many voices
The Many Voices Multicultural Bookfair on November 22 was a blast of color, children, art, laughter: something for all the senses, including the intoxicating aroma of dumplings. Sponsored by CAFAM, the Chinese American Friendship Association of Maine, this event brings together a mindboggling array of books from cultures around the world, and many perspectives right here. Breakwater School houses the Saturday morning Chinese School, recently featured in a beautiful piece in Port City Life Magazine. The crowd was full of energetic kids running amongst various activities like face painting,...
Read Morealpanas and henna
Jan Hamilton, Youth Services Librarian at Prince Memorial Library in Cumberland, and Lupine Committee Chair, invited me to speak this past week about Rickshaw Girl and draw alpanas in combination with a henna demonstration by Genevieve Levin. What an inspired combined program. Henna designs are commonly found in Indian culture, particularly around weddings and special occassions, applied as a paste to the skin. The designs bear a resemblance to alpanas, the ephemeral decorations created by Bangla women with rice paste, and applied to walls and entrances of dwellings. Both employ similar...
Read Morelucky leafy
I began working on a new project for Charlesbridge a few weeks ago. I broke the ice by drawing a pine cone found in the Presidio two summers ago, during a trip to San Franscisco. I can still smell the eucalyptus….. Then I worked it into a leafy sorta self-portrait. My favorite month may be over, but I love the melancholy nature of November. Even getting soaked in yesterday’s rain couldn’t bring me down. And there’s always something at MECA that makes my day. Here is a cheerful installation in the Joanne Waxman Library. Gotta find out who did this. There were masses of...
Read Morelet freedom ring
It felt like the day would never come. The AIGA poster display at MECA kept rotating and offering visual and mental prompts of the meaning of this vote. Everyone distracted themselves with Halloween. I carved this good grief pumpkin in honor of the Charles Schulz bio I am reading now, and an ode to belief in the Great Pumpkin. And the Nashes staged another inimitable performance on Halloween night. A few students in my class posed with bits of costume; we drew from life while inventing an animal persona. My three: This bit of frivolity was followed by a visit to the Portland Museum of...
Read Moremaking connections
While the biggest moment in NYC was receiving the Jane Addams honor award, there were plenty of other big moments as well. I reconnected with friends I haven’t seen in years. Decades, even. Dessert on our first night in town at Cafe Lalo with Genevieve completely sweetened the trip. I first worked with her ages ago in Boston and we are in touch annually, around her almost solstice birthday. So many moons, so little time. We met her adorable Cormac at last. Next day, it was lunch at Brasserie with fellow RISD alum, Bob de Michiell, who looks younger every time I see him. We talked about...
Read MoreBig moment in NYC
Whew. I actually made it, breathless and jittery to the 55th Annual Jane Addams Children’s Book Awards presentation, across from the United Nations. Rickshaw Girl won in the Honor Books for Older Children category and author Mitali Perkins gave a memorable acceptance speech, acknowledging her family heritage and God, “author of MY story.” I had not written a speech, assuming I would follow Mitali, who would say everything in the best way possible,and I could simply say, thank you. But of course, I got going, and got choked up. Couldn’t help myself: the story of...
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