Blog Carnival: Sept 25th

The theme of this week's Blog Carnival is to Show Our Face, to let others know the artist behind the work. Since you can see who I am just by clicking on my 365 tag, I decided to have the lovely and talented Jacqueline Parks interview me! Enjoy!

Artist's Interview with Diana "Bunnykissd" Bukowski of Faerie Garden Fancies
Interviewed by Jacqueline Parks

1. When did you first get interested in art?
I don't remember ever being without crayons and paper and pencils and scissors and glue and tape...

2. What are some of the earliest art experiences that you remember?
Making paper doll chains with my grandmother, creating drawings to go with songs I heard on the radio, drawing with Ed Emberley's books, using the Barbie Fashion Plates to make textured drawings...

3. Who influenced you as a child/teen to become an artist?
My grandparents, my grandmother was always showing me how to do something neat with paper, and my grandfather was the first to ever really critique my drawings...

4. How does being an artist influence the other parts of your life?
There was a time, a long time ago, when I had my first apartment, when I would buy flowers from the grocery store, and steal toilet paper from work. I still don't handle my money as well as one would expect a "grown-up" to, and I tend to be absent-minded and distracted by things most people just don't notice: a particularly vibrant leaf on the ground, a bird in a tree, an interesting cloud... I'm also finding that I'd rather not work at a *real* job anymore...

5. What is your current favorite medium to work in and why?
I don't really have a favorite at the moment. I've always loved colored pencils, but can't ever get them to work like other people can; so I've been practicing with them. Also, I like the looks people get with markers, yet again, they never worth that way for me; so more practice there. I'm also practicing with watercolors too, which is similar to my favorite thing to do which is water my acrylics down a bunch, but it acts different on paper than it does on the poly clay; so more practice! And yes, polymer clay is always fun to play with...

6. Who is currently influencing your artistic direction?
A whole bunch of really talented folks on dA: thegirlinthebigbox, mandarinmoon, valentinacrespo, odins-girl, darklingwoods, lilmidnight, colorfulblossom, iceandsnow, marina-b, ALWAYS esme123, just about ALL my friends, and of course people like Suzi Blu and the Godess Leonie and Vanessa Valencia at A Fanciful Twist.. omg I really could go on forever!

7. Show us one of your current favorite pieces and tell us why you like it in particular?

I really like this piece because I went back to my beginnings and got inspiration from Ed Emberley, which was fun, and it's cute (almost kawaii), yet the moon is so pretty...

8. What is one medium that you have never worked in that you would like to try?
gouache

9. What advice can you give to aspiring artists?
Never say never. Don't say you can't. Don't listen to people who tell you you can't. Have you seen Picasso or Pollack's work? Don't expect perfection; it's art, not a photo. And of course, practice, practice, practice.

10. What direction do you see your art moving in in the next five years?
More collage just for myself, more sketching and drawing on the fly, and most importantly, I'd like to see it be my primary source of income...