❤ ❤ ❤ Hello Dear Friends! ❤ ❤ ❤
It's spring! A bit wintery, but still. Perfect time for developing a crush on someone, and so the forest ghosts are now more likely to show up in pairs, whether it's under the mushroom, upon the moss or elsewhere that you meet them :)
I enjoy imagining forest ghosts in their natural habitat, but so far I've portrayed them almost always half-hidden, still, wary and observing only. Now I'm constantly drawing them in relaxed, playful poses. I'm calling that a progress (and also my subconscious is demanding more rest, I guess ;P)
Here's the finished artwork:
Pen and ink on paper, 21x29,7 cm
THE INSPIRATION AND STORY BEHIND TODAY'S GHOST
Well, I think those two forest ghosts have only just met. An instant crush, I'd say, given the big heart over their heads. They're very alike, identical actually, and this might play some role in how much they like each other.
Besides from the anime and emoji inspiration mentioned in my previous posts, as well as fantastic artworks by other artists, this particular piece is I also inspired by my recent findings on the tough reality of sparrows in Warsaw (and other big Polish cities). March the 20th was a World Sparrow Day (also happens to by my name day, hehe), and because I adore sparrows I wanted to find out more about them. I've came by an article describing the constant decline in sparrow population due to conditional changes in the cities. In short, it's harder for these cute little birdies to find food (closed rubbish bins, shortly mowed lawns, lack of natural green areas in cities and towns, less insects), safely function in the city (because of predators like cats, dogs, larger birds like magpies; lack of green areas; contamination; modern building with smooth elevations, or old ones being thermomodernized) and build nests and raise offspring (again, modern urban building with smooth elevations, thermomodernization, predators etc.). This is by no means an exhaustive list describing the plight of sparrows, if you're interested you will find more on the topic in the Internet. I'm aware that nowadays it is a tough call for the majority of wild species, but sparrows have stolen my heart ;) and hedgehogs, too!
Sparrows, JPG made by moi out of my scanned linocut, 18 x 30 cm
Anyway, these findings had a huge impact on me!
Recently I've decided to change my company's policy and to start giving the 3% of our profit (and much more often, our income) from our sales to cats, hedgehogs, birds, dogs - animals in need. We have supported honorable causes and cooperated with charitable organizations before, but we wanted to make a step further to systematize our support. I'm very happy with this new policy and I think I could recommend such initiative to anyone running a business, small or big.
Anyhow, my big, deep and long-lasting admiration for sparrows prompted me to engage in some additional actions, like counting the sparrows (collectively with other sparrow-lovers, of course ;), providing nesting boxes, food, but most importantly- by growing awareness and developing some global urban policy). I know there are many people dedicated to help birds in cities and I'm going to do my best to help grow sparrows population again.
I'm very curious about your experiences, have you been engaged in any sort of charity events or have you been supporting charities financially? Which actions are important to you personally? Maybe you're passionate about saving wildlife or homeless pets? I would really love to know, guys!
But I totally forgot to tell you why my romantic post is inspired by sparrows!
Well, it turns out that sparrows are some very amorous birds. Potentially, they could be laying eggs over a dozen times in a single year. Did you know that they were taken as a symbol of lust and love in the past? But now they need human help to grow back their population.
And now to say a word or two about the step by step progress of artwork :)
STAGES OF WORK
- A delicate pencil sketch! At first there was only one lonely forest ghost on paper.
- Redrawing with pen!
- Adding some initial shading (stippling) and textures!
- Shading and texturing intensifies...
- Up to the point, when a still single ghostie is ready...
- And then the ghost gets reflected, doubled, joined together, and somehow again, the two become one. Sort of ❤
A STEP BY STEP GIF
Here you can see the previous Shiny Forest ghost Sticker:
- Shiny Forest Ghost Sticker Series - Under the Mushroom
- Shiny Forest Ghost Sticker Series - Upon the Moss
I hope you've enjoyed my Shiny Forest ghosts in love :)
I'm very grateful for all the kindness, support and inspiration I've received so far here on Steemit! I appreciate that a lot, guys, and as always...
Adorable :3
Thank you, dear @kristyglas! <3
so cute <3 I love this ! simple and full with love~
it's autumn here and today is raining from morning to afternoon :O
we live opposite at the other side of the world !!!
upvotes
Yeah, and it's cool to stay in touch with you and think about your autumn :) You know, I'm not sure if this could interest you, but there is one Youtube Channel that I quite enjoy, it's called JET Crew and its hosts are an Australian guy and a Polish guy, they make funny videos but it's mostly fun to watch how they interact with themselves or with some cringy Polish themes hehe, makes their content a bit unique in this aspect. I'm not sure if it's a content you would enjoy! But I'm curious if you would hah :)
Love,
Klaudia
Oh, I will check them out :> Thank you for the rec!!!
I love how you always give a little background with your art! And it sounds like you're doing a nice thing with the sparrows! I had no clue they were amorous! I know doves mate for life, so they're definitely on the opposite end of the adultery spectrum :P
Well, from what I've learnt sparrows are actually quite monogamous, however they tend to have an affair from time to time without the spouse knowing. They're active players. Yeah, I got very concerned about them, and I intent to make what I can to help them, I will put in my next post :)
Love,
Klaudia
Charming little forest ghosts! >‿< Your art style never ceases to amaze me.
And you're right about how we really should start taking care of our friends from the forest. Maybe we need them in the future but they need us now more than ever.
Thank you, dear @rjd! Oh, I'm very concerned about birds in Warsaw in general. Of course I care about other wild animals as well, but sparrows stole my heart. Do you have sparrows in Philippines? :)
Cheers,
Klaudia
Very nice art..