#stephanie crane illustration

Challenge 144: 10 Years, Looking Forward: Sunset Vista

In ten years I want to be very well traveled, so for my piece I wanted to do a beautiful view of a seaside town in a foreign country with a glass of wine and my sketchbook in the foreground.  I’ve struggled with my relationship to art and illustration ever since graduation, and since leaving Square Carousel and taking a break to focus on my graphic design career I’ve been slowly dipping my toes back in to the lovely art water.  It turns out the only way for me to make art is to not take it seriously at all.  Otherwise, I paralyze myself with expectations.  Lately I’ve been getting back into painting with acrylics and have been experimenting with using the same super saturated colors I like to use when painting digitally.  Do I need a lot more practice? Yes.  Do I need to draw in my sketchbook more? Yes.  And did I have fun with this piece anyway? Yes!  It’s all about placing fun colors next to each other for me.

- I graduated from SCAD in 2013
- Today I am the Creative Director at a local Austin marketing firm
- In ten years, I hope to be living my cottage core dream life when I’m at home, making stunning visuals at work, and having unforgettable experiences abroad every chance I get.

Thank you so much Square Carousel for all the artistic growth you’ve helped me achieve! Love you guys <3

-Stephanie

insta:@stephaniecraneart

For the theme of “Gratitude,” I decided to do a self portrait with lots of injuries to symbolize all the times I’ve gotten knocked down in my life.  Every setback has made me more interesting and more wise, and I would not be the artist I am today without having taken a few mental beatings!  Here’s to the last month of QuickDraw and to a Happy New Year!

This month I’ve been working in my sketchbook, and getting really excited about my last piece for QDC!

-Stephanie

So this was a fun painting.  I accidentally got teal drips on her face TWICE and had to redo it.  Boooooo, gravity!  Also this book is made up.  So there’s that.  I imagine it’s told in flashbacks, and takes place in the mountains in Virginia.  And the ending is bittersweet.  Maybe when my hand falls off from painting I’ll write it some day.  Through dictation of course.

-Stephanie