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DanielleDucrest

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After way too many months, here's another review of a piece of art available here on DeviantArt. I made a new year's resolution to post a review of artwork on my blog every week for 2014, and this is my first.

I've also published this on my blog at danielleducrest.blogspot.com/2….

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"Investigating" by Bestiolina

This is a three-panel comic that shows two Doctor Who characters in drawn form. They are identifiable as Amelia Pond and the Doctor, even without the dialogue that mentions their names. They are investigating a strange symbol on a wall. The symbol would be recognizable to Supernatural fans as an angel banishing symbol, but the pair in this strip have never seen it before, so they speculate what it might be. I think my favorite part about this strip is in the dialogue: that both of them are partly right and partly wrong. They're equals, just like they're portrayed on the show (no matter how often the Doctor tries to be the leader and give orders). In the strip, Amy thinks it's a satanic symbol and that it's painted in blood. She's right on the latter count and wrong on the former count. The Doctor thinks the symbol is an "emergency ejection system" painted in something other than blood, and he's only partly right. Both of them are fully in-character; the Doctor even licks the blood and promptly spits it out without any regard to where his companion is standing, which is normal for him.

Amy's at least half a foot shorter in this strip than the actress who plays her. And though, in the third panel, the lack of a background places greater emphasis on the action in the foreground, I'm not a fan of suddenly absent backgrounds after panels that included background details. Maybe I'd be happier if the negative space in the third panel was gray-yellow instead of light blue and therefore matching the other panels. I'm not sure, and it's a minor detail, anyway. Bestiolina did a great job drawing the Doctor's face--especially Matt Smith's cheekbones and hair. I also like the dialogue, as I already said. I also like the little visual clues that indicate they're in a dilapidated room, such as the tears in the wallpaper and the stains in the corners and at the base. This is a short, funny strip, and I have fewer criticisms for it and more compliments.
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I'm back from a week-and-a-half-long vacation where I visited Tampa Bay, Florida. I explored my old alma mater, Eckerd College, and checked out what downtown St. Petersburg looked like at 8 AM, something I had never experienced before (I was rarely awake at 8 AM while in college, and never by choice. I'm rarely awake at 8 AM nowadays, but my sleep schedule always shifts drastically when I'm on vacation). It was strange to return to Florida. My last vacation here was four and a half years ago, and I graduated five years ago. I'd forgotten what it was like to live here. I'd let myself forget how big St. Petersburg is and how crowded Tampa is and how much driving is required to get anywhere simply because a thousand buildings and dozens of stoplights are always between you and your destination. I'd forgotten what sand is like; I'd remembered that it is hard to walk on, but I'd forgotten exactly how hard. I'd remembered that it got everywhere, but I'd forgotten how hard it could be to brush sand off your clothes and limbs. I'd forgotten that salt water stings and tastes awful. I'd forgotten that St. Pete Beach is not as wide as I'd thought, while it is as long as I'd remembered. I'd remembered how picturesque everything is, but I'd forgotten just how big some of the islands are. I'm going to have to make some changes to my novel. I'm writing a story that's set on St. Pete Beach, but my memories of the place had been seriously flawed; now, I can portray it more realistically.

I went to the beach and took hundreds of pictures of waves, the Gulf stretching to the horizon, people lying on the sand, and more people bobbing or wading through the waves. Ten percent of my photos are of my friends and me, which I will not be posting. Fifty percent of my photos are meant to be used in panoramic collages, and I will be posting those gradually as I piece them together in Photoshop. Five percent of the photos came out blurry; that's an annoying consequence of a digital camera with a useless automatic-focus function that I can't turn off. You will probably see about 5% of the remainder.

I've already started to post photos from my trip. If you like them, please be sure to hit the "Add to Favourites" button or leave a comment. Prints are also available in various forms. I've purchased prints from DeviantArt this year, and I was very happy with their quality.
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I like to press the "Add to Favourites" button when I see new artwork I like, but I don't like to post comments. To make up for this fact, I will review some of the art in my favorites folders beginning with a few pieces of Supernatural fanart.

Using the random number generator at random.org, I have gone to a couple of pages of my "Supernatural--Fav of Favs" folder, where I chose a few of the pieces on those pages to review.

These reviews have also been published on my blog: danielleducrest.blogspot.com/2….



The SUPER Simpsons by Sayuri527
"The SUPER Simpsons" by Sayuri527
This Simpsons/Supernatural crossover is awesome. It's got a narrative. It conveys four simultaneous plots all in one image--the lovebirds on the left; Sam confronting Ghost Grandpa Simpson while Lisa, Marge and Homer watch; Maggie's desire to pet the bird; and Bart's discovery of a new trampoline. The image also has in-jokes from and allusions to elements of both TV shows. It even conveys a Destiel pairing with one sappy look between Dean Winchester and Castiel. While most of the action is in the foreground, the background isn't static filler--there's Bart, jumping on the Impala simply because he knows it will piss off the owner, even if he doesn't know who Dean is. It's clear which characters are Dean, Sam and Castiel, even if they aren't usually rendered in the Simpsons drawing style. The image doesn't reveal whether or not the Simpsons family met the Winchesters and Castiel previously, but the Simpsons family are hiding behind a graveyard tree late at night, so they knew *something* would happen. A lot is going on here, and it all makes me smile.



Demiurge by VicemirAlex
"The Demiurge" by ReMr186

The first thing I love about this is that it's animated. The second thing I love is that it's interactive. Hover the cursor on the right or left edge of the image, and the view will shift a few feet in either direction. Viewers are also given the option of listening to accompanying music.

After I had fun playing with the moving "camera" view, I turned my attention to the shifting mobile-like sculpture on the table. In the thumbnail, I'd thought the sculpture was a 3D chess board from Star Trek, but I was delighted to realize that is something else intricate and interesting. Castiel sits beside the sculpture at the table. I can't tell if he is blinking periodically or if his eyes turn black, and I feel like that should be made clear. His arm is outstretched as if he is about to select one of the spinning or bobbing platforms. The artwork description says, "Alternative universes / There are a lot of stories about one destiny..." From this, I assume that the silhouettes on the little platforms each depict a different story, and Castiel is debating which story he wants to join. I also assume that these stories involve Castiel, the Winchesters or the Supernatural universe in some way.

Some of the little platforms contain scenes that may reference Supernatural canon:

The second-highest bobbing platform shows a figure leaning back in a chair at a desk. The figure throws a wad of paper at the head of a second figure sitting atop a second desk. Meanwhile, a third figure points to a dry erase board while talking to the second figure. This little story reminds me of Sam's hallucinations of Lucifer in season seven, particularly how often Lucifer became bored and did annoying things to force Sam to pay attention to him. The first figure would then be Lucifer, the second would be Sam, and the third figure would be someone not imaginary with whom Sam is trying to interact.

The two spinning platforms, meanwhile, both have a church and a car--probably the Impala--parked outside it. In one, a man--I assume Sam--exits the church then reenters it while Dean and Castiel speak privately. On the other platform, Dean and Sam are talking, and Castiel is not present. These two platforms could be references to scenes in Supernatural's season eight finale.

Another of the little platform stories seems to reference fandom:

The lower right platform contains a snow globe. Under the dome, two mermen float in water amid bits of a coral reef. This could be a reference to the proliferation of mermaid and merman artwork in Supernatural fandom inspired by the fanfic story "Out of the Deep" by riseofthefallenone.

I don't recognize two of the little platform stories at all:

The highest platform seems to contain a castle. Fireworks explode around it as a figure dashes out of the door and down a hillside. Meanwhile, the lower-left platform depicts a lot of silhouettes that I don't recognize, though the arch with a glowing center reminds me of both a Stargate and the time traveling portal in one episode of Star Trek: The Original Series.

I think I would like more information in the description about the stories on these little platforms and why Castiel is contemplating each one. I am intrigued by this art piece, and while I enjoy coming up with my own theories, I also enjoy reading about the artist's intentions, too.

The artist encourages viewers to zoom in to see the little platforms more clearly. I did so, and I find it interesting that some elements of the sculpture--which I presume are decorative and have less importance--become pixelated while the little platforms are in higher definition.

Though I am curious to know more about some elements of this composition, I like this piece. I could easily look at this animation for a long time and still not see it all.



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"levi!Cas" by LucyAnneThropy

Leviathan artwork is often creepy or gross, as it should be. These creatures become monsters in fandom, so much scarier than they ever were on the screen and more worthy of the horror genre. In LucyAnneThropy's (great name, by the way) fanart piece, Misha Collins's handsome looks have been turned into a mockery of a clown's with pale skin and a creepy smile. The look in his eyes is menacing and excited. I'm getting chills even without taking into account the blood and black goo splattered on his skin and clothes. Levi!Cas towers over the viewer, and the perspective asserts his dominating position of power. He's in charge, that little smile says he intends to make the viewer his next meal, and there's nothing the viewer can do about it. The only negative thing I can say about this piece is the background. While the halo-like quality of the light is a nice touch, I'm not sure its bluish-green coloring fits works well with the rest of the composition. Despite that, there are a lot of good things going on in the foreground.



SPN: Cold Burn by Slinkymilinky
"SPN: Cold Burn" by Slinkymilinky

This piece, one of the first bits of fanart I saw on DeviantArt over a year ago, remains one of my all-time favorites. I enjoy BAMF!Cas, and I love fanart that shows any of the Supernatural characters fighting monsters or demons. This one in particular has a lot of motion; the blurred background, swirling coat and messy contour lines contribute to the feelings that I am witnessing the climactic moment of a violent fight. We are shown the very moment when Cas wins without even getting blood on his blade. I love the perspective in here, too. Cas's hand extends directly to the spot where the viewer is watching the fight. The perspective makes Cas's arm seem too long, but it's hard to tell if that's true, and if I let myself imagine that I'm actually standing feet away from the two fighters, I feel much more worried about the blade's edge accidentally cutting my face.
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Sometimes, I string my beaded pendants onto satin cords instead of chains. On my blog, I have posted a guide to how to turn a length of satin cord into a necklace. If you're interested, please let me know if you find it helpful. Also let me know if any of the steps need clarification or expansion.

How to Make My Kind of Satin Necklace Cord: danielleducrest.blogspot.com/2…



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Part One:
Today, I posted three shots of the last of the three abstract paintings I made two years ago on recycled wood. The more I learn about the price of wood at local hardware stores, the more I realize how fortunate I was to find these old bookshelves. Someone in my apartment complex had tossed them out and left them beside the dumpster. The weather had been good, so the shelves were still in good shape when I found them.

This painting, which I'm calling "Ablaze," was fun to make. I didn't expect the purple paint I used to turn out so dark, but it works for the subject matter. I like Side Two more than Side One, but to me, Side Two has more energy and movement. You can see views of the painting at this fav.me/d6bdrzq, this fav.me/d6bdsig and this fav.me/d6bdt5y.


Part Two:
Yesterday on my blog, I published a tutorial about how to make a necklace chain, one in the same style I use for many of the necklaces on display in my DeviantArt gallery. It's my first jewelry tutorial, so if you're interested but any of the steps need clarification, let me know and I'll try my best to rectify that.

How to Make a Necklace Chain: danielleducrest.blogspot.com/2…
My DeviantArt necklace gallery: danielleducrest.deviantart.com…
Clockwork Bits & Bobbins on Etsy, where you can see more views of my beaded jewelry and purchase them if you like them: clockworkbobbins.etsy.com


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