Art & Design,Visual ArtMAY 17, 2015

Animal Spirits In Pencil And Ink

This series is ongoing; it may never end. It's a long list of every animal I find interesting, made into images that evoke their lives. I started this series in 2010 and I continue to add more each year.

When I was a kid, I had the complete set of the green-boxed animal cards. Complete set. I would spend hours looking at them, and reading about every animal. I memorized them, I stuffed my brain with trivial facts about each creature. I wished there were more animals, more facts.

I think this series is my attempt, as an adult, to recapture that feeling of connection. I have lived in the woods and in the cities as an adult, but there are so many animals in this world I'll never see outside a zoo- and most I'll never get to touch, or get close to.

The geometry behind each animal is meant to represent their lives, inner or outer. For example, the walrus lives in a place where meat is the only food, pretty much- hence the red backdrop. I felt that they are very much a bloody animal- I mean, when they exit the icy waters, their bodies turn pink from the flush of blood to their skins. This influenced my choice of color. Their personality, their spirit, seems very radiant to me, very warm- despite the cold climate they prefer. The shapes behind them are meant to convey this warmth and radiance. They're like big, meaty space heaters, radiating warmth into the icy world around them.

Each of these animals may also have minor added detail to show other things which affect them, like the white bird on the hippo’s head, or the bubbles around the octopus.

I used handmade paper for most of these, which I smoothed, (I use a rock for this) then tinted with watercolor or indelible ink. Then I drew the animal in colored pencil. The geometric shapes were planned with a kaleidoscope, a few pieces of a spirograph, and just plain old eyeballing the shapes for clarity. None are precisely symmetrical or perfect- but that isn't my goal. Capturing the animal's spirit or personality is the goal. I'm still trying with each new animal to get closer to the heart of them.

More info: anjimarth.com