Karyn by Jenny Dolfen

Karyn is an artist with an amazing scope of skills and styles – made even more amazing by the fact that the has a young son, and everyone who manages to elude the Child Swamp to still produce artwork on a regular (!) basis deserves the utmost degree of respect!

Karyn by Lou Poulson
I was first in contact with Karyn through the Deviant Art website.  I have found Karyn to be a great inspiration both creatively and professionally.  Being fairly new to my industry I have welcomed Karyn’s words of experience and have followed her own work with great admiration and interest.  When Karyn invited me to be a part of her new website I jumped at the opportunity.  I wasn’t sure if it would be possible to work alongside the demands of a family but I have managed and Karyn has been a big part in giving me the confidence to give it a go.

Karyn by Katherine Wadey

Karyn Lewis is, a very talented artist, who is also a very caring and sharing person. She handles a range of painting and graphic techniques beautifully. Best of all, she can share her knowledge in ways that help other artists learn and grow. I am delighted to call her my friend.

So Roll Drums!!!!

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The print giveaway is over and I am drawing the winners as I type.

The first one is Jina (Pooky) who asked for Gallantry!

The second, chosen by Sebastian (my cat) goes for InpuUpUaut! who wanted Oriental Dragon or dancing with the Stars…. and the fact that Sebastian chose him cannot be just a coincidence!

And Briar chose the 3rd prize, that goes to Erika Harm!! who did not choose any print. So Erika, if you are reading me, please let me know what you want

For Eden, Prophet of the Bubbles, or Bleeding Hearts, or Creide.

And last but not least, IQXS! who wanted Oriental Dragon or Creide.

To all of you thank you for playing! And please, contact me giving me an address to where I can ship.

So… I have some prints that need a good home to go to. Answer to this post with your choice of print, and I will draw names on Saturday 22nd, and give away 5 prints. Please, make sure that you also give me a way to contact you, and add a second choice in case your first choice of print is gone.

You can choose from:

Freyja Awakening, Creide, Oriental Dragon, Sebastian d’Orage, Prophet of the Bubbles, Holy Cow!, Gallantry, Dancing with the Stars or Bleeding Hearts

So what about salads? How can you pimp your salad when you have only lettuce left? Well, an easy way of doing it is with a great dressing.

I never buy dressings, I dread the high fructose corn syrup and sugar that everything has here…. but let’s not get into that right now. I prepare my own. Often times it happens that I only have left lettuce or spring mix for a salad, everything else having been eaten, so I add a vinaigrette that I prepare and leave in the fridge for moments like that, and everything is good!

Emergency Vinaigrette:

Olive oil (3 parts)

Red Wine Vinegar  (1 part)

garlic cloves (2)

salt, pepper, pepper corns, coriander, oregano, rosemary, and any herb you like.

I add salt to the bottom of the flask where I’ll prepare my vinaigrette, then add 1 part of vinegar and dissolve the salt. Then add the oil, garlic cloves in halves, cracked peppercorns, coriander and herbs. Mix everything vigorously and keep in the fridge for at least one week before using it. Before dressing your salad, mix the vinaigrette, so it forms something similar to an emulsion before you spear it over the salad.

Fresh Herbs Vinaigrette:

Olive oil (3 parts)

Vinegar  (1 part)

Fresh herbs: marjoram, lemon thyme. (or anything of similar taste)

Coarse salt.

Wash the herbs and separate the leaves from the sprigs, then place them in the bottom of the bowl in which you will prepare your vinaigrette. Add the coarse salt and with a mortar (it can be a spoon too) push the salt into the leaves so they get bruised. Then add the vinegar, mix, and add the oil. Mix vigorously. This goes really well with spring mix.

I hope you try this easy recipes. They always get me out of trouble when the fridge is starting to look empty!

And you know, if you try, let me know what you think!

**stock image provided by http://thestalker.deviantart.com**