big on trees
I have a thing for trees. There was one in the back yard I could climb as a child because it was right next to a huge rock. In one of my favorite books, The Magic of Trees, Deena Metzger wrote this poem: It seems the story of my life is the story of trees I’ve loved, some were standing, some fell down. I was honored to be commissioned by the Peaks Island PTO to create a pastel for Kathy Newell, an island girl and artisan retiring from the school staff after 25 years. And she’s a tree lover! I was asked to capture her favorite tree, just outside the school yard, one that turns red...
Read Morethe circuit
Here I am, on a dusty shortcut somewhere south of Paradise, California, circa 1990. When we lived in San Francisco, we rode all over the state. I recall riding past miles and miles of rows and rows of crops, dotted with the curved backs of pickers. Those scenes came back to me when I worked on a recent assignment for Cricket Magazine. Francisco Jimenez wrote The Circuit, a memoir of his childhood as an immigrant from Tlaquepaque, Mexico working alongside his family in the fields of California. The power of his vivid writing pulled me in, and I saw those golden suede hills and felt the...
Read Moremoon energy
With this week’s stretch of rain, there will be no full moon viewing tonight. I may not see it, but I can still feel it. I’ve just done this for next year’s Lunar Calendar. It will run in black and white, so I used a limited palette for the original drawing, titled “Full Sap Moon.” Events keep coming at a steady clip, and I need all the sap to rise up and keep me grounded. New things are...
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 Moreb is for book
How better to spend a sunny Sunday than in the swell company of bookish folk? I did that last weekend, sharing a table at the Book Arts Bazaar at USM, with fellow artist and educator, Judy Labrasca. We became fast friends when I took her Picture Book course at Maine College of Art years ago. The Book Arts Bazaar featured over 40 vendors with all manner of offerings: hand made paper, bookbinding, zines, comic books, art books, posters, paper sculpture, vintage ephemera…I was in heaven. Here is Judy, setting up her beautiful wares. She was next to Allison Villani, art teacher and...
Read Morecollegial connections
We blasted to Danielson, CT last week to see our work in “12 New England Illustrators” at Quinebaug Valley Community College. The show was curated by Annie Gusman Joly, a fellow illustrator, educator, and colleague from many years ago at the Art Institute of Boston. She’s been a source of inspiration for decades, with her style, flair for color, and teaching experience. It was fun to see what’s in the works in her studio in nearby Putnam. The show includes illustrators working in very different methods and markets, from oils to scratchboard, and books to beer...
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