Monday, November 14, 2005



Strength In Numbers
When it gets a little scary, it's good to have friends.

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful elf children; I'm glad the blue lady protects them from death and the owl guides them with wisdom! Mystical and magical with deep depth of field!

Anonymous said...

What a sweet illo!

Unknown said...

I get so drawn in to your paintings.
They are so mystical and wonderful.
I could see them as illustration in a book anyday.
Or on my wall ;)
Love your color palet
What medium did you use on this one?

Lee said...

this reminds me of the way I felt passing by graveyards as a kid...totally spooked, but totally drawn to the mystery...great interpretation!

Unknown said...

I love, love, love, love, love this illustration!! I need to look around and see if you have any more. :)

merlinprincesse said...

AHHH! I remember when the world was still magic for me...This feeling is almost gone. I sais ALMOST. Love your art. Wich medium did you use?

Cream said...

Looks so good! What precision! Very magical!
Definitely strength in numbers!

carla said...

This is so atmopsheric and spooky...I love the hidden faces and shapes...the skull is like a warning sign, but as children are, they must satisfy their curiosity! Beautiful work> I will need to come back to read your previous post...it looks like something interesting.

andrea said...

This is magic. You've done a wonderful job of evoking a mood.

Catnapping said...

so much magic in this drawing.

it so softly-lit and quiet. my favorite.

vfm4 said...

your illustrations/paintings leave me most of the time speechless...

like this one.. it gives you the feeling you've been there...

Leeza Hernandez Illustrator said...

Oooh, I love this - especially of the mystical woman behind the tree. She looks to me like she's opening her arms to them, but not in a scary way, in more of a welcoming positive way. As if telling the children not to be afraid. I find the entire illustration so intriguing and it pulls me right in. It really is a beautiful piece of work.

Wilnara said...

Again I am in awe! This image has captivated me with its layers of fear and curiosity. The details make me want to just reach in and protect the little ones adding on to the strength they have already. It's as if I could hear the owl hoot - Bravo!!!

Tony Sarrecchia said...

Beautiful piece--magical. I love all the layers you have going on here. How did you do this one?

Unknown said...

Lovely illo!!

LDahl said...

Thank you, thank you for the wonderful comments. I really enjoy reading them ... who wouldn't? Each and every one of you are so talented, it means so much to me that you have taken the time to look and leave a thought or two for me. I truly appreciate your visits!!!!!!!!!


Anonymous
Wow, you got the strength in wisdom ! *psst, you're good* I started with the owl and the rest of the painting grew itself, one idea leading to the next. I'm glad for you... you're terrific!

Marion
Thank you so much!

Toni Kelly
Thank you Toni, the book I'm doing the illustration for is half finished and I'm very excited about it. One of my early pencil drawings for it is going to be colored by the worlds top comic colorist and let me tell you, I can't wait to see it. His work is fantastic!
Watercolor one this one, but my oldest son and I have agreed to be painting buddies, so after years away, I'm going back to oils soon. I love to have too many irons in the fire:))) You have to admit though, there is something so lovely about having an oil painting on the wall:)
Thank you so much for your comments, they keep me going when I get tired and wooly headed:)))

Lee
:))) What was it about graveyards that drew us like magnets?
As a child I felt like I was surrounded by stories that had become very quiet, but still there. (Now that was spooky:)))) I loved the stones and the quiet.
What spooked me, were the stories of Indian burials, lost travelers and others (death was a fact of life in the country, sometimes sudden and violent death) around the land that I grew up on. No telling who was out there on dark and windy nights!! LOL

Xuan Huy
Thank you!! I set a problem for myself with every illo...the colors were one of the "problems" I assigned myself with this one... how to truly get the feeling/color of night without using a lot of blue or black and yet retain a distinct pallet. I really didn't know if I was successful until reading the comments here.

DeeJay
Thanks, thanks and thanks again! Yes there are a few more here also check out my website... that place is loaded:)))

Merlinprincesse
You are too special, so don't you lose it, it is just out of the corner of your eye! I started with pencil and watercolor and did the final adjustments on computer.(The blue lady looked too blue after it was scanned, and a tiny crop because of a light line at the bottom. My scanner is rather a boat anchor:))) I need a new one so bad:(

Cream
Thank you Cream, I only had a very short time this week to work on the I-Fri word... so it was a flying job:))) and of course I bit off a bit more than I could chew with this one, but I really wanted to incorporate a number of characters into this piece so it WAS juggle, juggle, juggle:)))
I just had to take some time yesterday to go and look at what everyone was doing even though I shouldn't have...but I'm addicted to the artwork and thoughts of everyone I'm getting to know here.

Carla
You always look so deeply at everything, you really see the hidden stuff... :)) I caught myself putting in an extra one just for you:))
Gaaa don't read my story, you will find all the flaws!!!!!!

Andrea
Thank you Andrea, I am such a fan of your paintings, I know I want to take a peek at your new shop!!

Catnapping
I am so happy that you liked it Catnapping, I was trying to capture a particular moment, you know the one where people become life friends because of an experience shared.

vfm4
I'll tell you a secret... the two girls are me and my little sister and the little boy is my son :) Not now of course, now he is well over six foot tall! But in some ways we are all still kids together:)

Leezy
Thanks so much Leezy! Your very special comments always encourage me!!

Wilnara
This comment really touched me, you are a wonderful person, I'm so happy to have input from you:)

Tony
Thank you Tony, I have to admit this one started out as a drawing that fell together pretty well but once I got to the watercolor stage, it started taking on a life of its own. I wish I had more time to fight it to the finish:))) but time was very short this week. Maybe later!

Alina Chau
Thank you Alina!! I have to get over and see what you have done, I am sooooo behind this week!

Todd DeWolf said...

I really love the mood in this one. This illo does tell quite tale of wondering in the forest. Great symbols as well. I love it. It makes me think of a book cover for a mystery series or something along those lines. I guess I thought of that because as a kid I loved Nancy Drew. High kudos on this one. Cheers!

Courtney Pippin-Mathur said...

love the etheral light to the right and the dreamy style of painting, so many yummy spooky details.

mid-life zhen said...

Very impressive work with imagination. It really made me think.

RAY DILLON said...

Hi-lo!

Fantastic piece. Mystical and kinda spooky. Great mood and texture.

You did this with watercolor?! I thought it might have been a digital painting or something. The texture and layering. That's wonderful!

Lily and Lucy White said...

Oh my! I absolutely love it!!!
Never mind the gorgeous atmosphere and astounding execution! It is emotional quality of this piece that left me stunned – right back into my childhood (and I must say, for those of us with an overactive imagination childhood is both wonderful and tough). I so very well remember that feeling you captured -- of seeing something in the forest, and if you stand so very still and don’t move maybe it will not see you! And while looking at your artwork, I got that same feeling, but also a little relief, knowing that if all hell breaks loose, there is more than one of us, we can scream like a band of banshees and run like the wind… Surely we can run away…Thank you for the treat!

Queen Tut said...

This is so enchanting. I Love your work!

elegraph said...

oh, my - this is watercolor? i'm floored! certain aspects of this illo have such a realistic texture, like the tree. my favorite part is the owl. all of those kids are just charming. if you put me in that illo, i'd be the scaredy-cat kid who was hightailing it back to the warm, safe house on the hill...

Anonymous said...

eerie yet warm. i love your style, i am definitely one of your fans after veiwing your work.

LDahl said...

Holly,
I loved Nancy Drew too! I think I read every one and would like to read them again. I remember I was allowed to check out two every time we went to the library. I always wanted to make them last, read slow and savor them, but they were page-turners and once started, impossible to put down. A big smile and a big thanks for the kudos!

Courtney,
Thank you very much for your comment, I admire your style very much.

Chan Wah,
Thank you for visiting me, I enjoyed your illos and reading your blog. I look forward to seeing what you will create with this weeks word.

Ray Dillon
Hi ya Ray, I did some drawing (back ground trees, blue lady and scull) the big tree and owl were pretty much completely done with watercolor alone, the children roughed in. The textures I built with watercolor. At that point I did a test scan, time was short, it seemed to be pretty close to what I was wanting so I threw it into photo-paint where I bashed away for a bit with the wacom... I was really pleased that the composition held up and I didn't have to make changes with it at all, no major crops or hacks:))) so I just went ahead and finished it up.
How is the writing going, are you going to make it? Better question: Are you getting any sleep???!
Thank ya kindly for ya'lls remarks:)))

Lily and Lucy White
Yes we did run sometimes, just like a band of banshees!! I could tell you some stories... Camping out in the woods, bon-fires and ghost stories... I think you would have been "one of us". Thank you, you have started me remembering some very special times :))) I treasure your comment.

Queen Tut
So happy you visited me again! thank you! How was your trip to India?

kg
And there you would find, hot cocoa and sandwiches, popcorn balls ...and a ghost in the upstairs bedroom!!! BBWWWAAAaahahaha!
......that warm safe house was torn down a few years ago... I miss it still :(

Anthony
That makes me feel terrific! Thank you!

Anonymous said...

I finally took the time to relax and take a thorough look at your website. Amazing things you have going on there. I plan to visit and study your Fractals again later on today when I finish up my next painting.

LDahl said...

onclejohann
Thank you so much for visiting my web site too, how cool! Hope you are feeling better, you sure do seem to get a lot of work done.

Cate said...

I agree with Toni Kelly--I can absolutely see your work in a beautiful children's book. I was glad to read that you're going to be part of one!

This picture is incredible. You are so adept at conveying a mood! I love the light of the moon through the branches of the trees.
How beautiful and fascinating.

LDahl said...

Thank you Cate, thank you very much! I am enjoying the book project so very much, but it is like all things, it's not over until it's over... a lot can happen between now and published. I have been doing this for years so I know how something can fizzle at the last moment. Rather like a game of football:)) So the important part to me is the process... and this one has been the best process ever:)
Your comment, though...wow:) happy dance!!