Thursday, August 22, 2019

Thursday Art Date: Comics/Cartoons


Hello Friends! :)

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date! Our theme today is Comics/Cartoons. This is a theme that is close to my heart! The Looney Tunes have been the subject of many of my art pieces and I have a lot of fun drawing them. Today I decided to give tribute to some very famous paintings and painters. I'm not much into comics and comic books, and admittedly steered clear of that subject, shame on me for not challenging myself! :)

Above: Edvard Munch's The Scream featuring Tweety Bird. This was mixed media: pastels, Prismacolor Pencils and Sharpies. I love this painting and I've done a few different renditions in the past:


I did the original Scream in pastels. That was a bit of a turning point for me in my art. It was easy for a change, that's when I knew that I was comfortable calling myself an "artist"....or as J.J. Walker said in the 70's sitcom "Good Times"... "I'm an arteest". I couldn't find a video of him saying that, but here's a throwback for those who saw the sitcom in the 70's where his signature phrase was "DYNOMITE"!! :) The Snowman Scream was born on a very cold day in April of last year when we had yet another dump of a snowstorm!


Bugs Bunny posed for Whistler's Mother by James McNeill Whistler. It was hard getting Bugs to sit still for this painting, because he is such a stinker and he had mischief on the brain...plus, he knew who was in the next studio...


Daffy Duck doing his best impression of Leonardo Da Vinci's Mona Lisa. I was lucky enough to visit Paris, France when I was 16 years old, and I saw the original Mona Lisa at the Louvre museum along with many other beautiful works of art. I think that visit sparked an art passion in me!


I was fooling around with some photo software and found the "comic" setting...I guess this is what I'd look like in comic form!


Cauliflower is in season right now so I got a lot of it! I put most of it in the freezer, and kept a few heads out for dinners. I made a Cauliflower and Cheddar Quiche one night. It was so good!


In an effort to make more vegetarian delights, I made Cauliflower Burgers. They were actually really tasty, though I had my doubts! I served them with fries and some really sweet corn on the cob.


I had my first disappointing cheese fail of 2019. Mozzarella. Yeah, that again. Some of you may remember that I attempted to make Traditional Mozzarella SIX times in 2017 and failed each time. The seventh time I succeeded. I tried twice this year and both times failed...so I'm taking Traditional Mozzarella off the rotation for another year or so until I have the motivation to try again! It's such a hard cheese to make!!!


I'm happy to say that I did have a cheese success in the last week - American Cheese (a.k.a. homemade Velveeta). This is SO GOOD and so easy to make! I'm trying to come up with a type of "Cheese Whiz" with my American Cheese...it's a fun and delicious process! :)


I went to the market on Tuesday to take advantage of great prices and was supposed to spend all day yesterday canning...but we had thunderstorms and lost power most of the day! We also spent about 48 hours without water when one of our plumbing fixtures burst. We found a great plumber though and now all is well! I'll be spending the next few days making jam and canning tomatoes!


The thunderstorms though, were bad news for poor Marlene who is terrified of loud noises....


Just the other day she was sitting in the shade and enjoying being outside. Yesterday though, we had to really coax her to go outside just so she could pee!


We have to put a box top on the bathroom garbage can so that one of the cats doesn't go after the garbage...I don't know how Leo manages to balance himself and be comfy on there!


The days are hot and humid, the nights are chilly. From the garden: a beautiful bouquet of wildflowers and Geraniums. Seeing these beautiful flowers makes me appreciate all of the beauty of summer. Our winters last 7-8 months and I have to say I'm not looking forward to another long one here in Quebec! I'm spending as much time outdoors as I can. I hope you are enjoying your summer my friends! (Serena, I hope you're enjoying winter!!!) :)

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One Great Blue Heron in Malpeque P.E.I. (2010)

August 29th: Next Thursday's theme is One. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! :)

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes.

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! Please don't include a link unless you participate in the art date!

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52 comments:

  1. Wow! What a great post! You have been super busy! Have you ever made spiced tomato jam? I love that stuff but it’s been years since I made it. It’s only good with home grown tomatoes. Ours played out at the ranch but if I can find some in a farmers market, I’m getting them!

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  2. Ha ha, I LOVE your Looney Tunes / Art Masterpieces crossovers!

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  3. Haha...love these! Poor Tweety.

    Great cartoon pic of you.

    Cute puppy! I suppose he is not really a puppy anymore...

    Did you order a cat from Amazon? 😂

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  4. i LOVED your art dear Rain :) tweety is my favorite and i can watch loony toons forever :)))

    i watched i think 3 movies with name scream ,liked all but first one was much better
    this face horrified me for long then lol ,great job here either .

    your fertile brain digs alot and i loved what you came out with :) Fantastic comic image of your's :) loved it,you look PERFECT in hat :)

    sorry for power loss ,Marlene looks afraid ,poor girl , either i did not look different when it came heavy thunderstorm in my native town ,very powerful and blowing

    i realized that my likening for summer is increasing with age , i love winters but not as much as i used to before

    your food is tempting as always dear friend,i fill traditional bread with boiled and less cooked cauliflower ,it is always tasty

    your looks more accurate and delicious
    sorry about cheese but stay stick to faith that "if things are not looking good enough, it means there is still time to make them so "american cheese looks great!

    lots of love and best wishes to you and Alex!

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  5. Hi Rain ... Love it all. I have a doctors appointment in a half hour, so I will come back to comment another time :)

    Andrea @ From The Sol

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  6. Enjoyed your cartoon art today! I will try those burgers. So cute sitting in the shade.

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  7. oh i love ll of these! the scream has always been one of my favorite pieces. your food looks soooo good! i am just about to make a vegetarian meal. i'll post it! i am so lucky that the w's aren't afraid of storms. my first chow shook like crazy when it thundered. and now i feel stupid...i never thought of making geranium bouquets and i am up to my eyeballs in geraniums. i'll be doing that for the rest of the season! you were right about that artist that painted the portrait i bought. that is exactly who it is!

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  8. Great artistry! My favorite is Whistler's Mother and Mona Lisa....you are so good! thanks for the heads up about the mozzarella. American cheese would be great as I use it quite a bit. Enjoy your summer...we could trade places as I prefer winter and summmers here are way too long for my taste. Take care.

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  9. What a wonderful post Rain! I truly love your Looney Tunes art!!! Fantastic! The one of you is so cute! Your cauliflower quiche looks so good! Sorry about your Mozzarella! Give Marlene a hug from me! Leo is so darn adorable!!!! That is too funny on top of the box!!!! Big Hugs to everyone!

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  10. I love stopping over to view the food!! YUMMY. Looks like you have a lot of canning ahead of you but I think that is awesome. If I did as much as you it was be amazing. I could not stand your winters. Cold is hell on me for one thing and I just don't like having to hibernate that long...haha ... Love the paintings.

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  11. Who knew one could make so many things with cauliflower! Canning is work but love seeing the filled jars. Poor Marlene. Our Coco is the same way. Your cat sitting up there is a hoot! Nancy

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  12. Me too, me too, I love all the Looney Tune adaptations. Sort of a gothic Bugs Bunny. And I also have fallen in love with cauliflower this summer since I've been eating mostly Keto. My favorite is steamed, then mashed with homemade mayo slathered all over it. Yum to the hundredth degree.

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  13. I love your Loony Masterpieces, Rain! What fun. And you look pretty good as a cartoon, friend. Cauliflower burgers... hmmm... Nope. Not convinced. lol But I'm impressed that you tried them and found them tasty. And how funny is that picture of Leo balancing on a box on a garbage can!!! I imagine your animals supply you with endless opportunities for great photos.

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  14. What a great collection of photos. Very curious about your mozzarella. I'm no help because I've never tried traditional mozz, I still only do my own version of the "quick." I still get some fails from time to time, but we use it anyway!

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  15. I'm in love with all things Tweety and adore that pic so much, but all your work is fabulous. You know I love my cheeseburgers, but the cauliflower burger is a big fat NO Radiant Rain!(lol) I'll take all those crispy looking fries though. Hugs, RO

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  16. So where to begin ... The Scream, why is it that we are so drawn to that painting? It is scary and even a little creepy (except when you put Tweety Birds head in there LOL) and yet, here he is again in the works of an "Arteest" :) My favorite might be Whistler's Mother though she is a "hare" bit different than I remember her :) You are clearly well versed on the works of famous artists ... did you study art somewhere or have you picked up your knowledge on your own? Mona Lisa's subtle smile is just ducky :) And I am envious of your being at the Louvre ... in all my years I haven't made it there, sad, isn't it? But now, you must tell me what software you were using for your awesome cartoon You ... I love it and I can think of many ways to use it. Is it available somewhere? What can I say about all of your culinary creations that hasn't already been said ... I would love to have the ambition and talent you have in so many different ways. I don't think there are many like you in this world. As for the cat on the Amazon Box, I laughed. I have seen that scene over and over here. There isn't a box in my house that hasn't been sat on by a cat, Ha! It's the nature of the beast :) Well, enough ... I have already started on next weeks post. You do know how to challenge one's imagination. I am going to have to give this "one" a lot of thought. Thanks for all you do, Rain ... so glad to be back in touch.

    Andrea @ From the Sol

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  17. So much to see and read in your post, I really enjoyed it.
    Lovely to see your cauliflower burgers, we love cauliflower in our house.
    Isn't it amazing how cats love to balance, and seeing Leo there I'm sure he is comfy.

    Enjoy your weekend.

    All the best Jan

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  18. Yes, a great post! I love your work. Just amazing.
    Poor dogs in storms. It's awful for them.
    Too bad about the cheese!

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  19. Rain, your post is so interesting and your artwork so much fun. I would love to hang out with you and learn how to make cheese,you amaze me. Who makes their own cheese? It must be fantastic, my mouth waters just thinking about it.
    Have a wonderful weekend.
    Connie

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  20. LOL on the Leo pic. We have to close the bathroom doors around here because the kittens like to climb up onto the toilets and the vanities.

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  21. Rain,

    I love your Loony Toon masterpieces! I hope to share something this week if time allows. I just haven't been motivated artwise lately. I think I've had my head buried in other things keeping my focus off my favorite passion but I'll find my way back to sketching more soon. Thanks for dropping by and for hosting such creative fun!

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  22. What fun interpretations of masterpieces, Rain. Sorry to read that the mozzarella cheese didn't turn out good once again. But the other cheese looks wonderful. The cauliflower quiche made me think about what to do with the one now in our fridge. Looks like you will have a lot of canning to catch up on and do show the results.

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  23. Love this entire post! Update.... pumpkins are huge, but still no pumpkins ... crossing fingers . The second crop of corn is up to my shoulders and should be a great turnout! Have a terrific week!

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  24. Thanks Linda :) I've never made spiced tomato jam! I looked up the recipe and it does look tasty, though maybe a little too spicy for our digestions! I could probably omit the spicy stuff, but I guess that would moot the point of it being a spicy jam. I hope you can find some good tomatoes!

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  25. Thanks Debra :) It was fun to do!

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  26. Thanks Sandi :) Lol...yeah, the box was meowing when we received it! ;)

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  27. Thanks Baili :) I saw those Scream movies too, the first one was definitely the best! Marlene is getting worse with noises to the point where she starts shaking when it gets cloudy outside. She anticipates a storm coming poor thing. We give her lots of attention so we hope that helps her at least to know we still love her! That's a great idea about cauliflower with the bread! I love that veggie!


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  28. Thanks Christine :) I hope you liked the burgers, they were pretty good, but I'm more of a fish burger type!

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  29. Thanks Joyce :) I have to get back to your blog and see all of the yummy food you've been making! You have so many geraniums!!! You can have bouquets until Halloween!

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  30. Thanks Sam :) Oh gosh, you can have my winters...it's too cold and long for me! The American cheese is so easy to make once you make that one ingredient the Sodium Citrate, which is also easy to make. Let me know if you try it!

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  31. Thanks Stacy :) Yeah, the Mozzarella...I keep trying, I'm sure I'll try again down the road! Leo is too funny where he perches himself up!

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  32. Thanks Pam :) I hate hibernating that long! By March I have terrible cabin fever and the thought of three more months of snow is very depressing. I'm really hoping for a milder (ha ha) winter this year!

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  33. Thanks Nancy :) Poor Coco! It's so hard on them, and we can't make them understand that the sky isn't REALLY falling, poor things. I made a pizza crust with cauliflower too once, you should try that, it would make a nice GF pizza!

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  34. Thanks Donna :) Yes! Bugs is kind of gothic isn't he? :) I LOVE how that cauliflower mashed up with mayo on it sounds!!! I will have to try that!! I'd probably mash some butter into it too!

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  35. Thanks Becki :) The cartoon software was fun to play with! Ha! I wasn't too convinced about the cauliflower burgers at first either, but they were good! The pets are so much fun, they are VERY amusing! :)

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  36. Thanks Leigh :) I never have trouble with the quick Mozzarella, but that traditional one is my nemesis. It all has to do with the PH levels. It will only stretch when the PH reached 5.2 and sometimes that can take 12-24 hours to happen. You have to keep it warm at the right temperature the whole time too. I was checking every half hour and by hour 11 I fell asleep. Next time I checked, I missed the PH, it was 4.8 and it definitely did NOT stretch. On the cheese forum, everyone was saying that it's the hardest cheese to make at home! There are so many variables.

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  37. Thanks RO :) I knew you'd say no no no to the cauliflower burgers lol! I could eat fries every day!

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  38. Thanks Andrea :) Yes, The Scream is VERY creepy, and that's likely why I'm so drawn to it! :) Your sense of humour is great! :) I never studied art but I guess I just picked up a lot over the years. When I was 16, I don't think I fully appreciated the Louvre, which is a pity. If I ever have a chance to go back, I'll spend days there I'm sure! The software was one I found online, it's called Photo To Cartoon. I had a free trial of it a few months back that I never used, so I thought I'd try it out. I was only able to get 2 pictures out of it before the watermarks were all over it though! I don't know if they offer a free trial anymore, but it's definitely fun to play with! We call Leo "Hobo Leo" because he loves to sit on newspapers, old boxes, plastic bags lol...So glad you are back with your contributions!!!

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  39. Thanks Jan :) Leo was very comfy! They do balance on the funniest things! Cauliflower is so versatile, I really love it! I saw your post the other day with all of the recipes, I'm going back to check it out!!

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  40. Thanks Jenn :) I feel so bad about Marlene, she gets terrified...we've tried so many things. She has a thundershirt but it doesn't really help her much. It did at first, but now when we bring it out she immediately starts to shake, even when we have it on her on a sunny day! She's wise to us! Yeah, the cheese...I keep telling myself that I've been successful with others, and I'll try the Mozza again one day!

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  41. Thanks Connie :) Oh the fun we'd have making cheese together! It's really so rewarding, and I can't wait to try the ones that are aging!! That is the real test!!

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  42. Thanks Stefanie :) I'm sure your kittens could find a lot of hiding places! They love to explore!!

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  43. Thanks Cathy :) I was in your boat last summer actually, I didn't participate in the picnic all summer, and didn't even blog more than a few times! My mind was elsewhere, but then it just came back to me out of nowhere and I haven't been able to stop painting and drawing! I hope it comes back to you soon too! :)

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  44. Thanks Dorothy :) The Mozzarella is a thorn in my side that's for sure. I'll try again one day! I did master it ONCE but I don't know what happened...maybe I need a new recipe. The canning was a lot of work, but I LOVE seeing all of those bright jars in my pantry!!

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  45. Thanks Dino :) That's super about the corn!! Oh the pumpkins...the leaves here are huge too. I have one little sugar pumpkin that's green...one carving pumpkin that looks more like a spaghetti squash...and today I found two little budding pumpkins TURNED BROWN...what is up with that??

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  46. love your art!! really cool.. and of course your food photos - your cat is funny - my Beanie woudl do the same thing - find a small box and balance on it.

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  47. Thanks Sandy :) I know, the cats are so funny when they do that!

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  48. Rain,

    I'm sure I'll get back into the groove of sketching soon. When I allow myself to get overwhelmed with scheduling mewsic posts then everything else suffers but I'm sure I'll be happier for this in the end. I'm beginning to fill in with advance posting and I hope to get to doodling again soon. We'll see. Thanks for understanding.

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  49. I hope you get back into the groove again soon too Cathy. Art is just so much fun! Come back any time you're ready! I love your doodles!!!

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  50. Isnt it crazy that summer is coming to an end. The last weeks went by so fast ... its getting cool and dark early and I can smell fall ... wich I love but not so much what comes after that :(

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❤ Thanks for your comment, I love hearing from everyone! ❤ Why not join me and my fellow artists every Thursday for TADD? That's Thursday Art and Dinner Date! It's a lot of fun!
Love,
Rain