objects of affection
I have a little box in my studio that displays my collection of souvenir cameras and various objects of my affection. I have a thing for starfish and urchin shells, very rare to come across on the rocky shores of Maine. I draw them every chance I get. This illustration is on the title page of Nest, Nook, and Cranny. I used this drawing, titled “Urchin Experiment” for a postcard mailer awhile back. Backstory: I did a lot of diving off the diving board growing up at my parents’ Red Doors Motel, where the pool was my spot. No urchins there, though… When I brought my...
Read Moregimme space
I dragged this out of the flat files yesterday, looking for any kind of portrait to send off to a group show in Brooklyn. More on that later. I did lots of self-portraits during art school, that chapter of self-conscious scrutiny. I didn’t draw myself for a really long time, until submitting the above instead of a photo to the contributors page of a magazine, several years back. Polka dotty me, on the dark side. Today will be a hectic day: teaching in the morning, hunting for nursing homes at lunch, dallying with middle school girls before the dance drop-off, and the finale: Free for...
Read Morelessons in learning
Yesterday’s MLK holiday felt like a day off from a day off. Snowed in, with plans cancelled, it was time to pray and ponder. Having been in San Francisco during the big 1989 earthquake, it is still difficult to grasp what Haitians are enduring. Even on a good day, they face poverty and corruption. I decided to reread Phil Hoose’s book, “Claudette Colvin: Twice Towards Justice” which just won the Newbury Honor. Bravo to Phil, for bringing non-fiction to new heights. A brave Claudette Colvin tells it like it was, and often still is. My daughter was involved in a...
Read Moreangels sing
I want angels to make the world white. And peaceful. Now that Christmas has come and gone in a flurry of activity, another snow day would suit me fine. I drew the angel above many years ago, while living in San Francisco, where snow was just not gonna happen. I sent this angel out for another season of warm wishes and gold leaf prayers. This angel bears a heavenly resemblance to my daughter, what a surprise. I spent an afternoon last week gallery sitting at the Gem Gallery, where all manner of angels abound, like these paper ones by Diane Wiencke. This one was crafted by Suzanne Parrott, who...
Read Morehere a show
there a show, everywhere a show show….. I finally finished my Alice for the upcoming Maine Illustrators Collective show at the Freeport Library. The group dreamed up this idea in visibility back in August: re-imagining the classics. I knew immediately that I wanted to do my own Alice version. Coming on the heels of another project involving cards, I managed to work them in again, along with a huge mushroom, perhaps because another classic, The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet by Eleanor Cameron, is in the house. Even though our daughter is 12, reading plenty on her own, we...
Read Moredark shadows
Ah, the crunchy leaf piles, the fragrance of woodsmoke, and eerie scratchings on windowpanes from gnarly branches. I so love this time of year. It’s also a blast to be part of a new show at the Gem Gallery, signage above. I was addicted to this show back in the 70’s, trotting off the school bus, opening a bottle of Tab, and flopping onto the living room couch to become mesmerized by the campy convolutions of Barnabas Collins. My inhouse framer put my recent Zombie Warrior into a crumbling frame while I worked on a new pastel, Big Night. This is a spot near my house, cleared of...
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