Studio Rayyan

Omar does cute

2012-01-23T09:31:00.003-05:00

Sorry, gang. I guess I was in a "squee" mood today when I was picking out something to post here. Omar did these interior spot illustrations of a baby possum for the book Possum Summer by Jen K. Blom. (He did the cover illo as well, you can see it when you click the link).
ADORABLE!!!

Random Art

2011-12-02T15:53:00.001-05:00

So it's been way too long since I posted anything here on the blog. Guess I've been a tad busy. Here's a quick post and a new piece of Random Art. A watercolor by Omar titled "Coming Ashore" featuring Renard the Fox from his Captain Cur series. Enjoy.

Here There Be Dragons

2011-09-29T15:48:00.000-04:00

Omar just finished this 16x20 oil painting, titled "the Dragon and the Nightingale." He has shipped it off to Los Angeles to be part of the Gallery Nucleus show, "Breath of Embers: Art of Dragons." The show runs from October 8-31. The gallery says it's going to be one of their biggest shows of the year, with some really amazing artists in the lineup. More info is on the Gallery Nucleus website. So if you're in the LA area, be sure to check it out. Kinda makes me wish we were on the west coast so we could see the show. Hmm... maybe we can find a cheap last-minute flight out there...

Fan Art

2011-09-06T12:55:00.000-04:00

Omar just got this great little piece of fan art in his email. Done by 5-year-old Lejla from Slovenia, her mom said she was inspired by Omar's "Ladybug" painting. Good job, Lejla! We love it.

We have a winner!

2011-09-01T12:01:00.000-04:00

Here is the video of Omar picking the winner of his free painting giveaway...
Congratulations to Greg Swearingen, enjoy!
(Sorry Omar butchered your name in the video)
A big thanks to everyone who entered.

The Devastation of Hurricane Irene

2011-08-29T08:46:00.001-04:00

It's gonna take us a while to clean up this mess.

Fan Art

2011-08-27T15:21:00.000-04:00

While unpacking a few things from our Gen Con boxes the other day, I found this little gem. A fan gave Omar this amazing little crocheted "kithkin", inspired by his painting for a Magic the Gathering game card. The details are great, he's got his sickle in hand and a dagger at his hip. Adorable! Makes me think maybe Wizards of the Coast should start a line of Magic the Gathering plushies. Whattaya think, guys? :)

Gen Con

2011-08-14T09:36:00.000-04:00

Omar and I got back from Gen Con earlier this week, and the dust is still settling from our travels. Whoof! that was a wild ride. I'm not sure if it was the art show's location smack dab in the middle of the exhibition hall (rather than tucked off to the side in previous years) or it was the record number of people in attendance, but boy was the art show rockin'! We and the other artists were kept pretty busy through the whole show, Omar even lost his voice for a bit from all the chatting. We went there thinking we probably weren't going to be back for 2012 (it just such a looooooong 2-day drive in the heat of summer) but now, well, we might just change our minds.
For this year's show, I decided to go all crafty. I've been mucking about with ceramics lately, and I've discovered the wonders that are underglaze pencils. I can do drawings right on the ceramic items and once they're fired in the kiln, they are permanent and smudge-proof. A pencil artist's dream! So I made some cups and pendants and drew some crazy critters on them, and had a lot of fun showing them at Gen Con. I sold a bunch at the show, and the leftovers I've just posted in my Etsy shop.

I was given a dice bag to decorate for the charity auction. Last year I did one and was very happy that they asked me to do another one this year as well. I drew some designs and yes more silly critters on it with sharpies and then embellished it with wiggle eyes. Gotta love those wiggle eyes! Too much fun. Omar did a dice bag as well, but we didn't manage to photograph it before it went to auction. :( Hopefully they'll post pictures of it on their website: http://gencondicebags.tumblr.com/.

Like I said, I went all crafty this year, so I brought my henna as well. I did lots and lots of henna designs on people, so much so that I had to shut down the henna factory for a little while to give my hand a rest. I of course, as usual, am very bad about taking photos of my henna. But Omar was there to remind me and I did get a few photos. I had some steampunk henna designs in my book this year which were very popular.

Anyhoo, enough of my rambling on, we had a great time at Gen Con this year, and we may be back for more next year, we'll see!

In Progress

2011-07-28T13:08:00.002-04:00

"The Frog and the Princess" 18x24 oil

"Mother and Child" (AKA "Octomom") 18x24 oil

Here are two paintings that Omar is putting the finishing touches on. We'll be bringing them to show at Gen Con, which is only a week away!
update Aug 11, 2011: Now that the paintings are finished, Omar has finalized their titles as well.
They are now titled "the Courtship" and "Contessa with Squid"

Free Art!?

2011-07-15T09:11:00.003-04:00

"Ladybug" watercolor 9"x11"

Now is your chance to WIN this original Omar Rayyan painting!
If you buy something from either of our Etsy shops (www.studiorayyan.etsy.com or www.motherspoon.etsy.com) your name will be entered for a chance to win.
Contest starts today and runs until August 31. So what are you waiting for, get shopping!

Another Progression

2011-06-19T10:13:00.001-04:00

Aha! I found it! I knew Omar had scanned one of his paintings in progress... So here I present to you "Cucumber Sandwich" from sketch to final...

Progression

2011-06-16T15:16:00.000-04:00

I was mucking about in some file archives the other day and came across this sequence of scans I did while I was working on my "Cheshire Cat" drawing a few years back. I remember scanning this at specific timed intervals, but now I can't remember what that interval was. Maybe every 3 hours? Maybe every hour? Gnurgh. Should've taken notes. Oh well. I also intended at the time to post this on our website, but never got around to it. So, lucky you, you get to see it now! :) Hmmmm... I seem to remember Omar doing the same to one of his paintings as it progressed, I'll see if I can find those files, too!

Doodlin'

2011-05-25T22:11:00.000-04:00

I thought I'd share this little "project" I've been working on...
I started carrying around a little pocket sized Moleskine sketchbook last year. After years of not having a sketchbook, I'm really enjoying having this one. It is a Japanese fold book, so it is a long, continuous page that folds up neatly into the sketchbook. I work on this in ballpoint pen and it's a lot of fun to do such a long free-for-all doodle. I'm about halfway through this book so far and I never know where it's gonna go on the next fold. I work on this whenever I've got a few minutes to kill: in restaurants, on the ferry, in waiting rooms, etc.
-Sheila

Eye of the Beholder

2011-05-06T16:43:00.003-04:00

details - click image for larger view

So... all you Dungeons & Dragons fans out there are probably familiar with this creature, the Beholder. Jon Schindehette (Senior Creative Director for D&D) commissioned a number of artists to do their interpretation of the Beholder. Everyone had to do the same relative composition, just do it in their own "style". Omar was lucky enough to be included in this project, and posted here is his version. Only Omar would sneak in a lap dog with a pretty blue bow in it's hair, and a mouse reenacting Hamlet into a D&D battle scene. But I suppose that's why Jon picked him for this project. :)
You can see other artist's versions by clicking this link.

New Website!

2011-04-20T13:25:00.000-04:00

WOOT!
My website is now up and running: www.motherspoon.com. Thanks to Heather at Goffgrafix for all the behind-the-scenes coding wizardry, I love my new site. It'll be so much easier to keep it updated now.
Don't forget to visit Omar's site: www.studiorayyan.com. Wait, Omar who? I dunno, he's just some guy I know... :)

-Sheila

So Phoney

2011-03-16T10:43:00.000-04:00

Check out our new iPhone cases for sale in our CafePress store. We've chosen some of Omar's most popular images to grace these lovely cases. We got lots of other goodies for sale there as well: t-shirts, coffee mugs, magnets, etc. Check it out at www.cafepress.com/studiorayyan

My Word!

2011-03-08T13:22:00.002-05:00

A few years back, author Shelley Jackson decided to have one of her short stories "published" by having it tattooed one word at a time on 2000+ people. I am "Even", one of the words in the story. Shelley recently did a video story featuring a number of her "words" each saying their word. She assembled the short clips into a new story. The Berkeley Art Museum is also featuring the video on their website, you can see it here: http://netart.bampfa.berkeley.edu/skin

(I am at 1:00 in the video)
You can read more about the original Skin project here.

-Sheila

Etsy Sale!

2011-03-07T18:41:00.002-05:00

Another SALE!?! Yep, Omar had his sale, now it's time for mine.
I'm having a sale in my Etsy shop on my regular sized prints - all are now 50% off. Sale ends March 20th so don't dilly-dally. Check it out here.

-Sheila

Fan "art"

2011-02-16T11:08:00.001-05:00

Omar just got this photo in his email. A fan had one of his ink drawings made into a tattoo. The drawing is an interior illustration Omar did for the book "Nightshade City" by Hilary Wagner. Pretty cool! (tattoo done by Zoe Thorne)

Random Art

2011-02-14T15:24:00.002-05:00

It's been a while since we've posted a bit of "random art" so I thought I'd share this oil painting with you. Still in progress, but very very very close to being done, it's tentatively titled "the Dragon Hamam." You can almost hear him purring, that's one happy looking dragon. Omar should have it done in time for it to be in the art show at Boskone this upcoming weekend (Feb 18-20.

Sale!

2011-02-03T16:24:00.002-05:00

Now that we're in the doldrums of winter, we thought we'd help you brighten up your surroundings a bit... Omar is having a sale in his Etsy shop!

50% off regular prices on selected items, sale will run until Feb 28.

Click here to see what's on sale...

Such a deal, such a steal!

Facebooked

2011-01-11T21:59:00.001-05:00

Become a fan of "the Art of Omar Rayyan"

www.facebook.com/orayyan is Omar's official page on Facebook

A New Look

2010-12-22T18:48:00.000-05:00

We've given the ol' website a makeover and a good thorough reorganizing. Studiorayyan.com is now solely the home of Omar's work. We felt the old site was a bit cluttered by featuring both our work, so we opted to part ways (but only on the website)! We're hoping with this new design it will be easier to keep it updated with fresh content, plus be able to let our viewing public know which pieces are available for sale. MY site, which is still under construction, is www.motherspoon.com.

Thanks for viewing!

-Sheila

Full Speed Ahead!

2010-12-13T16:54:00.001-05:00

WOOT!

Omar's "Full Gallop" watercolor has been accepted into the Society of Illustrators "Annual Exhibition: Illustrators 53, Uncommissioned Exhibit", and will be subsequently published in the Illustrators 53 Annual book.
From the more than 1,400 entries in this category, only 70 were chosen! So it's quite an honor to have a piece accepted for this.

The show will be held in New York at the Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators from January 5 to January 22, 2011. An opening reception for the show will be held Fri, Jan 7th. More info here.

Mail Royale

2010-11-15T14:14:00.002-05:00

We got this unusual sack in the mail today. At first, I thought we were getting some mail from Hogwarts! But once we opened it we found out it was Omar's copies of the Brown Fairy Book. Guess we're done with our Christmas shopping early this year!

My Brother

2010-11-04T21:48:00.002-04:00

My brother Pete had an accident at home on Monday, and passed away last night. He has left a giant rift in the universe of our family and friends. He leaves behind a wife and two children, whom he adored to no end. His fellow firefighters have set up a fund to help them.

Peter S. Regan Family Support Fund

C/O Wayland Local 1978

P.O. Box 5009

Wayland, MA 01778

Or direct deposits can be made at the Middlesex Savings Bank in the funds name

Any contributions would be greatly appreciated.

-Sheila

Brown Fairy Book

2010-10-25T16:54:00.001-04:00

Omar did interior and cover illustrations for the Brown Fairy Book, which is a collection of fairy tales by Andrew Lang. This edition was just released by the Folio Society of London. They are known for their high quality collectible editions, so if any of you out there are book fanatics, this is a great book to add your library!

Boxes for sale

2010-09-22T15:57:00.000-04:00

I've just put these fun little boxes up for sale on my Etsy site: http://www.motherspoon.etsy.com.

I've decorated them using pyrograhphy (wood burning), my inspiration being henna designs and also Mexican Day of the Dead motifs. So go check them out, they're great little boxes for stashing treats, treasures and baubles!

-Sheila

Bronze WIN!

2010-08-30T16:15:00.000-04:00

Vincent Villafranca sent us a lump of clay a while back and asked us to sculpt something, so here is my something! I sculpted this little catfish, carefully packed it up and shipped it off to Vince to do his magic. Today in the mail I got this precious little gift in bronze. I just love it!
-Sheila

Gearing up for Gen Con

2010-07-30T14:52:00.002-04:00

We're heading off for Gen Con next week so I thought I'd share some of the new works Omar has been working on.

First up: a new oil painting, currently untitled (Any ideas out there? Anyone? Bueller? *update* - we figured out a title, it is now called "The Favorite"), freshly framed with an antique frame we got from Wendy and Chuck Lang at their fabulous Art Corner frame shop in Salem, MA. They have an amazing selection of frames old and new, you should check them out if you are ever in the Salem area. If you look really close in the background of the photo you can see Omar's pyramid-like Spectrum Awards lined up on the shelf. :)

Continuing our tour, we've got "Cavalier with an Acorn", painted in watercolor.

And finishing up, here is what Omar was working on the morning, a scene from Midsummer Night's Dream featuring Bottom and Titania and lots of little fairy friends.

Another Award (possibly)!!

2010-07-18T14:54:00.000-04:00

We just found out that Omar has been nominated for an Illie Award. The "Illies" are chosen by the members of the Illustration Exchange and will be presented in November at Illuxcon. This is the first year for this award, and they've really gone all out in the making of the actual award, which is pictured above. It's a bronze piece created and cast by Vincent Villafranca, an amazing sculptor and really nice guy to boot. Omar's nominated painting is "The Caterpillar" shown below...

Chesley Nods!

2010-06-13T11:25:00.004-04:00

Omar and I have BOTH been nominated for ASFA's Chesley Awards this year, albeit in different categories (Thankfully! We wouldn't want to have to compete against each other!). Omar is nominated in the Hardback Book Cover category, and I'm in the Unpublished Monochrome category. The awards will be presented at NASFiC in Raleigh, NC in August. So those of you eligible, get out there and vote for us! We want to be the first husband/wife dual Chesley winners!!! How cool would that be?

Out in the real world...

2010-06-07T10:48:00.002-04:00

We'll be stepping out of our studio and off our little island to head to our old stomping grounds for a day in Providence, RI. We'll have a booth at the Providence Art Festival this Saturday June 12, so if you're in the area be sure to drop by to say hi and see what sort of goodies we have for sale. For more information, click here. To see a list of fellow artisans who will also be there, click here. Looks to be a great festival. See you there!

Random Art

2010-06-03T09:52:00.000-04:00

Here's a little piece I just finished that I've titled "Queen of Hearts".

I was working on this while I was playing catch-up watching past episodes of "Lost" before the grand finale. Anyone notice the influence of the Smoke Monster?

-Sheila

Up For Auction

2010-05-17T16:33:00.000-04:00

The MicroVisions auction is now live on eBay!

This is your chance to bid on (and possibly win!)

some amazing art by some of the best illustrators out there.

For more information, click here.

Click here for the auction on eBay.
Opening bids start at $50.00

Auction ends Wednesday, May 26th.

Omar's MicroVision

2010-04-08T22:15:00.000-04:00

"Hop-along Galahad" is Omar's contribution to the MicroVisions exhibit put on by the Society of Illustrators. The show opens April 26 and all pieces will be up for auction to benefit the Society's student scholarship fund. Irene Gallo is one of the organizers and you can read her "review" of Omar's painting here.

More info about the exhibit can be found here.

New Book

2010-03-06T15:57:00.001-05:00

Available now! Joha Makes a Wish, written by Eric Kimmel and illustrated by Omar, has hit the bookstands! You can purchase a copy online by clicking here.

ALSO: A few of the illustrations from the book will be featured in the Los Angleles, CA Skirball Museum's exhibit Monsters and Miracles:A Journey Through Jewish Picture Books. The show will open April 8 and run through August 1.

There's Gold in Our Spectrum

2010-03-05T14:10:00.001-05:00

The Spectrum Annual recently finished the judging for this year's book, and we found out that Omar won a Gold Award in the Book category. His winning painting is for the cover of the upcoming Mistmantle: Urchin and the Rage Tide. You can see a list of all the winners here.

...Where the Sun Don't Shine

2010-02-17T16:26:00.000-05:00

We just got back from Boskone, and we're very proud to announce that Omar won NESFA's prestigious and possibly dangerous Skylark Award. As you can see from the photo above, the award features a large and very high quality magnifying glass. And we all know how fun magnifying glasses can be when you play with them in the sunshine. In the second photo, you'll see author Jane Yolen recounting her experience soon after winning the award a few years back. She was thrilled to have won it, so she had put it on her kitchen table where she could show it off and admire it. One morning, as the sun came through the window and illuminated the award, it proceeded to burn a hole in her favorite wool coat draped on a nearby chair. So every year, Jane tells this story to the latest winner, with the advice to "put it where the sun don't shine!"

Thanks NESFA. :)

The Escape

2010-02-11T14:58:00.000-05:00

"The Escape", a new watercolor by Omar. Feels appropriate for today, since tomorrow we are making our "escape" to the mainland.

Random Art

2010-02-09T22:30:00.000-05:00

A new drawing, finished in time for the Boskone art show this upcoming weekend. I've titled this one "the Mermaid's Masque" and it is 11"x14", done entirely in pencil.

-Sheila

Anyone in the mood to shop?

2009-12-05T18:14:00.004-05:00

We've just added a few new items to our Cafepress shop. Great for gift-giving!!
We've been told coffee tastes oh so much better in our mugs. :)

New Art

2009-11-25T15:07:00.002-05:00

Thanks to Irene Gallo, the world is beating a path to our (blog) door, so I figure it's time to spruce things up around here and post some new art. Nothing like company coming over to get your butt in gear, eh? This first image is the one Omar was hiding in our previous post "Sneek Peek? Nope." It's a lovely watercolor titled Leda and the Swan

This next one is a sequel to Omar's painting, The Turtle Race, called At Full Gallop.

Next on our tour is another addition to Omar's Alice in Wonderland set,
titled Now, Dinah, tell me the truth: did you ever eat a bat?

And to round up today's exhibit, here we have the amorous Renard pitching woo in Moonlight Serenade. I love the frogs singing in the lower right.

Now we're really famous!

2009-11-24T19:16:00.002-05:00

Our blog has been featured on Irene Gallo's blog.

Helloooooooo Irene (waving)!!!!!!!!

More News!

2009-11-19T18:24:00.000-05:00

On our way back home from Altoona, we made a detour to Chadds Ford, PA and the Brandywine River Museum. Why? Well, I'll tell ya.
We were there to drop off Omar's painting "the Caterpillar" because it's going to be in the museum's show Alice in Pictureland: Illustrations of Lewis Carroll's Classic Tales. Yep, Omar's work is going to be hanging alongside works by Arthur Rackham, John Tenniel, Salvador Dali, Jesse Wilcox Smith, and a few others! That's some fancy neighbors, and we're pretty excited about it. The show opens November 27 and runs through January 10. While we were there we got to get a sneak peek at the show (not to mention a few Wyeth's in the stacks--cool!) it looks like it's going to be a really interesting and diverse show. We're definitely planning a special trip to check out the show when it's up.

Some News!

2009-11-18T15:08:00.003-05:00

We are now freshly returned from Illuxcon, still got that glow going, but at the same time wishing we could just sleep for a few days and not go back to the studio quite yet... Alas, the muse beckons and cajoles.

I think one of the highlights to the show was having our booth next to Ian Miller and his invisible dog, Jimmy. Jimmy was the most well-behaved dog I have ever met, you'd almost never know he was even there. Ian, on the other hand, not so well-behaved. He kept trying to steal Omar away to drink beer at the bistro across the street.

Another big hit at the show was Thomas Kuebler's freakishly lifelike sculptures. I always wonder how things like this get transported, so here are some pictures of his creatures being packed away at the end of the show. Can you imagine seeing these peeking out the window at you as you're driving on the highway???

Sneak Peek? Nope.

2009-11-08T21:52:00.000-05:00

We've been busy getting ready for Illuxcon, so I thought I'd give everyone a sneak peek of what Omar has been working on lately. But alas, I was not quick enough with the camera. So I guess you all will just have to be patient. Lots of new stuff coming soon! Hope to see you at Illuxcon next weekend.

Spot is so helpful

2009-09-24T15:04:00.002-04:00

The Big Show

2009-09-15T10:17:00.002-04:00

Last Friday we drove to NYC to attend the reception for the Spectrum show at the Society of Illustrators. (photo is of Omar posing next to his painting in the show). More pics taken by Irene Gallo +click here+.
Despite being extremely road-weary--we took advantage of being off the Island and ran some errands, then we hit a lot of traffic on our way to NY, so we were driving for at least 8 hours that day, and oh yeah, it was pouring rain for a lot of the drive as well (UGH)--we still managed to have a great time. It's always inspiring to see this work in person, plus get to talk to the creators as well. The Society of Illustrators has a fabulous lounge upstairs that's just packed with illustrations by artists some of which are long gone, but their art is still fresh and inspiring for us young whippersnappers. Sometimes we wish we lived in the city so we could spend more hang out time in places like this. But alas, I don't think our horses would take well to apartment living. Maybe if we traded them in for pygmy elephants...??

Painting-a-Day

2009-08-26T15:20:00.003-04:00

For those more observant people out there, you may have noticed that a few days ago that a new item appeared in the right margin of this blog. We have jumped onto the "Painting-a-Day" bandwagon and are offering said paintings, drawings, and sketches for sale on Etsy.com. They will be in the $100 range, some a little cheaper, some maybe a little more pricey. But we are gonna try our darndest to have a fresh new vibrant wonderful fantabulous piece for sale EVERY SINGLE DAY. At least that's the plan.
Today's painting is a watercolor by Omar titled "Sea Lions Don't Drink Espresso". Big flippers and dainty little cups, just not a good fit.

Award Winning!

2009-08-24T13:12:00.003-04:00

The Martha's Vineyard Agricultural Fair was this past weekend, and Omar came home with the blue! He won blue ribbons for his watercolor "the Caterpillar" and oil painting "the Bullfinch". He also got a special award from the MV Art Association for "outstanding artwork." Yay Omar!

Gen Con pics 3

2009-08-23T18:15:00.002-04:00

1) Diesel on Sunday, either totally losing his mind, or it's a last minute desperate attempt at winning a hall costume prize.

2) Winding down after Sunday tear-down at the secret(?) artists' hangout.

Gen Con pics 2

2009-08-23T18:11:00.003-04:00

Some cool costumes seen wandering around

Gen Con pics 1

2009-08-23T17:33:00.010-04:00

1) Omar being interviewed by Jeremy McHugh of Ninja Mountain Podcast (hear the interview here)

2) Omar working on an on-site commission

3) the final result, Warrior on Bird.

Last Day at Gen Con

2009-08-23T08:59:00.002-04:00

This picture pretty much sums it up...
thanks, Vinod!
:)

Gen Con

2009-08-18T09:39:00.003-04:00

We are currently on the road, heading home from Gen Con. More news to come as soon as we're settled back in the studio. Just a quick thank you to all the fans, artists and Gen Con staff who made it such a memorable weekend!

Random Art

2009-08-08T07:47:00.004-04:00

"Bullfinch"
a new oil painting fresh off the easel by Omar

Spectrum Show!

2009-08-07T09:14:00.004-04:00

Spectrum: the Best In Contemporary Fantastic Art is holding another exhibit at the Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators in New York City. The first show was in 2005, and it was such a rollicking good time they decided to do it again. Omar had the honor of having one of his paintings in the first show, and this year they asked him to submit another painting as well. We are really looking forward to this show, it is an amazing showcase of the genre. We are planning on attending the opening reception on Friday, Sept. 11. The show runs from Sept. 1 to Oct. 17. Hope to see you there! Click here for more info.

Omar and his art

2009-07-20T16:30:00.001-04:00

'nuff said!
(thanks Paul)

Too Quiet

2009-06-24T10:13:00.002-04:00

I must apologise for being so quiet on the blog lately-- it's been quite a busy month We've had relatives visiting, cars breaking down, computers up and dying, and just a lot of work in amongst all that. To top it all off, I was away for a week attending the Illustration Master Class in Amherst, MA. It was an amazing, intense, exhausting (physically, mentally, emotionally) and enlightening experience. And as wiped out I'm feeling right now (just got back) I want to do it again! Irene Gallo has a good amount of photos documenting it all here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/25346867@N03/sets/ .
Currently we're gearing up for Gen Con, and are looking forward to that trip in August. Hope to see you there!

Store Updated

2009-05-18T16:58:00.008-04:00

We've added new items to our Cafepress store!
New stuff including this lovely keepsake box featuring the painting "Leda and the Swan" by Omar, perfect for storing your favorite jewelry, swan feathers, toenail clippings and other mementos. We've also added to our inventory of mugs, greeting cards, and magnets. Be sure to check out our store for all the other goodies we have available! www.cafepress.com/studiorayyan

The Big Snooze

2009-04-22T08:35:00.007-04:00

I know I've posted pictures of the ponies sleeping before, but they just crack me up at nap time. Both of them are just out cold and oblivious to the world. Spot sometimes whinnies in his sleep, with his legs twitching like he's running. Too cute!

Random Art

2009-04-22T08:24:00.003-04:00

"The Call of Spring"
In honor of today being Earth Day and also the absolutely gorgeous weather we have forecast here for the rest of the week, today's Random Art posting is a little watercolor by Omar titled the Call of Spring.

Gen Con

2009-04-09T08:14:00.002-04:00

Now that it has been officially announced, we can now ourselves officially announce that Omar is going to be Artist Guest of Honor at Gen Con in Indianapolis this August. Gen Con is a huge gaming convention, touted to be "The Best Four Days of Gaming". So we'll be there, all bright and shiny, with some of Omar's original paintings on display that he's done for Magic: the Gathering and other games. Maybe if you're lucky Omar will let you lick one of them.

April Fool

2009-04-01T09:25:00.004-04:00

"Skull of Truth"
Today's bit of Random Art is in honor of April 1 and April Fool's Day. This scary jester is a piece that Omar created a few years back for the book "the Skull of Truth" by Bruce Coville.

Random Art

2009-03-25T17:31:00.005-04:00

"Snarfle"
Many have queried about what's up with all the fish doodles I do, so I thought I'd toss a non-fish drawing at ya. Happy now? Better be, or I'll sic little Snarfle here on ya.
-Sheila

Random Art

2009-03-11T18:34:00.005-04:00

"The March Hare"
Driving home late last night, there were rabbits, skunks, raccoons and wildlife galore out and about. The rabbits in particular caught my attention because of the sheer numbers of them that were frolicking by the roadside, plus they were being quite daring in their dashes across my path. Sad to say, I did notice a few casualties, luckily none by me, tho it was pretty close a few times. I was wondering what had gotten into these rabbits that they were crazily running in the road, and then I realized, of course! It's March. They're all mad.

Random Art

2009-02-28T09:23:00.005-05:00

"The Tipsy Two"
Today's Random Art image is a painting Omar did for some friends of ours as a thank you gift. It could be viewed as a bit of a portrait of the friends. Omar feels it really captures their "essence" shall we say. And while these friends did acknowledge the receipt of this little thank you gift, we have not heard from them since. We can only assume they are very busy doing important things, like trying to keep warm during this long cold miserable winter, or perhaps they are just snowed in. :)

Random Art

2009-02-16T17:58:00.005-05:00

"Bear With Me"
8x10 watercolor done by Omar last week, perhaps hinting at a self portrait? Could be. But which one is Omar?
:)

Random Art

2009-02-10T09:53:00.007-05:00

We've got more disciplined artist friends who post "painting a day" or "art du jour" blogs. But, well, we're just not that motivated. So I present to you our new feature... Random Art. It will feature random art we've created, some new, some old, maybe even some really old, and it will be posted at... you guessed it... random times.
To kick it all off, I offer you a little oil painting Omar did last year, titled "Renard". Enjoy.

Blue Moon Caravan

2009-01-21T09:10:00.004-05:00

I started taking Tribal Belly Dance classes this fall, which I just love love love. Last weekend was my first time performing with them, I'm one of the gypsy chorus line girls in the back. Some day perhaps I'll be one of the dancers up front, but for now I'm quite happy just to be included. Any excuse for me to wear fun costumes and put on some gypsy attitude!
-Sheila

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T08:02:00.002-05:00

(thx 2 icanhascheezburger.com)
kthxbye!

Release the dragons!

2008-12-07T18:31:00.002-05:00

Editions Daniel Maghen of Paris, France has just released their second edition of L'Univers des Dragons, which is, obviously, a book about dragons. Omar's painting the Apple was chosen for this book, which also includes dragon paintings by Tom Kidd, William Stout, Todd Lockwood, Tony Diterlizzi and many more. We haven't gotten our copy yet, but from what they show on their website it is a really memorable collection of art. There's some more info about it on their blog also.

Dead of Winter

2008-12-07T11:17:00.004-05:00

This weekend we escaped to New Hampshire to attend the Foxfire Studio Gallery's opening reception of their new show, "the Dead of Winter". The show features horror and monster art by gallery owner Pat Lewis, Rick Frane, Jill Bauman, Chuck & Wendy Lang, and a few other artists including us. Omar's painting, Cercopithecus L'Hoesti, is a pretty twisted self portrait he did a few years ago for the Necon art show. My drawing of the Bighorn Badger is a piece I did ages ago when I was playing around with skull and anatomy studies. Both pieces are a bit of a departure from the norm for both of us, but sometimes it is refreshing to step outside of the box for a bit. We had a great time at the reception, with live music provided by Knucklecocks. I gotta say I was a bit dubious about what kind of music a band called the Knucklecocks would play, but they turned out to be a very fun rockabilly/country/punk band. Definitely worth checking them out!

Shop 'til you drop!

2008-11-18T09:05:00.003-05:00

We've got a pile of new goodies in our CafePress shop, just in time for holiday shopping. We've added more images to our ever-popular coffee mug line, plus a few new t-shirts designs and also some magnets, boxes, journals and note cards. Fun stuff! On our website, we added a whole pile of fine art prints for sale. We're also working on updating our website to showcase our original art that's available for sale. Those pages should be up very soon, hopefully (fingers crossed!!) later today.
Links:
our CafePress shop: www.cafepress.com/studiorayyan
Our website "Prints for Sale" page: www.studiorayyan.com/pages/buyprint.html

Return from Illuxcon

2008-11-11T11:55:00.002-05:00

We've just gotten back from Illuxcon in Altoona, PA. A good time was had by all. So much talent converged on tiny little Altoona it's a surprise the town didn't combust. I'm pictured here with a sculpture done by Thomas Kuebler. Yes, that's a sculpture! If you stare at his work long enough you could swear you can see it breathe... Some more photos of our weekend can be seen here.

Not quite Halloweeny, but cool anyhow

2008-10-31T09:02:00.002-04:00

Go Ask Alice

2008-10-29T09:08:00.009-04:00

Our work from the "Walk Through Wonderland" show. (See previous post)
Click on the image for a larger view.

A Walk Through Wonderland

2008-10-28T09:10:00.002-04:00

Omar and I are taking part in an online gallery show hosted by the Duirwaigh Gallery. The theme is "Alice in Wonderland". Go check it out- there's some fabulous and diverse work in this show, and more art will be added as it goes along.

-Sheila

Avast, mateys!

2008-09-19T08:58:00.002-04:00

Arrrrrr... today be international Talk Like a Pirate Day. Don't know how to talk like one? Try this link, or you'll be walkin' the plank for sure!

It's Derby Time

2008-09-11T12:24:00.006-04:00

Omar created this illustration for our local newspaper, the MV Times. It's the cover for their special section on the Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, which is a month long fishing derby that starts this weekend. Already it's proving to be a popular image, so we've decided to add it to our CafePress store, where you can get it printed on all sorts of fun stuff: t-shirts, mugs, tote bags, etc. We are also selling limited edition prints of it, go to our web site for more info about them. Happy fishing!

Dancin' Fool

2008-08-24T10:23:00.003-04:00

I've just finished a very busy week of dancing, dancing and oh, some more dancing. This was the week of the Built on Stilts dance festival here on the island, and I had 4 performances: 3 belly dances and one big group performance with my Zumba class. Last night was my final performance and after the show to celebrate we went out Salsa dancing! wheeeee!!! Just can't stop! After a summer of many many many rehearsals, I can't believe it's all done. Wow, now what am I gonna do?
I know what I'm doing today: going for the GOLD! Our local agricultural fair is this weekend and today is the infamous Women's Skillet Toss competition. I got a 4th place ribbon two years ago, maybe this year I get 1st!!

-Sheila

Tank Girl

2008-08-03T20:35:00.007-04:00

I thought I'd share some photos of a pinup girl Omar painted on a friend's 1936 Indian motorcycle. Pretty sweet!
click on the image to get a better view

A Rilly Big Shoe

2008-07-23T09:05:00.006-04:00

Well, no, but it's a really nice SMALL show. Omar and I have our art in the "Animals and Wildlife in Art" show at the Foxfire Studio gallery in Dover, New Hampshire. It's a great little gallery run by Steve and Pat Lewis. Steve does jewelry, Pat does illustration and tattooing, and they both have their studios in the shop. So stop by, check out the show, buy some art or a necklace or perhaps have one tattooed on! The show runs through September 30, more information is available on their website, foxfirestudioinc.com.

Spectrum calendar now in stores

2008-07-23T08:34:00.003-04:00

The 2009 calendars in available for sale now. We just got our copies and they are beee-uuu-tee-full! Go get one!

Drum auction- ends June 16th- bid now!

2008-06-05T14:10:00.013-04:00

Omar and I had the honor of being chosen to decorate two very special antique ceremonial Hatian Rada drums for an auction to benefit the Drum Workshop. Founder Rick Bausman has created these workshops to offer a range of ensemble drumming programs for elementary and high school students, elderly, people with disabilities. They also provide programs to address the issues of substance abuse, anger management, and violence prevention. Rick is a great guy, and a badass drummer to boot. Be sure to check out the auction. It ends June 16, so bid now!

Golden Apple revisited

2008-05-27T17:53:00.002-04:00

Omar's award-winning painting, "the Apple" will be published in the soon-to-be-available 2nd edition of L'Univers des Dragons published by Editions Daniel Maghen of France. I'm not sure if these books will be available in the United States. Those of you living in or visiting Europe had better run out and grab yourself a copy of these books, because from what we've seen of the first one, they are absolutely stunning.

Vegas, baby!

2008-05-09T19:21:00.003-04:00

We just got back from a quick little vacation to that humblest of cities, Las Vegas, Nevada. The air was warm (ahhhh...), scented with jasmine in bloom (ahhhh...), and windy as all heck (ooooh!). With a bit of self-control, scheming, and just plain luck we managed to actually come home with a little bit of money. Of course, it was less money than we went there with, but hey, ya gotta eat too. Like they say, if ya wanna make a small fortune in Vegas, go there with a big fortune. We saw a few shows, one being Cirque de Soliel's "O"-- it was freakin' AMAZING! We also loved watching the fountains of Bellagio from our hotel room...

Up from the ashes...

2008-04-26T14:30:00.002-04:00

We were shocked and saddened by the news that a friends' gallery and frame shop had a devastating fire a few nights ago. Wendy and Chuck Lang own The Art Corner in Salem, MA. It's a great little place to find funky frames and even funkier art. We know Wendy and Chuck will bring back the Art Corner more glorious than it was before. Thankfully, no one was hurt in the fire, although Wendy said one of her goldfish did succumb a few days later. The Salem Arts Association is planning a fundraiser for the Art Corner, you can find information about it here. Also, be sure to check out the Art Corner's blog for news about their rebuilding. Best wishes to Wendy and Chuck!

Calendar Boy

2008-04-03T17:19:00.006-04:00

One of Omar's paintings will be in the Spectrum Fantastic Art calendar for 2009. He even got "top billing" as it were on the back cover. I don't think they're available for sale yet, but you can get a sneak preview and more info by visiting the Spectrum website.

The Incredible Shrinking Woman!

2008-03-21T15:13:00.003-04:00

For those of you out there that know us personally, you may know that I have been on a mad fitness kick for the past year or so, trying to lose weight and get in shape. I have been documenting my transformation as I go along and I thought this was a fun one to share. This photo is me, wearing the exact same clothes one year apart, almost to the minute (if you look at the shadow behind me you can tell we're off by maybe 10-20 minutes?). I'm also about 60 lbs. lighter than I was in last year's photo. And the tree grew and the grass is greener this year!
-Sheila

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2008-03-17T09:45:00.004-04:00

I figured today would be a good day to highlight this children's book that Omar did years ago. It seems to be popping up in conversation a lot lately. It's a great Irish folk tale written by Teresa Bateman that Omar illustrated using my Irish relatives as characters in the book. Unfortunately, it is no longer in print, but Amazon.com does still offer it for sale. Click here to find a copy.

Springtime

2008-03-08T07:43:00.004-05:00

Ahhhhh... we've finally had one of those lovely warm sunny days. Everybody was outside and smiling, the birds are chirping, the snowdrops are in bloom... Spring is in the air! Spot of course had the best idea of how to spend the morning... taking a nap in the sun. Look at him, he's actually smiling! What a content horse.

Golden Apple!

2008-02-27T15:18:00.003-05:00

We just found out that Omar won a gold award in the "unpublished" category for his painting "the Apple" in this year's Spectrum Annual!
woohoo!

Studio Cat

2008-02-26T17:40:00.005-05:00

We've got a cat. As with any other cat, she likes to sleep. Alot. And also likes to be right in the middle of things. So with our art studio being in our home, we have a cat in our lap (or elsewhere draped upon us) for a good part of the day. BTW, our cat's name is Patchouli, she's 18 and lives a REALLY good life.

Return from Boskone

2008-02-17T21:06:00.003-05:00

We just got back from Boskone, where we had a very successful showing. I received much praise for my work, Omar sold a bunch of paintings and also got a pile of awards. This painting was shown at Boskone and is also the one we showed a "peek" of in an earlier blog, here it is finished. Omar titled it "the Knight, the Daemon, and the Donut". The poor horse looks a tad worried about what the daemon is going to do with that donut...
It's available for sale, contact us for more info.
-Sheila

Happy Valentine's Day

2008-02-14T20:06:00.003-05:00

Happy Valentine's Day everyone. Omar just finished painting this one, fresh off the easel and tentatively titled Froggy Went a-Courtin'. I thought it was appropriate for today, so I figured I should share it. He'll be displaying it at Boskone tomorrow. We're in the final stretch right now getting ready for the art show, and our studio actually doesn't look too bad. Usually by now it looks like a bomb went off. I guess the renovation and reorganization is actually working. Phew.
-Sheila

Simpsonized!

2008-02-10T15:50:00.000-05:00

This what I'd look like if I was a Simpson's character...
try it for yourself here.
-Sheila

What's he up to?

2008-02-08T21:44:00.000-05:00

We're down to the final week before Boskone, so we're getting pretty busy in prep for the art show. Here's a quick peek of what's on Omar's drawing board...

Groundhog Day

2008-02-02T07:37:00.000-05:00

Well, good old Punxy Phil saw his shadow this morning, so that means six more weeks of winter weather. So far this week we've had 7 inches of snow, 2 days of pouring rain, high winds, power outages, mud, slush, ice, frost, and ladybugs in our morning coffee. I think I'm about done with this winter stuff. Can we send Phil back in his burrow for a second opinion? I found this great cartoon on Casting Stones Productions cafepress store, check it out: cafepress.com/cstonesprod