Patterns pre-pandemic
Are you as upside down as I am? These past two months have been deeply unsettling. As a freelance artist for almost 40 years, it’s not the working from home that’s an adjustment. It’s everything else. The global deaths, economic fallout, social distancing, mask-wearing, and swabbing of surfaces are overwhelming. Although it’s often hard to concentrate, finding a daily creative moment has kept me grounded. Back in January, before all this hit my world, I had eagerly signed up for a Maine College of Art Continuing Studies course, Pattern and Surface Design, taught by...
Read MoreNative Gardens
We saw the newest production at Portland Stage last night, Native Gardens by Karen Zacarias. Directed by Jade King Carroll, it’s a rollicking take on border relations in more ways than one. I worked on the poster a year ago, in the bleak mid-winter, when drawing botanical motifs was a quite welcome task. I presented a dozen rough ideas, here are some of them. The play centers on two couples, one older, white, and established in an upscale neighborhood in suburban DC, the other new homeowners, young and ambitious, and expecting a baby. The contrasts are striking and conflict ensues...
Read MoreBear and the Oxbow Island Gang
It’s for real! Rae Chalmer’s debut chapter book is here: Bear and the Oxbow Island Gang is an environmental mystery set on a Maine island for readers 8 – 11. Last fall, after reading Rae’s manuscript, I began illustrating the story by doing small, preliminary sketches for the cover. She’s a fellow Peaks Islander, so instead of scanning and emailing my rough ideas, I brought my sketchbook to her house a few minutes away. So analog and refreshing! These are a few more ideas, which all reflect an island setting that residents of Peaks may find familiar. I also did...
Read MoreLa Chance
I worked on a really different project this past summer, for Pathfinder International, a non-profit organization based in Watertown, MA. Since 1957, Pathfinder has partnered with local governments, communities, and health systems to remove barriers to sexual and reproductive health services. Together, they expand access to contraception, promote healthy pregnancies, save women’s lives, and stop the spread of HIV infections so young people can choose their path forward. They devised an educational game called La Chance aimed at young female teens in Burkina Faso, West Africa. I was...
Read MoreHot stuff
It’s probably no surprise that our island home has it’s share of nautical elements. After all, it was built by a sea captain, Henry Trefethen in 1844. There’s Marty’s Uncle Jack’s ship in a bottle. print by Kris Johnsen, ship in a bottle by Jack Hinkley I’ve drawn my share of ships, like the beautiful Wendemeen, below. pastel in frame by Jamie Hogan, stone sculpture by Kathy Hanley I was in a nautical vintage mood when I created my valentine card this year. I’d come across an old snapshot, circa 1985, of a ship sailing in Penobscot Bay, as well as a...
Read MoreAlmost, 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...
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