2016 Recap

Happy New Year! 

Before we pop the champagne fancy beer, here's a look at what 2016 looked like, here in the treehouse:

JANUARY

started as all Januarys begin:  with biscuits.

Max and I spent the rest of the month chained to our drawing tables, working on Galaxy Hero #1. 

FEBRUARY's

 beginning was also traditional, because Feb 1 is Hourly Comic Day.  

This year's HCD panels were mostly about how Max and I were working on Galaxy Hero #1. 

We made chili for the Superbowl, and worked on the comic.

Dave (the writer) brought us Paczkis on the 9th, and we worked on the comic.

Valentine's Day was spent with a ton of order-in sushi, and we worked on the comic.

And then, on Feb 18, it was done and delivered.  It was the most fun.
(I'm so glad we're doing this again.)

On February 26 I walked into and out of the Hancock building for the very last time, as part of a commute anyway.

And that moment has really been a strong underlying theme for the rest of 2016.  A quiet mantra of "not going back not going back not going back".  

I was so grateful to have had the opportunity to work at FCB Chicago, with the wonderful people that I got to know there.  I learned so much, about so many different things, I can't really express it simply here.

And I am still grateful that I was able to work hard enough and be supported by Max and my family and friends.  

I saved and planned and worked for four years to have that beautiful moment: 

"I quit, I'm not doing the 9-5 anymore, I'm a full-time self-employed artist."

MARCH!
Galaxy Hero #1 arrived.

And then it was released, and we partied our butts off.

I painted Delirium from the Sandman series, for YAY! Legends Every Day.

And then the Main Event - C2E2.  Me, Max, & Dave spent a weekend up to our eyeballs in Galaxy Hero - the comic and the beer.

Beer & Art Panel!

Twitchin'! 

Kickin' butt.

Working with Revolution is a strange dream come true, and we got to spend a whole ton of time with our friend Aimee


APRIL

was spent workin'.  Max and I did three small pop-up markets around town.  I spent some time sewing new creatures for the markets as well as experimenting with new ideas for my Etsy shop.  I did this fun octopus necklace commission.

I made a small mini-comic for Easy Press, for Free Comic Book Day.

And I spent some serious time figure drawing and doing portrait studies.

MAY
was back to more comic pages.

I helped finish issue #2 of Mystery Afoot.  In another whirlwind finish, Max screen-printed all the covers in our dining room.

We took this fancy, limited edition version to TCAF!  

The Toronto Comics Arts Festival was a blast.  We attended a day of panels and learned a ton.  The show went well and we met fun new people.  There was a dance party.  It was a great road trip.

The rest of May was more quiet work.  I painted "Bite".

JUNE

was spent painting and drawing and exploring what to do next with soft sculpture.  

I started my new Patreon Plush series.

And I also started slowly working out what would eventually be Dandelion Wine.

And I painted a little, and finished "The Beginning"

JULY
was more quiet work.  We hosted some Drink & Draws, did a pop-up market or two, and sketched and sewed.  

Good long summer days.

AUGUST
was when most of my painting for the year got done, I suppose.  I participated as much as I could in "Artist Appreciation Month" by painting a different current female artist every morning.  I think I got about 15 of these done.

This one is of Valency Genis, a marvelous sculptor.

Max and I did the first Drink & Draw panel at Galerie F and I had a blast painting Hatchet Face and Danny Trejo.

And then I spent a strange and productive and beer-fueled week as the Resident Artist at Fulton Market Kitchen, as part of their FMK5x5 Series

During which I knocked a lot of work out on "Brewing" and "It Must Be Love"

Also in August - the release of the Woot Berries!  This was a special series I did for Woot Bear Store & Gallery in San Francisco.  

And then I also painted "I Feel Fine", for the (Space Trip) Art Show in Brooklyn.

SEPTEMBER

was spent nose-down working, mixed with a couple pop-up markets and some drink & draw events.  Stocking up for the Holiday season with plush, stitching together special Patreon Plush creatures, and working as much as I could on Dandelion Wine.  

Max and I also spent a day with the Chicago Creative Collaborators group, painting in the park for their art-wall jam.

OCTOBER

was spent working on Dandelion Wine and keeping the shops stocked with plush for holiday shoppers.  

And a fun weekend as a featured artist for the Andersonville Arts Weekend.

Mixed in with a fun road trip with friends for a family wedding, a pretty great Halloween party, and Halloween night at a Baroness concert. 

NOVEMBER

we hosted a great drink & draw, sponsored by the new Fantastic Beasts movie.  

I sewed a lot of stuff.  

But mostly, November was all about Nashville.

I went to the Fantastic Workshop.  

it was ok.

And the day after I got back, it was right back to the Beer & Comics world, as we've been cranking along on Galaxy Hero #2.

And, I created "Flower of the Moon" for the Unicorn Show in Brooklyn.

DECEMBER

And here were are! After months of work, Dandelion Wine opened on December 9.

Also opening that night was "Night Fall", by Lana Crooks & Andrew Bell.  It was a great party. 

I had so much fun spending the last few months creating all these wee beasts.  It was wonderful to finally see them all together, and to be finished.

The next night we headed down to Bridgeport, where I had paintings up in the show 

"Dual Personalities".

Since then, things have been restful.  

I'm working on the next Patreon Plush.  There was a lot of baking of holiday gifts.  

A few naps here and there.

I spent a long time looking at my first year as a self-employed artist, and what I learned.  

And made plans for what I can do next year.

Next year there's going to be more painting and drawing.  Stitched work will be more focused, and through my Patreon account I'm going to start putting together my first pattern book.

Max and I are going to do more comic books, and get out into our Chicago community more.

People are saying that 2016 has been difficult, but I believe that this next year is going to be the most challenging.  

So, here's to a Happy New Year:

Work hard, and be nice.

Do what's right.

Make good art.

Cheers!

Dandelion Wine

Early this year, I started a large group of new monsters. 

This project changed all of my work for 2016.  In order to create the new creatures I wanted, I needed all new colors to work with.  

Each monster is unique.  There are twenty individual creatures, with a different pattern cut and stitched all by hand.  

Fun with new techniques - like these wired leaves.  They take ~forever~ to create, but I love the effect so much.  These dandelion leaves became a big part of the collection.

For the last few months I've been sharing the process and progress with my Patreon supporters.  There was a lot of organization and planning, and some changes to the list of which beasts were included and which were cut.  This purple fellow was cut, but he'll be back later.  

Even towards the end of the year, with the deadline for the show looming, each creature was slowly and painstakingly put together.
Each creature is a different piece in a short story about the magic of Midwest Summer.  The colors and environments were all chosen to illustrate a particular time in the season.  

After months of tiny stitches - there was one magic moment on a wintry December Tuesday when all the monsters were suddenly completed, arranged, and on display.  

And then, an even more magical evening when the show opened.  So many people braved the weather to come hang out and celebrate!
In the main gallery space Lana and Andrew's show, "Night Fall", was also opening - so it was a total party night!  Their show is dark and beautiful and you should definitely check it out.

  

I'll share out some more photos soon - but in the meantime you can see the whole show over at:
gallery.rotofugi.com

There's still some beasts available, so if you're doing some last-minute shopping head over!
The show is up through the 31st, but they'll give you a nifty Certificate that you can wrap up for gifting on the Holiday.  

The (Space Trip) Art Show!

The (Space Trip) Art Show opens this Friday!
I'm honored to be included in the show, and this is the new painting I created for it:

"I Feel Fine"

Watercolor and Colored Pencil on paper

8" x 10" 

Available through Gristle Tattoo + Art Gallery

The show is going to be great - 50+ amazing artists have created fun pieces inspired by and celebrating 50 years of Star Trek.

The show will take place in Brooklyn, during the weekend of the Star Trek convention.

OPENING PARTY: Friday, Sept. 2, 7 - 10pm

CONVENTION WEEKEND HOURS: 
Saturday, Sept. 3, 12 - 7pm
Sunday, Sept. 4, 12 - 7pm

L.L.A.P!

Wahoots!

It's the Woots!

Woot Berries, that is.

In collaboration with Woot Bear Gallery in San Francisco,

I created seven "Woot Berries", based on their logo. 

Here's a wee video I made for them:

This video featured the prototype, and then the final seven had different stitching and some finessed detailing:

Each is entirely hand-sewn and unique.

Which woot will you choose?

Woot Berries are releasing Saturday, August 13 at 12pm PST

in-store and online at Woot Bear

www.wootbear.com

Time travel:

Today on Patreon I did a little musing on the difference that time makes.  

It's not just the passage of time that makes us better at what we do, it's also having more time to do it.  Since leaving my day-job in February, I've been so grateful for the time I've been able to spend on all my artwork.  I've been able to make big advances in drawing, painting, and the stitched stuff.
It's not easy, and it's often a little nerve-wracking, but it's always been wonderful and worth it.  

If you'd like to find out more, here's a link to my Patreon page - I've got a few Plush reward spots left, as well as Art rewards and the $3/month Content & Sketchbook reward.  

Patreon.com/melissasuestanley

xoxox

scannin'

Trying to remember to take time to scan everything.

Shows a bit more detail and how the color actual is in these ballpoint drawings.

Ballpoint pen and watercolor on Arches hot press.  These both fit in a standard IKEA frame, too! 

Hello!

Hello!

A couple new soft-sculpture creatures:

A Garden Spirit

This wee fellow is the first in a series created for some of my special supporters through Patreon.

And then this tentacled creature

This was a fun commission, which requested bright colors, tentacles, and claws.  

I am taking custom orders this summer, so if you're interested you can email me or send me a message through Etsy! 

melissasueart (at) yahoo.com

melissasue.etsy.com

Now that TCAF has come and gone, Summer is settling in nicely in the studio.  It's quiet and there's a lot of work to do in preparation for this Fall / Winter.

I've got a couple group shows to create work for, a four-day workshop/retreat, and a six-day residency coming up.  Lots to do!  Lots of long quiet nights at the desk.

We do get out a little though, mostly for art fun:

 

Live-painting and dooding at some Drink & Draw events around town.  

And I've been making it to more figure drawing.  I'm really trying to go at least once a week - it's just really important for the paintings I'm working on.

And then there's a large project:

I'll be showing work in a Chicago gallery at the end of the year - a 'mini-solo' of my soft sculptures.  I'm making a lot of new creatures for the show, so I've started work already for that.  

So excited to start sharing some of that, and the new large paintings I'm working on.  

Fun stuff!

xo