look and learn
Getting out to see current exhibits is always a refresher. I jumped at the chance to chaperone Susannah Green’s French 4 field trip from Portland High School to the Portland Museum of Art recently. She intended to expose the class to the French Impressionism on the second floor, but many students were mesmerized by the Richard Estes work in the main gallery. His work is photorealism extraordinaire, yet on close inspection, reveals brushwork and fascinating layers of perception. I’m fond of this one in particular because of the phone booths. I grew up at the Red Doors Motel, where...
Read Moremoony blues
It’s my honor once again to contribute to next year’s Lunar Calendar published by The Luna Press. I’ve been part of this fine endeavor since 1983, with it’s moon phases exerting a greater pull over time. I check it daily for the moonrise times, and embrace the swell of full moon energy every cycle. I submitted seven cover ideas to editor Nancy F. W. Passmore, including this one that overlapped my freshly completed project, Tiger Boy, set in India. My head was still full of naukas (fishing boats) and alpanas (decorative designs.) Nancy also provides a bounty of poetic...
Read Moredaring adventures in collage
When my super talented kin Mati Rose McDonough asked to interview me for her colorful e-course, Daring Adventures in Collage, I said YEAH! It prompted me to consider my connections to collage and the currents running through all my work. I didn’t discover collage formally until art history class at RISD, but had made cut paper cards as a child. This is my first published illustration, incorporating a scrap of Dick and Jane text to reference an educational crisis in teaching, August of 1980! My first eight years of freelance illustration in Boston brought opportunities for collage added...
Read Morerunway MECA
Maine College of Art’s second fashion show rocked the runway in early May. Introducing the Collection of it’s new program, Textile and Fashion Design, Department chair Anne Emlein and suave MC Paul Lewandowski, Assistant Adjunct Professor, glowed with pride. My daughter and I loved the show last year (I wrote about the inaugural show here) yet this year’s event was even better, with all student-made work from freshmen to seniors. The broad range of materials, moods, and model shapes was a complete thrill. I sketched a few afterwards, like this silkscreened tunic by Allie...
Read Morethree cheers for Chelmsford
I knew I was in the right place when I arrived at the Center Elementary School in Chelmsford for two days last week. The halls are alive with color and art on display. I spent Thursday with first grade classes, reading Seven Days of Daisy, talking about how I made the book and shaped the story. I gave them blank booklets to begin writing and drawing their own story. They knew just how to add visual detail. Before moving to another classroom, a few volunteers shared their story. The best part is meeting kids, seeing their curiosity and listening to their ideas. Thanks to Mrs. Mackinnon, Mrs....
Read MoreMECA morphing
What a privilege to push/pull a talented senior class to the finish line in their last semester at Maine College of Art. I’m so proud of them! It’s been long, and yet a blink of an eye. Here’s a flicker of what’s transpired in IL 423, Illustration Majors Studio: Maria Antuna tackled 20 portraits of MECA faculty and staff, stacked according to the floor in which they work. At every crit, more faces appeared. Maria considered many options for how to pull these all together. Watercolor? Digital? During class critique, the majority liked the watercolors. But Maria had a...
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