Category Archives: Digital Artwork

Surrounded by Ideas

Great Space of Creative Ideas. Digital artwork by Karen Gadient, 2013.

I had a dream last night where I saw the embodiment of ideas. My ideas, your ideas, or maybe all the ideas of Earth or the universe. Not really sure. But I got the vibe that ALL THE IDEAS was what I was looking at. And so, here goes:

It started out like a spirit guide, only a spark that I followed in darkness. It didn’t speak to me. Instead, it circled like a firefly—tiny and glowing. It had no true form and was made up of the elements. Fire, water, air, and even scattering bits of earth. It soon grew so that I could see its details better. Like a tiny galaxy, floating around the blackness where I stood.

Quickly—BAM—it expanded and surrounded me. Then it took me inside it and enveloped me so that I became part of it. I couldn’t see my hands or be sure that I still had a body. All I had was an intense warmth and the sensation of water washing over me, air I knew I was consciously breathing, and the view of what looked like a million little worlds before me.

Very super cool. I mean, I was a speck among specks, but it was awesome.

Now that I’m awake and back to reality, I’m left with a sense that we’re all so small and yet so powerful. Dreams like that drive me to not waste a moment of life.

Although I did take some time to create what I saw so that you could see it too.

Do you ever have dreams that stay with you and inspire you?

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Filed under Beliefs, Creativity, Digital Artwork, Dream Stories, Graphic Design, Ideas, Imagination, Inspiration, Journal, The Unknown

Illuminathia

Illuminathia. She started out as portrait art, but caffeine gave her superpowers.

Illuminathia by Karen Gadient 2013

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Filed under Art, Art Portfolio, Creativity, Digital Artwork, Fantasy, Freelance, Graphic Design, Imagination, Portrait, Sketchbook

Mother Universe

Poster artwork. It’s a little bit psychedelic. Had some fun creating this one.

Mother Universe

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Filed under Art, Art Portfolio, Creativity, Digital Artwork, Graphic Design, Imagination, Poster, Sketchbook, Space

Cupcakeet

The Cupcakeet. A parakeet and cupcake hybrid graphic design.

I was talking to my mother online the other day and she made the cutest typo. She said that she had gotten some cupcakeets. Of course, she meant cupcakes… but I immediately imagined a cupcake-parakeet hybrid.

And yeah—I got silly and made one while I was still chatting with her.

Vanilla and strawberry, with a touch of cherry!

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Filed under Art, Creativity, Digital Artwork, Games, Graphic Design, Imagination, Sketchbook

Design: “Prismal”

Design: Prismal. By Karen Gadient, 2012

Prismal: design created with stock photos and digital painting. Adobe Photoshop and Corel Painter. First as the design itself, second as a book cover (just for fun).

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Filed under Art, Art Portfolio, Book Cover Design, Digital Artwork, Graphic Design, Sketchbook

Book Cover Design

Summer 2012 book cover design by Karen Gadient

These are some of the book covers that I did over the summer.

Cho Ku Rei was originally a 16×20″ poster that I created using Bryce and Photoshop. The others were done with stock photography. Larger versions and other work can be seen by clicking the image to go to my portfolio.

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Filed under Art Portfolio, Book Cover Design, Digital Artwork, Freelance, Graphic Design, Publishing

Song of the Furies

Artwork inspired by the Furies.

I created artwork for the letter ‘F’ this week. My inspiration is taken from Aeschylus’ Eumenides (you can read it at that link)—also known as the Furies.

From Wikipedia: In Greek mythology the Erinyes (Ἐρινύες, pl. of Ἐρινύς, Erinys; literally “the avengers”) from Greek ἐρίνειν ” pursue, persecute”—sometimes referred to as “infernal goddesses” (Greek χθόνιαι θεαί)—were female chthonic deities of vengeance.

Erinyes corresponds to the Furies or Dirae in Roman mythology.

My inspiration isn’t exactly random. I’d recently been thinking of a performance I’d recorded off PBS over twenty years ago (with a VCR—remember those?). It was Sir Peter Hall’s version: Aeschylus: The Oresteia, performed at Britain’s Royal National Theatre. Done with masks, piercing notes, chanting and lyrics, it stuck in my mind. As a theatre major later, I always thought, “Oh hey, we should do a Greek tragedy with MASKS!” but it never happened.

All the same, the part with the Furies always stuck with me the most. Sometimes we can feel like we’re being pursued by our mistakes (although most of us don’t have murder on our hands). In Sir Peter Hall’s version, the Furies had red hair and gaping mouths. Bit scary! My version is more on the lovely side—but don’t be fooled: she has fangs beyond those lips. *grins* Then, don’t we all?

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Filed under Art, Art Portfolio, Digital Artwork, History, Mythology, Sketchbook, Theatre

Digital Sketchbook 8.16

Something's Fishy

Just playing around. Created in Photoshop and Corel Painter.

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Filed under Art, Art Portfolio, Digital Artwork, Sketchbook