The Cheepsqueek Inn

A made up home of a bird and mouse

Qty 2 8"x5" Acrylic paintings on scrap plywood that act like a diptych.

This all started when I was at work, there came a substrate or frame, I'm not sure exactly anymore, but that substrate/frame came in a container that had these plywood pieces stapled to some wood that looked like a fun thing to make some art with.

So I started to prep the "canvas" by taking some white modeling clay and just piling that up where these giant staples were that stapled the plywood to the wood behind it. This would "smooth" the canvas out so I didn't have staples shining through the artwork. It sorta worked. The canvas is ultimately lumpy but better than it was without the clay hiding the staples.

After the canvas prep, what do I paint on these things?

There is 2 of them. It could be oriented many ways. Well, right around this time, I was having fun in Minecraft making castles and wanting to make more medieval houses in the game. That's when I decided to paint the house I wanted to build in the game. I just didn't want the house to be empty though.

So, who should live in the house?

How about a mouse! And a bird! Mouse house on the bottom floors and the bird house on the top floors.

What are they doing in the house?

Well, I'm not completely sure but I could put some more creatures in the window for the look of a busy house. There'll be pets. Snail, ladybug, frog, butterfly. These are all small like the bird and mouse so it kind of works. Maybe if I could write heckin' small, I'll put in a medieval ol' shoppe sign saying it's a bed and breakfast. Yeah, I don't think I can write that small but it looks like a nice inn anyway.

So I wrote this all down on the back:

"The idea of a introverted little mouse with a pet snail & ladybug sharing an old medieval French Tudor house with a outgoing robin who has a pet frog where the mouse & bird make a living as a bed & breakfast inn called the 'cheep-squeek'. Small creatures come from far & wide, to enjoy the Cheep-Squeek Bed & Breakfast Inn. All are welcome who can fit inside!"

All in all

I learned a bit about using my imagination to make this with the basis of some photo studies of the house and animals. I realized I love doing detailed work. I truly love doing it. But boy howdy, does it take such a long time to do the details. I would get so burnt out just doing the house detail, that I needed a week break or so before I would continue and not be immediately back in frustration land. And detail work does that a lot. I loved using scrap wood also as my inner environmentalist felt very proud to recycle something into something better than it was. I will try and save some trash again for canvas use just for my soul's sake.

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