This winter I enjoyed taking photos of many winter trees.  Here is a sampling-- we did get some snow this winter so some have snow, and others don't.

This fall and winter I've been designing some greeting cards.  They are mostly made with pen and color pencil drawings that were scanned.  Some are also made using digital art.
I've started to look for ways to market the cards.  They are for sale on my website and on Etsy (www.etsy.com/shop/DianeHurstArt). Also there are some in a couple of shops downtown, now!  This week there are two stores that purchased some for resale-- they are Broadway Station (a mailstop; they have some cards and misc. other items) and Lo-Lo on Broadway (a gift shop with lots of essential oils, soaps, lotions, cards, and some other things).

And I have 2 card racks now . . .  for displaying at art shows, etc.  One is a wooden rack.  The other one is wire and rotates.  They were both items requiring more than one person to put together. . . I found this out after trying to fit the parts together on one side, while they kept falling out at the other side.  So was very glad to get some help from friends to put together the wire one, and from my son to assemble the wooden one.

Here is the wooden rack, with cards :)

This fall I took a class in InDesign. It was good to start getting acquainted with this software, for designing books and booklets.  Also had a Typography class, and learned many things about letters and type-faces.  Below is one project done for Typography; it is a blend of three different text sections, placed together in a design.

It is kind of a snapshot of fall . . . the weather, and the trees losing their leaves mixed in with autumn colors..

Also, this fall I took lots of photos of leaves . . . everywhere I went it seemed like I kept seeing these wonderful, colorful, interesting shapes and sizes of leaves, and since I didn't usually have my camera, I was glad that cell phones can take pictures.  Will put a few of them below.

This last photo was altered in Photoshop, to increase the speckly appearance of the pavement and bring out details in the leaf.

Also have been making lots more drawings.  One of these was of a leaf, so will put it here:

This August I have artwork up at Low Bar . . . it is a very nice bar/restaurant in downtown Vancouver.  They have a dramatic and awesome way to display art there-- there are three recessed panels where pictures are hung, with lighting.  They also have amazing food . . . I had a Greek salad when I was there for First Friday, and I think I have never had so many kalamata olives before.

The series of pictures that is at Low Bar is the same as what was up at the downtown library for just a few days in July.  But at Low Bar, they will be there much longer, through Aug 30.

Come and take a look!  I will put a few pictures of the setting here, but these are small in format and don't show how long and tall the three panels are; each panel has three color pencil pictures hung on it.

"The Eye of the Storm" -- ink and color pencil

"Blue  Green Color Fence" and "Yellow Purple Design"

"Color Machine" -- ink and color pencil

I'm getting ready to bring a set of framed pictures to the downtown library . . .  these will be included in a show featuring myself and three other artists.  

It begins on First Friday, July 7, with a reception from 5:00 to 8:30 . . . and will continue through Saturday and Sunday. 

I hope you can make it to see them while they're up!  
The downtown library is on C street:, 901 C St, Vancouver, WA 98660

Enroute, on the plane . . .

This was an Air B&B; there were musical instruments all over the place . . .

This event is entirely run by volunteers!  Here are a few of them getting ready for sign-in.

Rocking out with Sideways Derby​, one of the music groups who played in the evening showcase.

There is a big banner on the stage . . . a backdrop for the speakers and other participants.

Royal Ruckus is a rapper.  His stage partner is a little dog named Olivia.  
Performers were critiqued by a music industry panel.

Another Air B&B -- close to downtown, where the event was held.

A workshop speaker with his glasses prop . . . and another industry panel, doing Q and A

Everyone was singing together at the start of this meeting in a school.

You better not whine at Puckett's -- there is a $5 fine.  
​This grocery store and restaurant was the place for an after-party.

What could be more fun than an open mic?  This is inside Puckett's.

There was an interesting plant in the window-- maybe a cactus? -- at this Air B&B.

I sat across from this person, waiting to get on the plane to go back home.

I've enjoyed making some line/shape designs in recent months . . . here are some --

These are made with ink and color pencil.

Here is an artwork that will be in Angst Gallery, Vancouver's December show.  To celebrate their eighth anniversary Angst is having a special exhibit in December to showcase all the artists who have shown there over the years.   I've only shown at Angst since last year, but am glad to be part of the display.

This is an ink and color pencil picture.  The version above is a print;; the original artworkI framed for the show looks the same, but without the outer margins (it goes right to the edges of the mat without having white space around it).

First Friday in December is the show opening, and it will be there all month.

More with illustrator -- this was a line art project.  

It was a busy summer . . .studying digital photo and also web video production.  Now fall is here, and it is a new term, this time with 20th Century Art History -- and a class in Adobe Illustrator.

I can tell already that the skills I'm beginning to learn in Illustrator will be very helpful for doing artwork using the computer.

Here is my first project--  it is a house built (from a reference photo) using shapes and lines:

I tried this variation, too -- made from a special setting in Photoshop Elements: