What City Studio

Nature Inspired Vintage

2009-02-21T11:54:00.004-05:00

Along with creating nature inspired art, I also like to collect nature inspired vintage art. I specifically look for items that could easily have been displayed in grandma and grandpa's house circa 1970-1985. Pictured are some great items that my girlfriend Katie and I have around our house.

The first item is a yarn art piece that we found at the Salvation Army. On the backing board of the frame it's stamped, "Sunset Designs 1978". This specific "Water Mill" design was sold as a DIY kit back in the 70's. It included all the yarn and materials you would need, and also all the framing material.

The next photo is a close up shot of a black velvet painting we have hanging in our living room. We found this awesome buy at a local thrift store. Blue Mountain Thrift is the "largest thrift store in central Pennsylvania", or so they say. Anyway, the painting is 3.5ft x 2.5ft, all velvet, and framed with decorative carved wood. I don't know how old it really is. Judging by the frame I would say mid 80's. It does have a signature, but I can't make out what it is. You can't go wrong with a jumping buck painted on velvet.

The last image is a vintage Econolite motion lamp from 1955. I had wanted this particular lamp for a while. This past Christmas Katie surprised me with this one. I was stoked! The image is pretty dramatic with the depiction of distressed animals braving a raging forest fire. To get the full effect of the "motion" part of the lamp the manufactures of motion lamps had to incorporate imagery that had movement. This meant most motion lamps had scenes that revolved around water or fire. With room lights off and the motion lamp on I could stare at this for hours.

Pinecone for my Folks

2008-12-04T00:01:00.006-05:00

So, the holiday season is upon us. Soon the holiday cards will start showing up in the mail. Each one containing good cheer and happy wishes to you and yours. This year my parents asked if I could design the holiday card for their business. My parents are entrepreneurial and own a small, but successful automotive business. They usually order pre-designed bulk cards with a custom message to send out to their customers, but this year they wanted to change things up. So this means they will be the only business with a one-of-a-kind What City Studio design. If the final prints look good I might venture into selling greeting cards for different occasions. It's something to think about. In the meantime, here is the final design that went to print. Happy trails. Wyatt

Jim Thorpe, Deer of a Feather

2008-11-19T12:09:00.007-05:00

About a month and a half ago my girlfriend and I, along with two good friends of ours, went tent camping in Jim Thorpe, PA. Jim Thorpe is a town in eastern Pennsylvania that sits in a valley and is surrounded by mountains. We camped just outside of town at the cleverly named "Jim Thorpe Campground", how original. It was a great time. The creek photo was taken right behind our camp site. It was around dusk and there was very little light left. I left the shutter open as long as my digital camera allows and this was the result. I really like how the photo turned out.

Illustration update: I just finished a new illustration, "Deer of a Feather". This print is available via my Etsy store.

Snow Doe.... and Buck

2008-11-07T00:16:00.000-05:00

Just finished 2 new illustrations. I was inspired to draw these two snow bound white tails after looking at vintage 1970's deer figurines/planters on ebay. I think the vintage circle frame really gives the images a nice antique "worn" look. These two prints will be available for purchase in the next few days.

The lake is rising

2008-10-28T00:00:00.000-04:00

This past weekend we went camping in the Pocono mountains of Pennsylvania (about an hour and a half north of Sinking Spring). A cabin next to Lake Harmony was our home for 3 days. The cabin was built by hand in the 1940's and, although updated with modern amenities, it still had a very rustic feel.

Saturday we woke up to the sound of rain. The whole day was a wash up with heavy rainfall. My girlfriend and I ventured out by the lake and around the cabin, but we were soaked within minutes. It was a good day to relax by the fireplace. Sunday turned out to be clear and sunny so we all went out on the lake via a paddle boat and row boat.

There was a lot of inspiration all around, and I thought of a few ideas that are going to manifest in the near future. Keep your eyes peeled for updates.

When camping on fur, mind the fire.

2008-10-24T01:14:00.000-04:00

Hello, My name is Wyatt and this is the starting point for what will hopefully be a consistent and engaging blog venture. I have but only one preexisting goal for this blog, and that is to keep up with it. I am looking forward to creating more goals. We'll start small to begin though.

Welcome to the What City Studio blog. What's in the name? Well, "What City" represents my attachment to the great outdoors. The term "What City" could be stated as a question. For example, "What City? All I see are mountains". This does not mean I dislike cities. It just means I feel much for comfortable when I'm not in them. It's who I am as a person.

I strive to create intriguing images with an organic, natural underlying theme. I am currently setting up an Etsy store to sell my prints (www.whatcitystudio.etsy.com).