Copro Gallery

Harbinger – Work in Progress

Books, Cross Hatching, Drawings, ink, Prints, Process, Stippling, Technique, Work in Progress

For the past few weeks I’ve been working on this large drawing called Harbinger (24″ x 18″). Check out the images below. I’m rendering with Pigma Micron 005 pens on 140lb Arches hotpress. I haven’t done a lot of finished work with Microns, so I wanted to give them a real workout to see what they could do. I still have a way to go, but generally speaking I really like these markers on the smooth Arches paper. I don’t think they could replace my trusty Rapidograph pens, but they do permit things the Rapidographs will not, like brushing the pigment onto the paper as the tips deplete, which is kind of interesting, so I’ll definitely use them again. My plan is to offer this piece as a giclee print, in the new year.

In other updates, I am just starting work on the illustrations for Tailor of Echoes, my forthcoming fantasy novel, from PS Publications in the new year. Really excited to start on this project. The novel is currently being copy edited. I also have another book illustration project, a “big” book, but I can’t talk about that yet, so I’ll just vaguepost for now. I’m also making good daily progress on the first draft of a new novel. 28K words in. It’s a healthy start and I hope to get a first draft over the winter.

Finally, Atropa (below) is still available from Copro Gallery. I think the show Roadside Attractions IV (curated by Cris Velasco) is probably over now, but if you are interested in this piece, please reach out to the gallery. I’d also like to thank Erica from that gallery and Cris, who rescued this piece when it went astray on route. You guys are the best!

Atropa

And it’s snowing, while the Jack O’ Lanterns are still rotting on my porch.

All for now!

  • Richard
Harbinger, a work in progress (iPhone snap).
Harbinger on my drawing table (iPhone snap).
Harbinger, detail (iPhone snap).
Harbinger, detail (iPhone snap).
Harbinger detail (iphone snap).

Wandering Star

Drawings, Exhibitions

I spent much of yesterday finishing this drawing, which has been in my studio for a while. It was originally conceived for a Lovecraft themed show at Copro Gallery a couple of years ago (curated by Cris Velasco). Unfortunately, my workload at the time was very heavy and in the end I went with a smaller piece. Anyway, it was great to finally get this piece finished. Love this medium, and I will definitely be starting another carbon pencil piece right away. Hopefully it won’t take two years to finish!

– Richard.

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Wandering Star, 2018, carbon pencil, 22″ x 16″

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The Hidden Exhibition

Drawings, Exhibitions, Work in Progress, Works for Sale

Hidden_Exhibition_final_web

I had a few free hours today so I finished my drawing “The Hidden Exhibition.” Ink on 140lb Arches hotpress paper, 12″ x 16.″ The work will be shown for the first time at the Roadside Attractions III show at Copro Gallery (curated by Cris Velasco). Inquiries can be made by contacting the gallery through their website. The show opens May 12. If you’ve been following my work in progress shots on this piece, thanks for checking it out.

Here are some detail shots.

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– Richard.

Mid March Update

Drawings, Exhibitions, Fiction, Illustration, Magpie's Ladder, writing

Tidal

Interior Illustration by Richard A. Kirk

I am showing you an illustration I did for the forthcoming Houses Under the Sea by Caitlin R. Kiernan (the image is shown as a crop in the link). This is the first time I have illustrated a book using carbon pencil instead of ink. It was an interesting process as the medium took the drawings in a different direction. I will definitely play with this in future projects.

I’m still working on illustrations for my own book, Magpie’s Ladder,  which will be published later in the year.

In May, I will have work in a show at Copro Gallery in California. The show is Roadside Attractions III, curated by Cris Velasco.

Lots more to come.

  • Richard.

March-hare

Antipodes Project

Drawings, Exhibitions, Mythology, Natural History, Works for Sale

2017, ink, 11″ x 7″
Detail
Detail
Detail

Hot off the drawing table, a new ink drawing for the Antipodes Project originally started by artist Ben Tolman. Visit Joe MacGown’s blog for a good background on the project. I really enjoy creating these intensely packed drawings.

I should also mention that my drawing Hypnos is on display this weekend at Copro Gallery as part of the Underworld show. Contact the gallery for information.

  • Richard.

neume_final_web

Hypnos, 2017, ink on paper, 11″ x 8″

Nameless Larvae of the Other Gods

Books, Drawings, Exhibitions, Illustration, Inspiration, Works for Sale

Here is my piece for the In the Depths show to be held at Copro Gallery in August. The show is curated by Cris Velasco and features works themed  around the writing of H. P. Lovecraft.

I always associate the works of Lovecraft with the doldrums of summer. I was barely a teenager when I discovered Lovecraft, thanks to a rich vein – that reeked of the last owner’s cigarette smoke – in a nearby used bookshop. It was a discursion from  Tolkien, Verne and Peake, my other favorites at the time.

It is pointless to pretend that his lush writing did not have an influence on my developing artistic aesthetic. All those strange cities and damp gardens, and of course the monsters, had a way of sticking in the mind and resurfacing at unexpected moments.

Maybe one day someone will hire me to illustrate a Lovecraftian edition, until then, I’ll leave you with the Nameless Larvae of the Other Gods. If you are interested in purchasing this piece from the show, please contact Copro Gallery.

  • Richard.

Lovecraft Larvae_web

Nameless Larvae of the Other Gods, 2016, ink on paper, 14″ x 10″

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Opening Doors

Drawings, Exhibitions, Natural History, Process

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The Fish Parade, 2004, ink on paper, 10″ x 14″

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Moon Gathering, 2015, Pigma ink on paper, 11″ x 15″

“I tell you, there are more worlds, and more doors to them, than you will think of in many years!”
― George MacDonald, Lilith

 I’ve been thinking of doors to different worlds for many years. Or maybe its the same world, just many different doors. The first drawing was done in 2004, the second this summer. The theme is similar, a child accompanied by fantastical creatures on a journey to somewhere. The earlier one was done when my daughter was small. It’s a portrait of her. The second was from a photograph of a Victorian child, in somewhat different circumstances than I have depicted here. I wonder what the adult, which the child later became, would have thought of my drawing?

On a technical note, the top piece was brush and ink on heavy Arches hotpress paper. The bottom piece was my first largish work done with Micron Pigma pens. The inks are designed for archival purposes, so I felt secure using them. All in all though, I prefer my carbon black Liquitex.

PS. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that Moon Gathering is currently available from Copro Gallery in California. It was part of the Roadside Attractions II show, curated by Cris Velasco.