Cinderella's Fairy Godmother

I am a sucker for old fashioned fairy tales, and one of my favorite is Disney's Cinderella. There are many charming moments in the film but Bippity Boppity Boo contains all the elements that make the classic Disney films great: magic, humor and unabashed sentimentality. 

I love sentimentality, and resist the sophisticated who scoff at sentiment as if it should be relegated to rubes and dolts. If you can watch this clip without having your pants charmed off, you are made of asbestos.

 Enjoy!

Merry

French Fantasy Artist Olivier Ledroit

Olivier Ledroit is one of the top French comic book artists. The quality of his work makes me regard him as a graphic novel artist instead. He is best known for The Black Moon Chronicles and is considered one of the founding fathers of the BD Gothique genre.

He is also a stellar fairy artist.

Here are some examples of his work:

For more information about Olivier Ledroit and his art, visit the Lambiek Comiclopedia: 

http://www.lambiek.net/artists/l/ledroit_o.htm

Cheers,  Merry

Jessica Galbreth Fairy Art

One of the fairy artists who most inspired me is Jessica Galbreth. She is from Ohio and started her interest in the fair folk when she was a child. Here is an image from her page at the Sorcerer's Library:

http://www.thesorcererslibrary.com/TSL/Dragonsite/jessica_galbreth/jg_mainpage.htm 

If you are interested in becoming familiar with more fantasy artists, visit: 

 The Sorcerer's Library

Cheers, 

Merry

Silver Spoon Jewelry

OK, so this isn't exactly fairy related, but Christmas is around the corner, and Hanukkah is even closer!  I met the owners of Silver Spoon Jewelry a few years ago at the California Gift Show, and fell in love with their designs. 

 

Silver Spoon Jewelry began by making individual pieces from real antique silver spoons. Eventually, they couldn't keep up with the orders, so they made molds from their most popular pieces and  crafted high quality jewelry from the molds.

Here is a design that resembles a fairy - they call her "Phoebe." And of course, her friend, the Angel!

Look closely and you will recognize the handle ends of two different spoon patterns, crafted into a heart design.

I am a huge Octopus fan, This one is made from antique forks!









Check out Silver Spoon Jewelry at their official website by clicking HERE

Happy shopping!

Merry Clingen
Merry's Twisted Fairies

Merry's Blue Fairy

Sometimes I just gotta draw a sweet fairy. This one I drew a few years ago, and painted her in Photoshop. Imagine her leading a small child out of the woods to keep her safe from the Twisted Fairies who live there!

Here is the creature my Blue Fairy warned you about! You can find her at my Cafe Press Store:

Click Here

Merry's Twisted Fairies

I enjoy blogging about all kinds of fairy art, but don't want to neglect my own Twisted Fairy images, which are available as greeting cards and other items.

Merry's Twisted Fairies aren't your typical fairies. They are in fact, "Creepadorable." 

Here are a few examples I created for the recent Halloween season:

 

Merry's Twisted Fairies Cards and other items are available at http://www.cafepress.com/merrystwistedfairies

Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book

Have you ever opened an antique volume of poetry and discovered a pressed flower (image courtesy of The Roland School on Flicker )?

However, if you looked more closely, you might have noticed a flattened fairy preserved among the posies. If so, you might have your hands on Lady Cottington's journal.

Of course, Lady Cottington's Pressed Fairy Book is the brainchild of fairy illustrator Brian Froud and author Terry Jones. If you have never seen it before, it is worth a look!

Check it out at World of Froud

And don't forget to visit Merry's Twisted Fairies at Cafe Press:
http://www.cafepress.com/merrystwistedfairies

Cheers, Merry

Fairy Tale Parodies

The release of Shrek in 2001 brought about a renewed interest in parodies of well-known fairy tales. However, doing send-ups of the classics is nothing new.

In the 1960, a series of recordings were released that poked fun at Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty using "spoonerisms"  for comic effect.

Rindercella and Beeping Sleauety can still make me laugh when the "Prandsome Hince" will "lurch all over the sand" for the "Princiful Beautress."



Check them out on YouTube:

Beeping Sleauty by Archie Campbell

Rindercella as told by Steven Daniels

Enjoy!

Work in Progress: Winter Warrior Fairy

This fairy is a work in progress. I've trying out different color schemes and feel I'm getting close. Te background and the Wolf familiar still need work at the drawing board, but I am hopeful this will be a successful image.

I hope to have her ready for the Holidays!

Halloween is over, but Twisted Fairies are always in season! You can still check out Merry's Twisted Fairies at CafePress Merry's Twisted Fairies

Happy November everybody!

Edmund Dulac Fairy Artist Extroidinaire

Another artist from the Golden Age of Children's Book Illustration is Edmund Dulac (1882-1953). He might not be as well known as his counterparts Aubry Beardsley and Arthur Rackham, but his work is equal and in many ways superior to theirs.

Edmund Dulac was born in Toulouse France, but moved to London in the early 20th Century, where he received his first major commission at the age of 22 - to illustrate an edition of Jane Eyre. He had a prolific career in book illustration until the end of WWI, when deluxe illustrated books went out of style. He turned his talents to creating artwork for newspapers, magazines, postage stamps and product packaging (such as chocolate boxes).

For a more extensive biography, and more Dulac images, visit JVJ Illustrators

Pinocchio and the Blue Fairy

One of the lovliest characters ever in a Disney movie is the Blue Fairy in Pinocchio. If you wonder why her animation seems so naturalistic, especially compared to the style of the film, it is because she was rotoscoped. Rotoscoping is the process of filming a real actor or actress, printing out stills and transforming the person into your character. The modern day equivalent of this process is called Motion Capture (Gollum in LOTR was created with Motion Capture).

Pinocchio is still one of the most beautiful films produced by The Walt Disney Studios. If you have never seen it, check it out!

The Fair Folk

Click here to visit the Shadow Hunters (Mortal Instrument series) Wiki on Faeries

This pic is called The Fair Folk, but I confess, I don't know the name of the artist. I enjoy the rich detail and the fantastical mood.

Underwater Fairy by Merry

This is one of my earliest Photoshop pieces, and still one of my favorites. I was inspired by a picture of a girl swimming underwater, which I saw in the newspaper. I recently revised the image to correct the proportions and improve the color. I like it more than ever!  

Sometimes I wish I could control the muse of inspiration, and have her visit me whenever I wish, but she seems to come when I least expect it and leaves me just as suddenly.

Fractured Fairy Tales

The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show used to have a segment called "Fractured Fairy Tales." They were an irreverent send up of classic stories, and I used to look forward to them very much.

A lot of the shows today are preachy and humorless. I often wonder if children actually watch them.



Fractured Fairy Tales always featured an unexpected twist that made me laugh.

Check out some of the Fractured Fairy Tales, which can be viewed on YouTube. This particular episode is a parody of Cinderella:

Winter Fantasy Warrior Fairy

This drawing is a work in progress.

I am adding to my initial series of fairies, who are suitable for the Halloween season. This is Winter Warrior Fairy, who I hope to have ready for the Holidays, along with one or two additional designs.

Winter Warrior Fairy lives in the Arctic region, with her familiar, which happens to be a white wolf. Of course, I plan to replace the photo of the wolf with a drawing, and have a more detailed mountainscape in the background.

Of course, she will be in color!

Check out my other designs at CafePress and Etsy:

Click here to visit my CafePress Store

Click here to see my Twisted Fairy Cards at Chris and Jane's Place on Etsy



If you have any comments or suggestions, I eager to hear your point of view!

Thanks for visiting! 

- Merry Clingen 

Amy Brown Popular Fairy Artist

One of the most successful and prolific fairy artists today is Amy Brown. You will see her work on calendars, mugs, t-shirts, posters and figurines.

I love her biography. She started out in her late teens, working in an art gallery. The owner asked her to paint something to fit in an empty frame. Amy asked what to paint, and her boss said: "I don't know, paint a fairy or something."  

The painting sold within three days, so she painted another and another, each one selling.

"It was like the fairies had taken control of me and were pushing me to paint their portraits," she says in her online biography. " A little more than seventeen years later, over 1300 paintings completed, and a history of licensed products longer than I can count, I am still trailing behind helplessly as the Faeries drag me on in a seemingly endless rampage."

You can visit Amy Brown's official website and read about her passion for fairies that still drives her:

Amy Brown Autobiography 

 While visiting, you might even want to shop for gifts or even for yourself!



You also might want to visit my own CafePress Shop to see my fairy art, which is quite different than Amy's:

Click here to visit Merry's Twisted Fairies at CafePress

Fairy in a Cup - My First Vector Drawing

Years ago I was introduced at work to a PC (Personal Computer, not Political Correctness) with a mouse attached. Did people actually draw with that thing? Not only did it feel like a bar of soap, but I had to draw in one place and view the image in another.

I swore I would never make art on a computer.

When Disney closed its Feature Animation studio in Burbank I decided  to return to college to finish my degree. To finish off my lower division requirements, I took an Adobe Illustrator class at Glendale Community College.

This image was my very first attempt at drawing with a mouse on a computer. I am very proud of the fact I created this using vector curves without making any preliminary sketches. Being new to the tools though, I imported it into Photoshop, painted it and flattened the layers without saving earlier versions.

Someday I might revisit this character and improve both linework and color.

Wendy Froud: Unique Fairy Doll/Figurines

I always admired the Fairy Art of Brian Froud, but was unaware of the work of his wife Wendy Froud. If you are a Star Wars fan, you may or not be aware that she created the YODA Muppet for The Empire Strikes Back (operated and voiced in the movie by Frank Oz).

A few years back I came across a DVD from Gnoman Workshop featuring Wendy giving instructions on how to create a handmade fairy figurine. She is an excellent teacher, and I recommend the video for any fairy, fantasy or doll enthusiast.

Link to Wendy Froud DVD at Gnoman Workshop

In some cases, Wendy's dolls appear to be self portraits! What do you think?

Aquatic Fairy

Aquatic Fairy makes her home in the Kelp Forest. She is by nature a skilled huntress. She has been spotted by the occasional skin diver, who understandably mistake her for a mermaid.

Aquatic Fairy is available at Cafe Press:
  http://www.cafepress.com/MerrysTwistedFairies

 You can also find her at Chris and Jane's Place Etsy Store:   http://www.etsy.com/listing/164728130/5-twisted-fairies-cards?ref=shop_home_active


 

Arthur Rackham's Fairy Art

 Some of the best fairy artists come from the golden age of children's book illustration (1850-1830). One of my favorite artists from this era is Arthur Rackham, whose artwork never fails to transport me to another world.

This website has an extensive collection of Rackham's images available  in  the form of postcards, calendars and posters.

http://rackham.artpassions.net/

I like to visit their online store whenever I need inspiration.

Changling Fairy

One of the images I have been working on it the 

Changling Fairy.

She is based on an ancient Celtic legend of the Glaistig -who has the legs of a goat. She is said to be a kind of evil water spirit, who lures young people deep into the woods for nefarious purposes. She was also known to enchant men so completely, she could make them drink their own blood...

Changling Fairy is a work in progress. 
Next step: color!

Here are some earlier versions :

  




Be sure to visit my Cafe Press Store!

http://www.cafepress.com/merrystwistedfairies

Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure

A few years ago I had the good fortune to assist on the illustrations for a series of Tinkerbell and Pixie Hollow books. For those who are not familiar with these, they are small publications for young readers: chapter books that are a step up from picture books. While working freelance for Disney Publishing, I got to follow up some very talented artists, like Jeffrey Clark and Judi Clarke (not related). 

In the case of Tinkerbell and the Lost Treasure, I was honored to have my name in the list of artists who contributed to the book. Disney is very collaborative, a method of working which I like very much.

http://www.amazon.com/Tinker-Bell-Lost-Treasure-Klay/dp/B0060CW3PW

My friends have an Etsy store called Chris and Jane's Place. Stop by and check out their Zombie Gnomes!

http://www.etsy.com/listing/165282370/zombie-gnomes-the-horde-free-usa?ref=shop_home_active

Visit my online store at Cafe Press:

http://www.cafepress.com/merrystwistedfairies

Or my at my friend's Etsy shop:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/164728130/5-twisted-fairies-cards?ref=shop_home_active

Pearlie - My favorite new animated series

If there is any series currently being produced that I wish I was working on, it is Pearlie.

I love the positive, non-preachy tone of the show. Yes, there are little life lessons contained in each story, but they don't hit you over the head with their message as so many children's shows are prone to do. This is the perfect show to watch whenever I am feeling a little blue.

Visit Merry's Twisted Fairies at CafePress:

http://www.cafepress.com/merrystwistedfairies

They are also available at Etsy:
 http://www.etsy.com/listing/164728130/5-twisted-fairies-cards?ref=shop_home_active

I have been an Animation artist for many years. In 1989, I started working for Disney Feature Animation, where I worked on The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, Pocahontas, Hercules, Fantasia 2000, Tarzan, Atlantis and Treasure Planet. I have also worked on Tinkerbell and the Fairies of Pixie Hollow, during which time I became fond of drawing mythical creatures. Recently, I decided to create a different line of fairies, with an edgy twist. My fairies are just a bit snarky, with sharp little teeth and a fondness for human flesh! I hope you enjoy them.

Visit my shop at Cafe Press:

http://www.cafepress.com/merrystwistedfairies

Introducing Twisted Fairie

Twisted Fairies are adorable creatures who are just a little bit creepy. You might encounter them in the graveyard late at night, or walking through the deep forest, or in the quiet halls of the museum. Swimming in the ocean, you might feel the tug of delicate hands trying to pull you under the water, or the nibble of sharp little teeth on your big toe. When clouds hide the moon, do you ever look into the yard and see strange creatures searching for a victim?

You have entered the strange world of the Twisted Fairies.