Author Archive

Want to stay on top of trends in the kid’s markets? I want to share a good little resource with you. Big Blue Dot is a multimedia firm (web, print and TV) devoted to serving the kids’ industry. They have a bi-monthly email newsletter called Trend Update, which tracks trends in the kid’s world. It’s a cool tip-sheet and a free, effortless way way to stay on top of what’s hot and going on at the moment. Check it out!

Many companies like BBD, plus children’s publishers, put out similar newsletters. Happy web surfing, and if you happen upon any that you find useful and would like to share, please do (in the comments)!

I’ve been working on some mini-pieces. They are called ACEO’s, which stands for Artist Cards - Editions and Originals. The size is always 2.5 x 3.5. Here is one of my most recent pieces. I picture this particular  knitting doggie listening to (and sometimes looking up to watch a snippet of) the old TV show “Murder, She Wrote”. Do you get that mood from her, too?
Hope you enjoy!

I had been working on an illustration for my weekly post at the PBJ’s. I really liked how it was coming along, so I started compiling ideas of ways to improve the picture. I implemented these changes and I think they have really improved the piece aesthetically as well as from a narrative standpoint. I’d love to hear what you think!

Version 1

Revised version

Here’s that kitty cat again… this time, she is ready for bed. I have prints available of these two and other new little paintings in my Etsy store. Hope you enjoy!

I’ve been doing some paintings, just to creatively ‘loosen up’ a little.
Here is one of the pieces. This also has a companion piece which I will post at a later date! Hope you enjoy the work!

I recently had the opportunity to do the cover illustration for the Graphic Artists’ Guild national newsletter (March/April 2008). The subject I was given was “Trademark”. I of course looked for any opportunity to integrate cute and cuddly characters into the illustration. This one worked well using these funny dogs to help tell the story. Hope you enjoy!

This is the weekend of the annual New England SCBWI conference!! Hooray for two whole days of ‘creative watershed’ moments, hand-cramping-but-totally-worth-it note-taking, starry-eyed “fan” moments (book signing hour - always a personal favorite), intense artistic inspiration and, by the end, utter exhaustion!
I’ve posted a few photos (with notations) of today’s events here. Please enjoy!!

Lately, I’ve had color studies on the brain. In the long run, I know that doing them before setting to work on a piece is a necessary step to take, especially when working in traditional media. But I always worry that over-thinking a piece, (which includes over-thinking the color study) leeches life and energy from my work. As a safe compromise, what I usually end up doing is just one quick color study, before setting to work. This can often tell me just as much about where I don’t want to go with the color, as where I do want to go with it.

One quick scribble can inform a lot. In terms of the color study part of the process, I don’t generally over-think them, because they’re not my favorite part. Quick color studies are, for me, like ‘eating your vegetables’ (although in real life, I do like vegetables… but the equivalent as a figure of speech!) I enjoy the immediacy of choosing colors on-the-fly, the thrill of having to ‘make it work’ if I need to quickly switch gears and revise a color choice that may not be working with the rest of the piece. Fun stuff! That is part of what I love about being an artist — that immediacy, the unknown, the ‘make it work’ aspect (sometimes against all odds)! But that’s the “color-rebel thrill-seeker” in me talking, and these days, that ‘thrill-seeker color rebel” only comes out to play when I’m working on non-client work. So, I still like to walk the tightrope, but I don’t do it without a net!

At the end of the day, one 5-minute color study can save hours of illustration “first aid”!