Art Journal Complete

Art Journal by Phillip Hoyle 2016

I finished my art journal last week and am pleased with the work in it and its completion. I show here a few more photos of the pages from the journal.

As I worked in it, I realized I wanted to combine artwork with a personal narrative yet without words. I’ll not now write a book about the ideas but simply enjoy the less specific content of visual images rather than word pictures. That’s a push for me.

A personal addition to the journal.
Art Journal by Phillip Hoyle 2016

I feel satisfied with this book without words. It tells a story of my long-time fascination with Native American experience generally and with petroglyphs specifically. Such images have informed much of my artwork for almost forty years.

A word of thanks here for the encouragement of my artist friend Sue. She challenged me to do the project and has cheered me on during my weeks of work. Also, THANKS to my blog readers who have commented. Say more if you will!

The final journal entry of nearly forty images.
Art Journal by Phillip Hoyle 2016

Art Journal with No Words

Art Journal by Phillip Hoyle, 2016. A mixed media experiment and
a personal experiment to see if I can produce a book in which I write
no words. So far, so good!

I am pleased that the project to produce an art journal this year is underway. I've made good progress both in making pages and in coming to understand what I am doing. So without words I arrange my pages paying some attention to what appears next to each other. Someone may wonder just how I made my decisions. I'm not sure I can even explain.

Art Journal by Phillip Hoyle 2016. Of course there are words on the old
map I've used, but they're very hard to read and only indicate the part
of the world from which the petroglyph designs have come.

I am making some personal references through the use of a few photographs, for example including one of a snapshot I took when I was a young teen at a powwow, another one of a family member many years ago.


I hope you as a reader of this blog will get as much kick out of my efforts as I am in doing the project.

Art Journal by Phillip Hoyle 2016. I am having a great time with mixed media
interpretations using prints, monoprints, stamps, and a variety of pens. Each
page measures 5x8". 

Artist Trading Cards Safari

Look carefully as if you are walking through the grasslands of eastern
Africa on safari. You may notice that there is something back in there!
It's a tissue paper skin of a leopard! Keep your eyes open while on
Safari. The grass is drawn with gel pens and  markers.
ATCs by Phillip Hoyle 2016

Last Saturday I traded ATCs at CORE New Art Space in the monthly trade there. The theme Safari intrigued me. I didn’t care to picture high power rifles or over-proud hunters. I opted for something visual, a representation of what one might see in the grass or jungle if one’s safari eyes were properly trained and alert.

I made nine cards with different products. Perhaps they are as varied as the actual grasses of the broad plains of eastern Africa. I also made cards with trees, particularly Acacia and Baobab trees. 

These grasses were made from a commercial handmade green paper with
leaf and twig pieces in it. I drew with pens and cut holes to reveal that
a leopard may be lurking there to surprise you.
ATCs by Phillip Hoyle 2016

Denver, 2016

New Year Art Plans

An art journal is underway already! these pieces are not complete but just
barely started. I'll show the work throughout 2016. I really hope to learn
new things about my art, about mixed media, about the treatment of
traditional designs as I work with this kind of book making.

I’m busy making a list! I’ll check it endlessly during the coming year (if I can find it). Perhaps these are ART RESOLUTIONS. 

Fill my frames. I have lots of completed and almost-completed artwork and many, many frames. Perhaps they can become gifts? I can hang some.

Each time I have an Artist trading Cards theme, complete two sheets of designs. That means 18 cards to trade. That’s a bunch of cards since I go to two monthly trades.

Keep working of flora designs toward a goal of making floral relief prints as well as continuing my mixed-media pieces.

Make monoprints galore in order to develop my own style of gel plate printing.

Draw, draw, draw.

As you can see, the page on the left is only an idea. No glue has
made its way there. On the right is a collage of a relief print on top of a
monoprint. Who knows were these ideas will lead me. I'm looking forward
to the journey in this art journal. The difference between these new books
is that I will write nothing in them, no words, simply artwork without
explanation. Guess you'll suffer some of the explanations if you follow
this blog!

Keep up art journals related to Native American petroglyphs, journals that combine art with writing.

Continue my regular daily journal entries—3 pages each day—general topics.

Write weekly stories for the storytelling group.

Write monthly chapters for longer works, chapters to read at the writers group I attend.

Make a flora drawing trip to Mid-MO. Also to see family there.

Do local plein air drawing outings with artist friends Sue and Jan.

Make watercolor ATCs.

That’s way too many, but one of the things I do effectively is make lists!

Happy New Year to you.

This page is glued but only just begun!
Art journal by Phillip Hoyle 2016

Denver, 2016