They're not bad. They're just drawn that way.

     A sly look over the shoulder, an evil grin, or an imposing angle can be intimidating on even the most adorable child.

     This month I've returned to doing more writing but I start my days with sketchbook practice. The expressions this week would fit nicely into a Stephen King story.

School Days

Oh, the memories!

I only rode the school bus from kindergarten through second grade and a very short time my freshman year of high school, but what an experience!

This piece was a challenge, but so much fun! It was mostly drawn in the Procreate App on my iPad. A few of the faces I scanned from recent sketchbook pages, (children's expressions I've been practicing) popped them in and colored them. I'm going to set the image aside for a while and come back to it in a few months when I can look at it with fresh eyes and see adjustments that need to be made. This piece will most likely be the month of AUGUST on my calendar.

Below is the piece I did for MAY. I'm not sure it fits with my other images so I may end up changing this one completely.

"July" (titled "Summer" three previous times)

Hi! I'm Tracy Oñoz - an artist who does the same thing a hundred times.

There is a good reason, however. First, I'm working on a project that calls for a square format and not many of my older pieces can simply be cropped. Second, each year my illustration skills improve. I look at my so-called finished pieces with a more critical eye. I've picked up new digital techniques, figured out how to do things better and more efficiently and I've gotten closer to being able to achieve what I envisioned in the first place.

This is how "Summer" looked in  2014, done with watercolor and acrylic paints. It has, in my humble opinion, a lot of good stuff - bright colors, energy. etc. It's a pretty doggone happy piece. Maybe the fact that I've liked it so much has something to do with why I keep going back. I'm hoping, though, that you agree the revisit was worth it.

You can link HERE to a couple of my other "Summers" that brought me to this last one.  Really.  The one at the top is my last one.  Really . . .  For now.

Tea

     A couple of years ago I did an illustration challenge called "Draw 50 Things." The assignment was to do a complex illustration with 50 separate, identifiable items. The piece I did - "Victorian Tea" - is below. I zoomed in on the characters and, even though I'm still working digitally, I'm going for an effect that looks more like it was done conventionally. I still like the look of the full piece below so maybe someday I'll redo the whole darn thing. 

I'm also still practicing facial expressions. 

Here's the same little girl with a few different looks on her face in a more illustrated style. 

I have a long way to go. I'll get there.

Rainy Day and other tidbits

(I think) I'm finally comfortable with a style. I'm happily working on my iPad in the Procreate app. This is a redo from an original (below) done in February 2017 which is also a piece of digital art.

This one is cute.  I think I even like the composition better which means another potential redo in a couple of years, but I felt the need to make it more. . . mine.

Below is another illustration I did in 2017:

and after a little clean-up:

You can't see a huge difference but it made me feel better ;)

Here's some more practice of kids' faces:

and a scan straight from my little sketchbook, (real pencil on real paper) - getting in a little practice with hands as well:

Lastly, my son turned 26 a couple of days ago and I just HAD to do a portrait of him:

What a babydoll! He's still waiting on a portrait of himself as an adult. I'll get to it, I promise.

Next on the agenda is a more serious focus on my calendar for 2020. I have 3 months done, 3 in progress and rough ideas for the rest. Thanks for checking in!

Valentine Specials

I've been working on this piece on and off for a couple of months. It was done digitally in the Procreate app on my iPad. I've done a lot of experimenting, changed background elements, and created a mood. 

Below is the soda fountain illustration I did nearly five years ago. As you can see I kept some of the same elements, but I would say I have learned a thing or two. 

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