I love visiting illustrators’ studios. After the frenzy of the Holiday Sale and the magic of Willow the Wonder Pony, I marched my class down to visit MECA alum Liz Long in her studio. Not that long ago she was working in the MECA Illustration studios, when she created a whimsical body of work for her thesis last spring.
Remember this dreamy installation at Longfellow Books?
Liz and her classmates visited my studio before graduation, and I found this portrait of me that Liz left behind.
I drew a portrait of her for my Portland zine, which I brought to ICON8, held in Portland, OR this summer.
Liz applied for an entrepreneurial grant from Maine College of Art’s Artists @ Work program, and won a seat at ICON8. Here she is brainstorming in a clever workshop on publishing given by Bridget Watson-Payne, art editor at Chronicle Books.
Upon return from that fantastic spree of illo immersion, I drew Liz into my PDX zine
This fall Liz painted a mural in the new Artists @ Work shop area, just in time for the Collect show.
My class piled into her studio on a drizzly December day.
She’s working on all manner of things: sewing little balsam pillows and painting on found art, inspired by Wayne White.
You can also find her prints at The Portland Trading Company. Just ask Kazeem.
Her words of wisdom for my students: draw something every day! Hear, hear! That goes for all of us. Thanks to Liz for sharing her new studio with my class.
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