Almost, Maine
I worked on poster ideas for John Cariani’s play, Almost, Maine last winter, the perfect season for a love letter to northern Maine. I borrowed a pastel background from another poster (Babette’s Feast) when I mocked up my sketches, which all involved a big night sky. The vignettes in the play involve two people connecting, with many of the scenes outside on a Friday night in the deep winter. I was inclined to add a moose in this one… The rough with the snowmobile got the go ahead. I did some research on Northern lights, which I only saw once in my life, when I was a child...
Read MoreRead to Me
Anyone who knows me well, knows that I am a snail mailer. Always have been. Growing up at the Red Doors Motel in New Hampshire, I befriended girls my age playing in the pool, or at the shuffle board, or during croquet games on the front lawn. Sometimes we became penpals. Letter writing has been a feature of my world, and a correspondence with Marty Braun changed my life. So when Brendan Pelsue’s brilliant script, Read to Me, came along, I was more than ready to tackle the magical realism of letters falling from the sky. The story takes place in a children’s hospital and centers...
Read MoreBright Horizons
I traveled last week to a Boston area Bright Horizons. I made an evening presentation to early childhood educators about illustrating picture books and how visual literacy and drawing engages children. I always bring ample materials for discussion! The Riverpark Center’s Lead Teacher in Kindergarten Prep, Julie, helped me set up my table of books, art supplies, and props. While kids and parents were departing, I checked out the colorful rooms filled with stimulating shapes and textures. After talking about writing and illustrating Seven Days of Daisy, and answering questions, I...
Read Morehere come the humpbacks FOR REALS!
Ever since visiting Nova Scotia two summers ago, I’ve been longing for a glimpse of a real humpback whale. Sure, I did my homework, reading books, watching films and videos from whale sightings while illustrating Here Come the Humpbacks! During that trip I saw plenty of signs for whale watching, but we traveled constantly, with no time for a cruise. I began working on the book in the fall of 2011, just past the season when humpbacks are in the Gulf of Maine. My wish for our recent return to Nova Scotia was to see some whales at last. We drove from Pubnico, Nova Scotia with our host,...
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