A Peace Wizard :)

Happy Holidays and Peace to All

Progress is slow moving

Even my cat Crash, is having a hard time getting going these days. With Halloween now behind us and Thanksgiving next week, it's been quite busy. Then, add in the mix moving my son's bedroom from upstairs to downstairs, with gobs of toys and clutter from years gone by. Needless to say, the house has pretty much been in chaos. In between all the distractions, I continue to work on “A Road map to Dreams”.(the picture on the drawing table) I have taken the original piece and reworked it into two pictures. I have been doing a lot of experimenting in Photoshop. Putting down flat color then printing it out and playing around with watercolor pencil on top. I am really enjoying this process. I am trying to have this thing out before Christmas. Planning to send it to Highlights along with the poem that it goes with.

This year I am actually looking forward to the dead of winter. It's my hope that instead of cabin fever, I will be productive and inspired.

…As for Crash, I think he'll probably sleep most of the winter away :)

Just blowing off some Ink :)

Haven't posted for awhile. Been downright distracted by my life. I think I need to be an octopus. Even if I was an octopus, would I have enough hands? Too many tasks, Too little me. Then again?? If I was an octopus, would I have so many tasks?

Fast!-Illustration Friday

My very first car Illustration. This was for my son Matthew, who loves Mustang GT's!

Illustration Friday-Germs

Today I thought it would be fun to do a simple cartoon in pencil. It's been forever since I've messed around with pencil. So I grabbed out a 6B and a piece of bristol board and started at it. One of the very basic things I love so much about art is the way a particular medium feels. The smoothness of a soft lead pencil on a smooth surface. The heaviness or lightness that you apply, the different contrasts that you can make. These to me are the things that absorb you into your art.

It's funny as I was drawing my little germ creature, and smearing the graphite with my finger, it brought back a memory of one of my art teachers. I remember him saying how when using something like conte' crayon or lead or any thing sloppy that smears, you should always keep an extra piece of paper under your palm so as not to smear. Today as I was purposely smearing, I seemed to get a bit of extra enjoyment out of it all.

Illustration Friday-Patterns

Iguana skin pattern

Angels

Today I was thinking of Angels...I'm feeling the need to do another one soon :-)

Being Realistic

Today is the first day I feel like getting back on task. I’ve been down most of the week with a head cold and nagging cough. Needless to say I do not think “A Road Map to Dreams" will be airborne by the 15th as I had hoped. Plus looking at the art I think it needs more work than I had originally thought. It’s funny, no matter how many years I’ve put into doing my art; it’s still a trick to budget time. For instance, last week I sent off a promotional package to Highlights for Children. I woke up feeling inspired and ready to let something fly! I figured I had all the pieces and parts. I thought for sure I could get this thing out later that day. Then the mailman comes early, usually he’s a 4pm run. Next, the story that I had written some time back and figured was pretty well together, needed some work. Followed by a “too dry” formal letter to the art director, and one to the editor, both needing to be more “friendly”. So with the help of a good friend. The story was edited and the letter became "friendly". Of course to finish off this process was a last minute run to Target for ink. As it all came together, what started on a Tuesday was out the door on a Thursday. All in all I felt good about getting the promo piece out. It was also a good reminder on realistic expectations.

The Magic of Fall

The weather has been changing these last few days, the clouds look different. Fall is just around the corner. That's always been a good thing for me. With the shift in the weather, there is also a shift within me. I feel more alive, more energized. My home becomes more organized. I feel like spring cleaning in the fall. Go figure, I sure don't do it in the spring! But even more so than that, my art usually takes on a life of its own. I don't know, maybe the "Muse" is a real live spirit? She/He waves their magic wand over your soul--reminds you of who you "really are". I remember when I was younger, a child, I would play in my Aunts backyard. There was a patch of woods, it felt "magical". I think Fall brings that all back, it inspires.
As for today, I've decided to put away the "Kitty Cafe" (the piece I've been struggling with). Although the words are there, the drawing is not coming very easy. There is a certain look I want to achieve with this poem, It's been dancing around my brain for 10 years. Now, all of a sudden I am trying to rush it out in a week’s time. No, there's another one just about ready to go. "Road Map to Dreams" has been with me also for many years, yet unlike Kitty Cafe this one only needs a bit of "tweaking". (God I use to hate that word when I worked at the ad agency) Today I feel renewed and ready to work. My goal is to send something out by Sept. 15th, I am sure I can accomplish this! Why is it always so hard for me to meet my own deadlines? I have never missed anyone else’s.

Fairport Harbor Lighthouse

Happy days spent at Fairport Harbor beach with the kids this summer. Although autumn is my favorite season. I will miss the fun days we spent on the beach right before school started. Even the hot dogs tasted good.

This illustration was done as a birthday card for my cousin Susan. Sue and I spent some time at this beach.

Good Memories!

Tell me it will get better

Day 2--I'm struggling, I have not picked up a drawing pencil since the last day of school let out for the kids last June. And I really enjoyed my summer vacation between short getaways and outings to the beach and other various activities. So here I am doing what I said I would be doing, as soon as school started back up. And I am definitely having a bad time of it. My sketches look like something a 5 year old would have done! I know things will get easier I've been down this road before. In the mean time I need better reference material.

Today is the day

Today is the day I set for starting my new career as a children's magazine artist. I got up early, 5:30 am. The new hours I set for myself, to have a bit of solitude before the kids get up. Got the kids off to school. Yay! Summer vacation is over and I am in my office, drawing table is ready to go, and here I sit at the computer! Well I did tell myself I would not leave this space until 1pm, in an attempt to get use to working on art again. So the goal-- 3 days a week 12 hours total. And I did worked on my drawing some. It's a drawing that goes along with a poem to be sent off to Spider Magazine in hopes of victory! Although I didn't work on it as long as I would have liked, it was an attempt. I am tired today and my progress is quite slow. So now I am dabbling with this blog. Maybe short blurbs on my process will help me in my quest to be a professional, published children's illustrator. Say that five times fast.