Amy Brown, Fantasy Artist: Amy Brown is, without a doubt, one of the most talented fantasy artist today. She was born in Bellingham, Washington in 1972. Like most artist she began drawing at an early age. In her early twenty's she became serious about her art and began to dabble with watercolors. Amy found that water colors had luminous quality that lent a spark of life to the creatures she painted. Every image tells it's own tale. Her greatest influences have been Brian Froud and Michael Parks. You can see the influence of these artist in her work. Words from Amy: "Sometimes I get frustrated because I have so many ideas fighting to come out. Every painting has so many possibilities." "I was never one of those children who daydreamed of growing up to become an artist. I just ASSUMED that was what I would be. It was never a question of do I want to be an artist? Often there are days when I really don't want to paint-I HAVE to paint. The urge to create is almost a wild, living entity trapped inside me, clawing to escape." "When I begin a piece, I usually have a good idea as to what I want the finished image to look like. However, by the time I actually complete the painting it has often evolved into something completely different. I start with a blank piece of paper and begin drawing. I rarely do preliminary sketches unless there is a troublesome area that needs special attention or I can't decide on the layout of the overall piece. The initial drawing can take anywhere from fifteen minutes to hours, days, months, and sometimes years." "After the pencil drawing is completed, I break out my Daniel Smith Extra Fine Watercolors and Windsor and Newton brushes and begin laying down the background colors. I prefer to work with 140lb or 300lb Arches cold press watercolor paper. The texture of Arches seems the most conducive to the mix of textures I like to use when painting. Normally I complete the background first and then concentrate on the characters. Having never received any formal art training, I begin each painting with a bit of trepidation…praying it turns out well. Over the years I have developed my own techniques by trial and error as well as studying the work of other artists." "When I paint, I paint for myself. I find it hard to be passionate about another person's ideas. For this reason I don't take on commissions, as they tend to put me in a disagreeable mood and take away my creative license. After completing more than 800 paintings, I have found that the images which were painted for my own delight are often the images most well received by the public. Ultimately, I wish for each painting to evoke a deep emotion in the viewer…hopefully a longing to become a part of the painting itself." "I spent much of my childhood and teen years doodling, but was never very serious about my art. In 1992, at the age of 20, I got a job working as a custom picture framer at a local gallery, which I continued to do for more than 7 years. This was the best step I could have taken towards my eventual career. I was exposed to a wide range of art in all mediums. Working with mat boards and frames gave me a good background for color, texture, and design." "About four months after I started at the gallery, my boss and now good friend Shawn, handed me an empty frame that had been lying around the shop for months and said 'Here, paint something to fit in this frame….maybe a little fairy or something.' I had always had an interest in fairies, ever since my aunt gave me the book FAERIES by Brian Froud and Alan Lee. However, I never attempted to draw any. So, I went home that night and painted a faery hovering next to a clump of pink foxgloves. We put the finished piece out in the gallery and it sold a few days later…that was how it all started." "In 1993 I started testing the market for my work by having laser prints made. It enabled me to print my images in small, affordable batches with out going broke from large printing fees. I sold my prints at a few street fairs and was fortunate enough to have a couple of friends with shops who were willing to carry my work. A year or two later my boyfriend, now husband, decided I should have a website. To my surprise and delight he had a previously untapped flair for designing websites. My first site had one gallery with around ten images. Now, in 2003 it has grown to multiple galleries and over 140 images." "To date, my favorite painting is "Mystique". My favorite images are always the ones that I can look back on and say 'I wouldn't change a thing'. Ironically, these are rarely the images best received by the public. Quite the reverse…..if I hate it, everyone else thinks it's great." What does Amy foresee in her artistic future? Does she see change? She replies, "I just hope I'll keep getting better. I don't see myself branching off to paint some other subject. I will always paint winged critters."
Nene Thomas, Fantasy Artist: Nene Tina Thomas began her professional career in 1994 when she was approached by wizards of the Coast to contribute work to the popular card game, "Magic: the Gathering", Her work with Wizard's of the Coast can still be seen in the forth and fifth expansions, Antiquities, Legends, The Dark, Homelands and the new "Magic: The Gathering" CD ROM Game. Some of the other card games that feature her work are Shadowfist, Legend of the Five Rings, Galactic Empires, Tempest of the Gods, Wyrmwars, Gridiron, Vampire: The Eternal Struggle, Xenophiles, and Battlelords of the 23rd Century. After two years of producing art for other companies, Nene decided it was time to strike out on her own and paint the things she wanted to paint. The freedom from deadlines allowed her to find her own path, and art style. Nene is known best for her work with watercolors a medium few can master. Her characters have grace and elegance, her settings are striking, and her images as a whole are breathtaking. She has completed cover or interior artwork for many publications including Cryptech, Paper Mayhem, The Leading Edge and Scrye Magazine. Nene's collectors come from every walk of life as well as nearly every age group. They are all drawn to the beauty, grace, and lyricism of her exquisite paintings, all rendered in watercolor. Nene continues to smash through preconceived notions of what a watercolor painting should look like with her exuberantly colorful award wining pieces such as Wisdom or Always. Nene's style has been described as "...masterful paintings of startling complexity, as she is unafraid to chart new waters and blaze new trails...". Nene's paintings have a mass appeal that both compliments & transcends the fantasy market. What will the future bring Nene's? One thing is certain, she will not be content to rest on her laurels! Nene Currently lives in Oklahoma City with her husband Steven Plagman, who is also her framer and fancy mat cutter. Nene spends her days sketching, researching, painting and playing with her six cats, Shadowfax, Snowmane, Amber, Blackfel, Leilani and Night Shade. She has three sisters and two brothers, all of them artistic and musically talented.
Jessica Galbreth, Fantasy Artist: Born on April 29th, 1974, Jessica always excelled in art, especially painting.After winning an award for a painting in high school, Jessica decided to pursue her dream by studying fine art at the University of Toledo inside the Toledo Museum of Art. Here she learned various techniques of drawing and painting, with an emphasis on the human figure. After college, Jessica set out to begin her professional art career. Always having a deep appreciation and fascination with fantasy art, it seemed only natural that she take this path with her art. It has been a decision that Jessica has never regretted. "Even as a little girl, I loved all types of fantasy art. I remember collecting stickers, calendars, books (virtually anything I could get my hands on) that depicted fantasy and mythological artwork. Over the years, I filled countless drawing pads with my own fantasy renditions: unicorns, fairies, dragons, mermaids and the like. Even to this day, I still get that old familiar rush of excitement when I look at a beautiful fantasy painting. It is this incredible exhilaration that keeps me painting my own creations in hopes that I too can evoke these feelings in the hearts and minds of others. I can't tell you how it makes my heart sing when I hear from others who tell me how my art has touched them in a special way. I am inspired by many things...Mother Earth and all her beauty, with all of her faeries and nature spirits, the glorious moon above with all her mysteries, the twining vines and twisted trees of the forest, the twinkle in my little girl's eyes as she discovers the world around her, and most of all, by the magic that exists in even the smallest things. Each painting is like a wonderful journey for me, and I never know just where it will take me in the end." - Jessica Galbreth Jessica's original paintings can be found in countless public and private collections throughout the world. Patrons can also purchase Jessica's prints and gift items featuring her art in shops and galleries throughout the world. Jessica married her high school sweetheart, Josh, on January 20th, 2001 in a candle-lit winter evening ceremony in an old fashioned chapel. Josh works as an F-16 Air Craft Mechanic for the Air Force and Air National Guard in Toledo, Ohio. Together, they make their home in an enchanted house in West Toledo where they live with their daughter Julia Rose, born February 24th, 2003, as well as a whole bunch of pets they consider their kids (Nala the dog, 4 cats, a boa and a yellow-plated lizard named Reggie).
