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Amy Brown Fairies

How Sheila Wolk Created her Art

SHEILA WOLK INTERVIEW
Toscano Interviews Award Winning Artist Sheila Wolk June 20th 2006

Here is an interview of Fantasy Artist Sheila Wolk that I think you would enjoy reading. I think all of Sheila's fans would get more out of her artwork after reading this article.

1. Your artistic career began in the less glamorous realm of medical illustration, yet how has that experience aided your ability to depict the more fantastical themes of mermaids, fairies and angels in such an organic, truly lifelike manner, such as in your painting, “The Gatekeeper”? I loved being a medical illustrator...anatomy is the most exciting form of drawing.The glamour was there through me being one of the few women in the agency and a Jewish one at that! It was glamour of a unique reality! They hired me as a double-token, but I definitely came out the winner; working with the best Art Directors that New York had to offer (and hand letterers as well), this was a world of exciting knowledge for me. My dream was to become an Art Director and I thought it would take a lifetime to achieve—I was totally surprised that in just a few short years I wore the title with great pride, but then got bored. The transition to becoming a fantasy artist happened many years later. It’s extremely hard to answer your brief question because the answer involves many years of struggle. The brief answer would be to say it didn’t aid me in picking the themes I pick now, yet it is part of my life and I couldn’t be what I am today if one thing in my past was changed. To brief you quickly: When I quit the job, I became a freelance illustrator, model, and a coat check girl at night for extra cash. Then I designed the first silk-screened canvas tote bag in America (The Volkswagon Tote Bag) and ended up in magazines like “New York Best Bets” and “Cosmo Tells All.” I then expanded my line into unique appliquéd baby nightshirts, until the government closed us all down due to a fire retardant agent in the mandatory materials for nightshirts—so I went broke and lost everything I had overnight! One night, an art director I knew called me and said, “Sheila, with your knowledge of anatomy and your youth and beauty, why don’t you become a sports artist? You would become famous very quickly.” And so I did. I borrowed just enough money to get by on and promised everyone that within a year I would have a show and be in the papers, and if not, then I would quit. Eleven months later, I had my first one-woman show and I was featured in both newspapers and magazines. So that took me on a career of 23 years and then I retired from the sports art life. Being a woman in that world was extremely difficult—I won many awards, had hundreds of shows, was known all over the world, and yet still had to fight for every penny due to greedy major corporations that had little respect for women in the business. I felt that they didn’t deserve my talent so I decided I wouldn’t share it with them anymore. It was a scary decision but it felt so right. I transitioned back to Fine Art and painted hyper-realism paintings, landing a gallery for my one-woman show, which was the talk of the town—featured once again in magazine and newspaper articles—but unfortunately only one painting sold and I was broke again. The nightmare of this situation was that the money I was using to live on that year while I painted was my inheritance from my mother who had passed away a year before. I couldn’t stop crying; I cried for weeks and I felt that I was drowning in my own tears...so I painted a mermaid, and here I am now, a fantasy artist!

Ahhhh, “The Gatekeeper,” the painting that opened new insight to my life! In preparation for this painting, I took hundreds of photographs of pink roses and watched as they bloomed and died everyday. I needed more inspiration and understanding as to the heart of the rose and its life, so during this period I had to spray six paintings to get them out of my way, since my paintings range from four to six feet. I wore a professional gas mask to do the spraying, but after the job was done I realized that I had forgotten to put the filters on the mask, and so I passed out from the fumes. I didn’t feel well after I awoke, so I went to sleep and the next morning I had no vision or hearing. I thought I was dead until I touched my arm and then I realized I was in severe trouble. While being rushed to hospital, I was told that I had severe toxic poisoning and it would take a long time to recuperate. Two years of no sight and hearing left me frightened and desperate. Along with the Prednizone and swelling of the flesh, the realization hit me that I was a useless person. I remember standing in front of the Gatekeeper sketch, staring at it in vain, seeing nothing but black...but I also found myself pondering survival and how I could translate this into the Gatekeeper if my sight and hearing ever came back. I turned on my 1500 watts of light everyday and prayed to see the light. And then one day I saw it, like a small pin dot, a speck that gave me hope. This procedure went on for months, [with bits of sight returning for] approximately five minutes, which eventually grew to ten, then fifteen—Ohhh happiness! Each minute that I could see a little, I would paint a rose, or a petal, or a vine or leaf. I felt the importance of patience and persistence. I realized that prayers could be heard; I realized that pain could yield joy. I realized that my impairment was replaced with wisdom, a lesson that I can be strong at my weakest moments. The Gatekeeper was my savior; the dripping roses, which I added later, were my prayers being answered by my angels. By the time the painting was completed, my vision was restored and my hearing (outside of a small permanent loss) was back. I learned at that point that each painting has to have great meaning and importance, no matter how long it takes.

2. In fact, much of your previous work seems to have been preparatory for working in your current field; working with pastels for the first time as a sports artist, you were known for your superior ability to capture the raw power behind the athletes’ every movement, from tennis to golf to football. What is it about pastels that draws you to the medium? I have worked with oils, watercolors, acrylics and sculpting, and I found that pastel dust is the ultimate medium; it combines all the necessary needs for blending and creating subtle tones, [plus] it’s a hands-on medium that eliminates the need for hardened tools to apply it. My imagination and fingers are the master.

3. Edgar Degas, famous for his Impressionistic pastel renderings of ballet dancers, once said, “Drawing is not what one sees but what one can make others see.” How would you say this applies to your decision to change your focus from sports art to the more subjective world of fantasy art? I totally disagree with Degas’ interpretation as to what drawing is...[that is,] if he meant it as an active part of creating. I could never think (while drawing) of what anyone else would like or dislike... I am in a totally committed zone when drawing, and it’s a commitment to the translation of what I am trying to create. Nothing on the outside is allowed to enter; it is [a zone] full of exploding knowledge, passion, and trust toward my skills, yet open to accidents that are pure creativity when noticed as a contributing factor. When I am finished with a drawing or a painting, it is an independent being where I have no more control; it’s complete and has no concerns as to who likes it or doesn’t...it’s almost like a thought that ends with a period: there it stands, done...It has become a tangible, visual, creative thought that invites criticism, whether good or bad.

4. There is a smoothness to your pastels that allows an inner radiance to be exposed through layering colors on top of one another; it’s reminiscent of the otherworldliness found in pre-Raphaelite works such as Waterhouse’s “Circe Invidiosa” or Grimshaw’s “Spirit of the Night.” What artists do you look to for inspiration? Since childhood I was totally mesmerized by Michelangelo and DaVinci, and I still am to this day! Of course I have admired the brotherhood of the Pre-Raphaelites—I studied them to the maximum degree—but I remain impassioned and devoted to the old masters.

5.We at Design Toscano love your work; the range of themes, colors and subject matter is so vast, yet each painting seems to maintain its own distinct individuality. In your painting “Field of Dreams,” a fairy sits in a field surrounded by butterflies, with her own fairy wings fashioned to look like a butterfly’s, yet it is the painting of a mermaid that is entitled “Metamorphosis,” a word commonly used to describe the changing of a caterpillar into a butterfly. Would you say there’s an inherent quality associated with butterflies that compels you to incorporate their presence into your fantasy art? What is it about butterflies that captures your interest so acutely as to weave them into many of your works? The first series in my fantasy realm was mermaids. Amongst these came “Metamorphosis” and “The Spiraling” (diptych). “Metamorphosis” means “to change,” or other synonyms are “transformation” or “transmutation.” I was trying to relate a rebirthing of the sea or heart of the sea via a mermaid. To me, “The Metamorphosis” is one of my most spiritual paintings because I implied a religious undertone, yet most people feel it and don’t understand why. [In the painting,] she is looking up, implying trust and hope; she is bound by her hair, yet floats unbound by the fish birthing from her hair; and the intentional, yet ever-so-subtle, “cross” design encompasses all these elements, completing the message I chose to deliver. The answer to your question about my butterflies has a complex and yet endearing answer. I was visiting a family member in a state mental institution, and I will never forget how she was scratching at the [window]screens...repeating over and over again that she could fly. I asked her if she wanted to be a bird and she replied that she was a butterfly and needed to be free. I witnessed such turmoil in this lost creature—and seconds later, vengeance beyond my imagination—as she unrelentingly called out to the butterflies. When I decided later to paint my first fairy, I recalled this incident and wanted to portray the wildness of such a gentle creature, hence, “The Chameleon.” If you noticed in the painting, her wings are tattered and torn, yet she seems so young to be so mistrusting. I wanted the spectator and the fairy to meet for the first time, as if they accidentally stumbled upon each other in the wilderness, with the paralyzing reality that both exist. I wrote a little poem about this painting...

SHE WILL BLEND IN
THEN FLY AWAY
TO PROTECT HER SOUL
FROM GOING
ASTRAY
DON’T TRY TO CLIP
OR NET THE BEAST
FOR YOU’LL BE THE MEAL
OF HER NEXT
FEAST

I have done massive studies on butterflies, to the point of watching the cocoons give birth right here in my art studio. Butterflies are mandatory, an ingredient to the fairy world that needs to be painted authentically.

6. Indeed, one of our favorite paintings of yours, “The Chameleon,” also features a butterfly-winged fairy, and is soon to be transformed into a sculpture. What other paintings do you plan to have sculpted three-dimensionally? I am truly excited about this, seeing my paintings go three-dimensional was a long awaited dream of mine. “Field of Dreams,” “Hearts Content,” “The Lure,” “The Guardian,” “Revelation,” “Dusk” and “Dawn,” and a pretty neat devil by the name of “Mr. Crimson” will soon be released. Then come water globes (with a unique change), and I am presently having meetings with regard to coffee tables. There are a few more new surprises to come, but I like being a bit of a mystery, so you’ll have to wait and see! May I leave you with this...

“FOR WHEN WE SLEEP,
WE ARE TRULY AWAKE
THE BODY IS RESTING ITS DECEPTION~
AND THE REAL IS.
IF NOT FOR FANTASY
THERE IS NO DREAM”

Thank you
Sheila Wolk

(this article was used with permission by Sheila Wolk)

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Big Eye Fairy Art by Jasmine Becket Griffith

Fantasy artist Jasmine Becket Griffith aka Strangeling would like to introduce you to her big eye fairy art. Jasmine’s Gothlings are among the most recognized dark fairy & mermaid art, today her paintings appear on everything from t-shirts, to tiles, ornaments, and stickers.

Jasmine Becket-Griffith's Zazzle Store where you can buy other products with her artwork!

Buy artwork by Jasmine Becket-Griffith at Art.com

Fairy Sisters Print by Julie Fain

Fairy Sisters Print by Julie Fain

Large Giclee Fantasy Silhouette Fairy Prints by Julie Fain This giclée print delivers a vivid image with maximum color accuracy and exceptional resolution. The standard for museums and galleries around the world, giclée (French for “to spray”) is a printing process where millions of ink droplets are sprayed onto the paper’s surface. With the great degree of detail and smooth transitions of color gradients, giclée prints appear much more realistic than other reproduction prints. The high-quality paper (235 gsm) is acid free with a smooth surface. Starting at $39.99 for a large 16" x 20" also available framed! For the exact pricing, more information and sizing & framing options for the Fairy Sisters Silhouette Print by Julie Fain click here!

Halloween Twilight Fairy Print by Jasmine Becket Griffith

Halloween Twilight Fairy Print by Jasmine Becket Griffith

Large Giclee Gothic Autumn Fairy Prints by Jasmine Becket Griffith This giclée print delivers a vivid image with maximum color accuracy and exceptional resolution. The standard for museums and galleries around the world, giclée (French for “to spray”) is a printing process where millions of ink droplets are sprayed onto the paper’s surface. With the great degree of detail and smooth transitions of color gradients, giclée prints appear much more realistic than other reproduction prints. The high-quality paper (235 gsm) is acid free with a smooth surface. Starting at $39.99 for a large 16" x 20" also available framed! For the exact pricing, more information and sizing & framing options for the Halloween Twilight Fairy Print by Jasmine Becket Griffith click here! This item will ship directly from the manufactor.

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Alchemy Gothic Rune Faerie 2013 Wall Calendar

Alchemy Gothic Rune Faerie 2013 Wall Calendar

Alchemy 2013 Wall Calendar Fantasy gothic artists and alchemists since 1977, Alchemy's Fairies are a wonder to behold in this 16- month calendar for 2013. Features caged fairies, masked fairies, dragons and much more! Format: Standard Wall Size Closed: 12.0 " x 12.0 " Size Opened: 24.0 " x 12.0 " Grid Size: Medium Square Binding: Stapled Time Span: 12-month +4 $13.99 Buy Now: Alchemy 2013 Wall Calendar Please note: This product ships directly from Calendars.com Enjoy Free shipping on orders of $25 or more(Calendars.com orders only) Buy one for a friend and one for yourself!

Jasmine Becket Griffith Strangeling 2013 Wall Calendar

Jasmine Becket Griffith Strangeling 2013 Wall Calendar

Jasmine Becket-Griffith Strangeling 2013 Wall Calendar Welcome to the world of beloved artist Jasmine Beckett-Griffith! Mischievous, whimsical, wide-eyed, sometimes serious, sometimes seriously fun, each of these naughty girls comes with her own personality. A portion of each calendar purchase goes to help support OCRF (Ovarian Cancer Research Fund). Format: Standard Wall Size Closed: 12.0 " x 12.0 " Size Opened: 24.0 " x 12.0 " Grid Size: Medium Square Binding: Stapled Time Span: 12-month $13.95 Buy Now: Jasmine Becket-Griffith Strangeling 2013 Wall Calendar Please note: This product ships directly from Calendars.com Enjoy Free shipping on orders of $25 or more(Calendars.com orders only) Buy one for a friend and one for yourself!

Linda Ravenscroft 2013 Llewellyn's Woodland Faeries Wall Calendar

Linda Ravenscroft 2013 Woodland Faeries Wall Calendar

Linda Ravenscroft Llewellyn's Woodland Faeries 2013 Wall Calendar A new year of faerie magic and enchantment awaits you. Illustrated by renowned fantasy artist Linda Ravenscroft, this gorgeous faerie-themed calendar captures the whimsy and grace of beautiful nature spirits in their secret forest realm. Original, evocative scenes—alive in lush detail—bring us oh so close to the enchanting nymphs, dancing pixies, and joyful sprites. Llewellyn's 2013 Woodland Faeries Calendar also includes holidays and moon phase information. Format: Standard Wall Size Closed: 12.0 " x 12.0 " Size Opened: 24.0 " x 12.0 " Grid Size: Small Square Binding: Stapled Time Span: 12-month +4 $13.99 Buy Now: Linda Ravenscroft Llewellyn's Woodland Faeries 2013 Wall Calendar Please note: This product ships directly from Calendars.com Enjoy Free shipping on orders of $25 or more(Calendars.com orders only) Buy one for a friend and one for yourself!

New 2013 Amy Brown Faeries Fairy Fantasy Calendar

Amy Brown Faeries 2013 Wall Calendar

Amy Brown Faeries 2013 Wall Calendar As one of the world's most prominent fairy artists, Amy Brown has captivated fans of fantasy art all over with her notably distinctive Faeries. Endowed with her own individual personality, each faery's disposition radiates through Amy's artwork. Format: Standard Wall Size Closed: 12.0 " x 12.0 " Size Opened: 24.0 " x 12.0 " Grid Size: Medium Square Binding: Stapled Time Span: 12-month +4 $13.99 Buy Now:Amy Brown Faeries 2013 Wall Calendar Please note: This product ships directly from Calendars.com Enjoy Free shipping on orders of $25 or more(Calendars.com orders only) Buy one for a friend and one for yourself!

Anna Marine Featured Artist for November/December 2011

Anna Marine is the Featured artist at Enchanted Designs for November/December 2011.

My name is Anna Marine and I'm an professional illustrator and alt model. I've been born and raised in Moscow and Prague (my grandma lives there). I like to draw since the childhood (I don't remember myself without pencils and brushes in hands
My area of creativity - mysticism, gothic style, folklore and others. I like to read and have a great interest in mythology and mysticism that has influenced on my art.



I'm romantic, thoughtful and little bit sad girl...love rains, autumn, silent cemeteries, beautiful places, coffee, ancient novels,The Victorian era..



In 2009 my artwork was featured in the book "Amazing Pencil Portraits"(USA). My artwork has also been marketed digitally by CILM and after,CDO company. In 2010 I started collaborating with the French publishers, Editions-cauchemars and writer Cecile Guillot. I also collaborated with "Mystic Memories" specializing on sale of bath and body productions.

I was featured in different magazines - "Le fantastique au feminin" and "JitZul","Les Soupirs de Ligeia","iFamous","FAE magazine","Suspens magazine","Nothing to nobody" "fIXE magazine" and others.

I work with the largest Russian publishers, AST, for which I'm creating covers for authors,C. Harris, P.Briggs, J.Rardin, K.Richardson, C.M. Green, N. A.Collins,R.Hart and others.

In June 2011 I got my own iphone app that sells on iTunes.



I'm really interested in any job concerning to art, but especially in:



- Traditional gothic and dark fantasy painting

- Cover artwork for music bands.

- Book's covers

- Illustration for websites,advertising,clothes and etc.

- Tattoo design

I'm also able to do traditional painting comissions.



Since 2011 I also work as alt model.

I did promotional photoshoot for Kristall Skull jewellery company

I'm model for DirtyShirty clothes and I'm official DirtyShirty girl

I was featured in the MAXIM magazine Espanol in October 2011



Now I'm working at my own illustrated book and at the same time,I find a publisher for it in Europe or USA.



With questions, wishes, comments and business proposals write to anna-marine@mail.ru



My website www.anna-marine.com (under construction)

My Deviantart http://www.anna-marine.deviantart.com/

My Facebook http://www.facebook.com/officialannamarine

My Twitter http://twitter.com/#!/anna_marine

The Wish Fairy Victorian Print by David Delamare



"The Wish Fairy" by David Delamare

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David Delamare Fairies & Mermaids at Enchanted Designs!

These sepia fairy prints are a large 11" x 14" inches in size and comes enclosed in a plastic sleeve with backing board.

Where can I buy affordable David Delamare fairy collectibles? Enchanted Designs of course! Your source of David Delamare sculpted art tiles, fairy & mermaid prints, Porcelain Garden lithopane nightlights & luminare lamps, victorian lithopane lamps, lithopane shadow boxes and art cards.

David Delamare is my most popular fairy artist, his realistic paintings include: fairy moms with fairy babies, mermaid mothers, fairies in love, and even pirates, among many others. His fanciful painting style is like no other, he has mastered sepia tones, vintage and his artwork is easy to group together gallery style!

* Please note some of his artwork may contain artistic nudity.

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Visit Phee McFaddell's Website for more Free Fantasy Coloring Pages! She has the largest amount of coloring pages I have seen by one artist.

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Free Fairy Coloring Pages by Various Artists

Here are some Free Fairy Coloring Pages. These are for personal use only. (Right click and hit "Save As" to save the file to your computer. Then you can print it.) Enjoy!

Visit Enchanted Designs for more Fairy Coloring Books you can buy by Marjolein Gulinski and others!