Illustration

Birds, Nature, Landcscapes, Photography, and More!

brianleefritz

Image transfers!! There are a couple of ways to tr

Image transfers!!
There are a couple of ways to transfer a drawing onto a block. My favorite is using an acrylic medium to move toner from a LaserJet print onto the block.

This works best for one-color blocks and the film from the medium can start to be a real pain in the ass when you do any kind of reduction technique. Ask me how I know.

But for something like this? Easy. I drew up the daffodil, inked it, took a picture, threw it through Photoshop for a threshold effect and printed it out.

From there, I covered the block in acrylic gel medium (one of the perks of being a painter as well as a printmaker), slapped that paper down on the block, pressed out the wrinkles and bubbles and let it sit for a few hours to dry. Once dry, I wet the paper down and rubbed it away gently to reveal the reversed image on the block.

Any questions? Put em in the comments!

#printmaker #floral #daffodil #printmaking #art #michiganartist #linocut #progressshot #artcollector #homedecor #interiordesign #annarborartist #detroitartist #natureart #floralart

Chickadee in the Willow My piece from Opera Art Li

Chickadee in the Willow
My piece from Opera Art Live on Saturday night.

I made the background the week before and sketched the chickadee in chalk. That way all I had to do at the event was paint the bird.

The woman who bought it was VERY excited. It turns out that she loves chickadees (who doesn't?) and had this particular kind of willow tree outside her window as a child and would see them there all the time.

There is a level of meaning that I can bring to a piece, but the collector always has a story as well that they transpose on top of the one that I put there. Almost as if the painting is more meaningful to them than it is to me. Which is pretty cool.

#chickadee #livepainting #natureart #howelloperahouse #artcollector #homedecor #wildlifeart #bird #birdart #abstract #michiganartist

SOMEBODY STOP HIM! HE'S AT IT AGAIN! Don't mind m

SOMEBODY STOP HIM! HE'S AT IT AGAIN!

Don't mind me, just live painting like all week 🤷
It's kind of my thing though.

Want to watch me paint at your event? Let's do it. I'm booking for summer and fall.

#livepainting #michiganartist #birdart #chickadee #natureart #abstract #contemporary #wildlife #michigan #annarborartist #artcollector #homedecor

B2B Bridge Over the Huron 16x20" acrylic on canvas

B2B Bridge Over the Huron
16x20" acrylic on canvas
The final product from Tuesday night's live painting at @hwpathways Maps & Taps kickoff event.

What a wonderful time and I can't wait to get live painting again soon!

The buyer was also the designer of the bridge and it's going up on the wall next to another painting of the bridge from the other side. I couldn't imagine a better home!

#landscape #livepainting #b2btrail #bridge #foliage #interiordesign #homedecor #artcollector #annarbor #dextermi #michiganartist #acryliconcanvas

Maps & Taps was such a a great event, thank you @h

Maps & Taps was such a a great event, thank you @hwpathways for having me and thank you Patrick for adding this newest piece to your collection.

Patrick is the guy who designed the bridge and this painting is going next to another one from the other side of the bridge. It's such a cool story and I can't imagine a better home for my landscape.

He told me all about the process of designing, approving and building the bridge and it's amazing how much work and detail and thought goes into something like this. The bridge itself is placed at the shortest run of the Huron River to minimize human impact on the river and give paddlers as much of an uninterrupted view as possible. I would have never even considered that! 🤯

Anyway, I'm working on a few more live painting events, the next one is Opera Art Live on Saturday night at the Howell Opera House. I'll be upstairs painting a chickadee.

#livepainting #annarbor #dextermi #michiganartist #nature #b2btrail #bridge #acryliconcanvas #homedecor #biketrails #artcollector

I had a great time painting last night at Maps & T

I had a great time painting last night at Maps & Taps!
@hwpathways is doing great things with the B2B trail and we got to hear all about it as I painted a scene from the trail.

I love live painting. It's a unique kind of rush, seeing all the people walking past and watching me work. Ooh-ing and ahh-ing and asking questions and checking out the merch table. Welcome to the Brian show! 🤣

I'll also be painting at Opera Art Live this Saturday night at the Howell Opera House. I'm not saying it's the cheapest way to get one of my birds on canvas, but it's probably the cheapest way to get one of my birds on canvas 😉

#livepainting #b2btrail #annarbor #michiganartist #bikesafety #acrylic #artcollector #homedecor #fundraiser #natureart #landscapepainting

I'll be finishing this one up at Maps & Taps tonig

I'll be finishing this one up at Maps & Taps tonight, a fundraiser for @hwpathways to make more B2B trail!

I love that I get to partner with great organizations like Huron Waterloo Pathways to make riding safer and encourage more people to get outside.

Here in Southeast Michigan, we have a series of what we call Metroparks, kind of like state parks or rec areas, but nicer amenities and you need a vehicle pass to get in. You can bike in for free. They're basically my favorite places to go around here.

The B2B (Border to Border) trail connects a bunch of these Metroparks with a wide, safe and paved multi-use path so people can walk, run or bike between them from Chelsea straight through to Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti.

So of course I'm a fan.

This is one of the iconic truss bridges along the trail in Dexter-Huron Metropark on the way to Deli Metropark, crossing the mighty Huron river. We're going to auction it off as the night goes along and I finish painting and I'll split the proceeds with Huron Waterloo Pathways. I'll also have a merch table and some of the money from that will also go to HWPI.

#livepainting #painting #b2btrail #annarborartist #annarbor #michigan #michiganartist #fundraiser #mapsandtaps #artistforhire #havebrushwilltravel

Tufted Titmouse print! This little fella has bee

Tufted Titmouse print!

This little fella has been doing well at the shows lately and will probably be needing another run in the near future as I stock up.

What color should he be on?

#titmouse #tuftedtimouse #printmaking #birdwatching #birding #homedecor #artcollector #linocut #interiordesign #michiganartist #birdart

I'm set up at Johnson Nature Center today for Whim

I'm set up at Johnson Nature Center today for Whimsical Woodlands.

Might be my most scenic setup so far!

#artlife #artshow #natureart #bloomfieldtownship #johnsonnaturecenter #boothshot #homedecor #birds

A FRIEND OF MINE ALMOST DIED THE OTHER DAY What t

A FRIEND OF MINE ALMOST DIED THE OTHER DAY

What the fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck

He's a good rider, he obeys the laws and he's done about a bajillion centuries. I know for a fact that this was not his fault.

I don't know if someone hit him deliberately or they were distracted in their phone, or the simply "didn't see him there."

Well that kind of behavior almost killed my friend. So go slow, give space, and put your damn phone down. How hard is that?

As for this print, it's a ghost bike. I'm cycling culture, when someone dies on the road, we make a memorial for them by taking an old bike and painting it completely white and putting it as close as possible to where they were hit.

I've gone to a couple of there rides. I never want to have to attend another one.

Look twice, pay attention and share the road.

If you can't handle that, please give me your keys so I can throw them in the nearest lake.

#drivesafe #sharetheroad #bikelife #cycling #michiganartist #printmaker #artcollector #homedecor #ghostbike #canyouseemenow

THE PERFECT SONG DOESN'T EXIS--- 😳 Okay I'm ju

THE PERFECT SONG DOESN'T EXIS--- 😳

Okay I'm just gonna use this one for everything now.

I paint birds because they're colorful and gorgeous and packed with symbolism. It's important for you as the viewer to be able to bring your own story and experiences into the work, that way you're more likely to bring it into your life.

Also...I like BIRDS!

I'll be at @handcraftersmarkets Spring Fling tomorrow and Saturday in Livonia all day, so stop by and say hi to all the birds! 🤣

#bird #nature #contemporaryart #michiganartist #wildlife #printmaker #acryliconcanvas #birdart #interiordesign #homedecor #inspiration #artcollector

Almost ready to print! I've been meaning to print

Almost ready to print!

I've been meaning to print a bike for a long time now and I'm happy to finally get it done.

And the whole project has been reasonably painless! I already had the bike drawn from a previous project and the details like the spokes weren't even that difficult to carve out.

I have a couple plans for this block, but first up is a ghost bike on black paper.

The texture behind the block here is a nonslip mat for shelves and stuff. My bench hook is pretty small and I don't like using it, but I need some way to keep my lino from moving all around as I cut it. So this was my solution. It's reasonably good.

#bike #bikeart #michiganartist #lincout #artcollector #annarborartist #flexcut #printmaker #interiordesign #homedecor #bikelife

I've been waiting to use this video for weeks!

I've been waiting to use this video for weeks!

CLOSE THE APP AND GO OUTSIDE. You have one life t

CLOSE THE APP AND GO OUTSIDE.

You have one life to live, don't spend it here on your phone watching my dumb little video.

I had a reel get some actual traction a few weeks back. A thousand likes! 114,000 views or something stupid like that. Days and days and days of watch time.

I'm wasting whole weeks out here!

Send this to someone else who needs to get outside. Stop consuming mindless content and go nurture your soul outside in the sunshine.

#gooutside #bikeart #art #printmaker #artist #michiganartist #bikelife #cyclist #interiordesign #homedecor #artcollector

STOP BUZZING ME ON MY DAMN BIKE! If there's incom

STOP BUZZING ME ON MY DAMN BIKE!

If there's incoming traffic, settle down and wait for like ten seconds and make sure it's safe to pass. Give me my three feet, it's the law here.

There is no place or event that you're going to that justifies putting my life in danger on the road. At all. Ever.

That goes double for people in their big dumb trucks, y'all have no spacial reasoning and can barely park. Find something else to base your whole personality on. 😴

Trucks are dangerous. Cars are dangerous. Remember that next time you're driving and get all pissy that someone is out on their bike enjoying the day.

/rant

Oh man, I wish it was that easy! 🤣 Had a great

Oh man, I wish it was that easy! 🤣

Had a great time at Art Fest at the Meridian Mall in Okemos yesterday. Met a bunch of other artists and some wonderful collectors and sold some birds too.

The Fox seems to be a big hit, I'll have to get some prints made. The Tufted Titmouse also made it's first public appearance and a couple of those flew away to new homes. So that's exciting.

I met the littlest art collector too! She couldn't quite use her words yet, but she knows what a bird is and picked out her own print 🥲

Come see me in Livonia Friday/Saturday and Bloomfield on Sunday!

#artshow #artfair #interiordesign #homedecor #birdart #blockprint #acryliconcanvas #artcollector

Happy Plover Day! @sleepingbearnps has confirmed

Happy Plover Day!

@sleepingbearnps has confirmed the first piping plover of the year at Sleeping Bear Dunes!

#pipingplover #birdart #sleepingbeardunes #acryliconcanvas #homedecor #interiordesign #detroitartist #michiganartist #natureart #wildlifeart #contemporary

Wear your helmet, it's dangerous out there 😬 I

Wear your helmet, it's dangerous out there 😬

It's doesn't have to be, but it is.

Stats from the CDC, 2022.

#bikesafety #bikelife #cycling #linocut #printmaker #artcollector #bike #interiordesign #homedecor #michiganartist #detroitartist

It's spring time, please watch out for bicyclists.

It's spring time, please watch out for bicyclists. Most of us know what we're doing, but there's always a few beginners and they need a little grace.

In the last week, I've been buzzed twice, honked at aggressively once, and would have been hit at least three times if I didn't yell at the drivers creeping over the crosswalk. And I'm just riding suburban side streets and I'm doing it in a completely normal and predictable way, hand signals and bright colors and all that.

A friend and I got passed uphill and then immediately cut off yesterday riding back to his house. By his own neighbor.

People. Please pay attention. Wherever you're going isn't as important as my life. I'm going 20mph down the road on a bicycle. Maybe you could chill out a little and wait until it's safe to pass?

#bikelife #bikeart #printmaking #linocut #outdoor #artcollector #interiordesign #detroitartist #michiganartist #michigancycling #cyclingawareness #pleasedonthitme #bigdumbtruckclub

In the path of near Brotality! 🤣 Had a great ec

In the path of near Brotality! 🤣
Had a great eclipse ride with Ben and Andy @g.o.ride

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