suessian school visits
Thank you, Dr. Suess, for your brilliant birthday and Read Across America. In your honor, I was invited to two schools to read and draw on March 2. First stop was right down the street, to the Peaks Island School, where I was greeted by the cheery principal, Cindy Nilsen, sporting her Suessian best. I met with 4 classes during the morning, each as eager and energetic as the next. We began by singing happy birthday to Dr. Seuss and then I read one of my favorite stories, Yertle the Turtle. This parable about a bossy turtle never goes out of style, and ends with the line that all creatures...
Read Morefun with numbers
Happy New Year! I, for one, like the new numbers. There’s a lovely symmetry, and I was born on a twelfth day of the month. This year will mark 20 years living on this rock. We had fun on New Year’s Day climbing to “Billy Goat Rocks” on the back shore. On the look out for ice, since skating had been the plan for New Year’s Eve, but it was too warm. But we found a frozen tide pool or two. We stopped by the ice pond, where an island company once harvested ice back in the day. It looks frozen, but not safe at over 40 degrees. Marty did this for his holiday card,...
Read Morecritters
There’s an amazing show of infinite delight at the UNE Art Gallery called “Critters.” Having just delivered all the art for a picture book about animals affected by climate changes, I was keen to see animal art. The show is swarming with sculpture inside and out; there’s a dizzying amount to take in. There are well-known artists like William Wegman, Bernard Langlais, Dahlov Ipcar, and even a couple of artists I was surprised to find, like former colleague Joe Begnaud, and fellow pastel artist Wade Zahares. Certain creatures called to me, like this school of ceramic...
Read Moreforces of nature
The tsunami in Japan and it’s aftermath remain unfathomable. I walk around my little island and say prayers to the trees, for recovery, for renewal. The sump pump burbles incessantly in the basement, as the snow melt runs down to the sea. I’m happy to have more studio time, for illustrations for a book project. This week, oddly, everything was under water. First, a spread about coral. This is a detail. Next, four species of fish, affected by warmer temps: trout, salmon, bass, and carp. This is a detail of the bass and carp, plus their tags for labeling. Then I drew a loggerhead...
Read Moreboston blast
I’ve been digging in to my current project with all hands on deck. Drawing a multitude of animals, and taking lots of notes. I scavenged a plastic bear from my daughter’s neglected toy bin to help with shadows and form for the book jacket sketches. These two sketches (cropped here) were the favorites out of 8 variations. I did a color comp for the publisher’s jacket meeting. Again, here is just the bear. While awaiting feedback on cover issues, I resumed working on the interior illustrations. Just as I was about to tackle a complex page of penguins underwater eating...
Read Morepolar paradox
I’ve gotten the layouts back for A Warmer World, the book project I am working on. These two pages have gone through more changes. Back to the drawing board with polar bears. While the premise of global climate change is undeniable, it’s not feeling warmer right now. Sub-zero temps and another blanket of snow make this winter feel like the old-fashioned kind. The kind that drives one to cozy pursuits like… baking. We decided to try making the January cupcakes from the Hello, Cupcake calendar I got for Christmas. Yup, polar bears! These were not exactly easy to make, and...
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