Help Protect the Ocean with the Inky Ocean Art Collection
Every October artists everywhere take part in Inktober. It was started back in 2009 by Jake Parker, an artist who wanted to improve his inking skills and drawing habits. The "rules' of the art challenge are pretty fluid. (See what I did there? Ink is a fluid medium... Uh, anyway...😬) You can post as much, or as little, as you want and you can follow the official prompt list, or not. Whatever you want. Easy peasy.
I decided that I would create a little collection of inky ocean paintings. I layered down lots of watery blues and greens, with hits of shimmering gold ink, and featured a different marine animal in each little original artwork. Maybe this comes as no surprise to any of you. What can I say, the ocean makes me happy. You know what else makes me happy? Learning that baby humpback whale calves whisper to their mothers. That is just about the sweetest thing ever. I did loads of research on marine animals and had fun sharing all the facts that I learned, along with the art, over on Instagram. Go have a read about everything you never wished you knew about narwhals or octopodes. Not a typo, seriously, go over here to read why I have erroneously pluralized the octopus for all these years. It's not octopi, after all. (It's not technically octopodes either, but I like it so much better than octopuses.
These little 5”x3.5” original inky works on paper will be available Friday, November 1st for purchase for CAD$50 each. With each sale, 50% of all proceeds will be going to protect the ocean with Mission Blue. The use of gold in the water was a purposeful choice. In addition to it adding a glorious metallic shimmer, it is a reference to the worth of the ocean. Not from a financial point of view, of course, but the value of it from the perspective of the health of the earth and our ability to thrive (or even survive) as human beings on this blue planet.
When I saw Dr. Sylvia Earle speak last year at the G7 Oceans Expo, I knew she had a true heart of blue. She was brimming with information, experience, and positivity.
At the helm of Mission Blue, “Her special focus is on developing a global network of marine protected areas, "Hope Spots," to safeguard the living systems that provide the underpinnings of global processes, from maintaining biodiversity and yielding basic life support services to providing stability and resiliency in response to accelerating climate change.”
In other words #nobluenogreen 🌎🌍🌏
Stay tuned for more inky works over on Instagram leading up to Friday. Plus, 3 special surprise pieces that will also be included with this collection!
I really hope you'll join me in protecting the ocean through art! Shop the Inky Ocean Collection. (Nov 1st or after) Don't forget to check out the 3 secret surprise pieces while you are there.