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Inspiration / Fascination…
Last month I began exploring the relationship between illlustration and fine art. This month I’m featuring Elaine Drew - a contemporary illustrator, painter, and writer of cozy mysteries and adult fairy tales.
I met Elaine Drew at a Society of Tempera Painters meeting and knew her as an egg tempera artist influenced by Byzantine icons.
Over the years, her illustration work has come to the fore as she depicts the scenes that populate her medieval-based novels. Drew became fascinated with early medieval life while living in England for four years:
My children went to the local village school, and when Saxon remains were found on the playground, I wondered what might lie beneath the soil in our garden. I knew that the nearby town of Winchester had been home to 9th century kings. Living in the area gave me the opportunity to research that time and place. I visited sites, attended archeology classes at Southampton University, and studied Old English.
Contemporary and historical art techniques can coexist: Drew sometimes designs her illustration work in the Fresco app. She then transfers the finished design to watercolor paper to paint in gouache (opaque watercolor).
Drew says:
Egg tempera taught me the importance of careful preparation before painting.
The text above the illustration demonstrates Drew’s wry, irreverent humor, which permeates all her writing and keeps me giggling. In case it’s too small to read, it says:
They were married, and lived happily ever after. Even if, like most couples, they confused each other most of the time.
Whereas most artists use live models or photographs (and now AI) to craft their human figures, Drew creates them from her imagination, building on techniques that approximate anatomical structures. Here are two cover images:
Below is an early egg tempera painting by Drew, showing how her illustration work and egg tempera paintings differ, yet both embody fine art.
Drew writes:
The Egg and I contemplate our place, as women, in the cycle of creativity. An ancient bird goddess represents our ancestral mothers from time immemorial and observes us from the very center of the “I”. The egg that “I” hold is the symbol of my potential as a person and as a woman to pass forward the gifts of our mothers.
To me, this painting also represents the divine egg, which gives us egg tempera painters an alchemical-like substance with which to express our visions.
Drew is currently working on a new mystery, Prying I. To learn more about Drew’s books, Nun Too Clever, A Knight’s Bad Day, and Damsel’s Dilemma, visit her Amazon page: Elaine Drew.
From My Easel…
For Valentine’s Day this year, I shared “Lovers With Colostomy.”
Here is the story behind the painting as told in my book, Art & Love: My Life Illuminated in Egg Tempera:
While living in my tipi, I worked as a community health nurse visiting elderly Mainers in their homes. A memorable patient was Madeleine, who was terminally ill with cervical cancer. She shared a home with her sister-in-law, Helen, who cared for her. The two widows had been married to brothers and were very close.
Madeleine’s cancer had metastasized to her intestines, and she was given a colostomy. Unfortunately, the appliance did not adhere well to her emaciated body. Helen would drive to a spot near my tipi and shout into the woods: “Madeleine is leaking!”—there were no cell phones in those days. Years later, I painted Lovers with Colostomy.
The image portrays a couple in an intimate moment. The colostomy is downplayed to evoke normalcy, yet it draws the eye and becomes the center of interest. The man is bald, echoing the theme of sensuality in the midst of imperfection. Mini airplanes suggest flying or swimming sperm. A viewer at open studios noted the man’s head is positioned over the woman’s heart, signifying an emotional bond. Another visitor suggested, “The man is listening to the woman’s heartbeat.”
But the first time I exhibited the painting, a woman came up to me and said, “I hate your painting, and your painting is me.” She told me she has a permanent colostomy, which she hates, and resented that I was romanticizing colostomies. But more often, the painting has been acknowledged for its message of positivity and tenderness. My hope is that viewers might come away with a more expansive view of life beyond the constraints of perceived normality.
Book Update…
One of my goals was to donate the book to university libraries. I was thrilled when the University of California, Berkeley (my alma mater), accepted my donation!
I finally shipped books to my wonderful beta readers and to my editor in Europe. One of my cherished beta readers, Megan Players, posted this on Instagram upon receiving her book:
Learn about Megan Players here.
If you’d like to read Art & Love, you can find it on my website, or can be ordered at any independent bookstore, bookshop.org or the evil Amazon where you can read the fun reviews. You can listen to the audiobook for free on Hoopla.
Poll!…
It’s hard to believe I started Art Blotter Plus in 2023, 3 1/2 years ago, and this is my 26th post!
I’m considering making Art Blotter plus more art-focused and would love your feedback. I have lots of interests beyond art - that’s the “plus” in Art Blotter Plus. I would be grateful for your feedback about features I might eliminate. If I decide to eliminate non-art topics, I could change this Substack's name from “Art Blotter Plus” to simply “The Art Blotter.” What do you think?
This poll is very limited, as it doesn’t allow multiple choices. So, please leave additional thoughts in the comments below or reply to this email. The comment button is fun ‘cause everyone can read each other’s comments.
Song from the Great American Songbook…
My Funny Valentine1was written by Richard Rodgers and the legendary lyricist Lorenz Hart in 1937. The lyrics reflected Hart’s own insecurities and belief that he was too short and ugly to be loved. This is a version by Elvis Costello.
As Always, Carry on Bravely,
Lora
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My Funny Valentine Lyrics
My funny valentine,
Sweet comic valentine,
You make me smile with my heart.
Your looks are laughable,
Unphotographable,
Yet you’re my favorite work of art.
Is your figure less than Greek?
Is your mouth a little weak?
When you open it to speak
Are you smart?
But don’t change your hair for me,
Not if you care for me.
Stay, little valentine, stay.
Each day is Valentine’s Day.
by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart
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