Late afternoon light

My furry muses

This is my view when I turn around from my computer this week:

The most passive-aggressive battle for prime real estate ever (no eye contact was made)


Lloyd and his buddy Rufus the boxer are able to team up when it comes to important guard dog missions


The usual suspects

Recent work

I did this illustration a few weeks ago for the footer on a clever new online dating site called gelato.

Halloween color

So, kept it pretty simple on halloween decor: carved pumpkin and construction paper kitty backlit in the front window. And about 6 pounds of candy that ran out by 9pm with more kids streaming in. You know what they say: the early bird gets the gummi worm.

Palette

Did a little tonal guide to my current watercolor palette, and it looks like I could stand to add some variety to the reds. Watching paint dry is an expression that conveys the ultimate tedious activity...but I really love watching the way watercolor changes as it dries, especially the paints that have sediment (plus it happens pretty quickly). Small pleasures.

Sketch for zinnia painting

Initial sketch from life

and a photo reference for later (another bouquet from the garden). There's an electric blue-purple to the indigo spires that I haven't figured out how to mix yet, not to mention the fuschia zinnia. Hope to post the completed painting soon!

From the garden

Today's backyard bouquet

More sketches

Quick sketches of a ceramic figurine of a chipmunk and paste.

Afternoon sketches

The top sketch was done on Arches 140lb paper (great for pen and ink w/watercolor that involves NO washes). I decided to make my own watercolor sketchbook by tearing 7.5inX11in sections of this paper and joining with bulldog clips. The zinnia was done in a sketchbook with heavy, non-watercolor paper.

Flying

Guess I've got herons on the brain after a few days near the water.

Back from Northern California

Muir Woods redwoods and ferns, Mt Tam area, China Camp State Park, kelp that looks like Jack from Nightmare Before Christmas (Point Reyes), Tomales Bay (a place where they serve great clam chowder)

Germs

'Wyoming' canna

So, the foliage and bloom on this canna make me happy every time I look at it.

Pattern

Watercolor sketches

Scale pattern

I drew a pattern last week for a project that I didn't end up using, but it's sort of hypnotic...or psychadelic. Here it is colored in a bit in Photoshop.

Back from Corpus

Just a little inspiration from a weekend visit to family in Corpus Christi: storm clouds on I-37, kapok tree, backyard decor, and the Corpus Christi Bay

Inspiring illustrators

Woke up to temperatures below 70 degrees for the first time in months, and it was wonderful. I know we've got at least another month of afternoons in the 90's, but I can sense the cool at the end of the tunnel.

I'm in the middle of a website overhaul, which will hopefully be done beginning of next week; but I thought I'd share some of my favorite illustrators that I've discovered or remembered in my looking back through my bookmarks to see how everyone presents themselves.
Yanni Kim: this one's new to me, but I love her drawing style and use of mixed media
Carson Ellis: a favorite of mine for years, and I'm happy to see her big web update (lots of good, new stuff and a clean look)
Chun Eunsil: this illustrator's children's book art is amazing and there's so much of it; beautiful watercolor and detail and whimsy
Taeeun Yoo: her woodcuts tell stories so perfectly

Wrapped

Or what I might find if I left my dog outside while grabbing a coffee shop latte...

Back from LA

(Ennis-Brown House by Frank Lloyd Wright, mural on a Silver Lake art center near Wright's Hollyhock House)

Got back a few days ago from the SCBWI Conference in Los Angeles. The keynote speakers were pretty amazing: Sherman Alexie and Dan Yaccarino were a couple of my favorites. Great workshops given by David Weisner, Susan Sherman of Charlesbridge, and Elizabeth Parisi (overall message: practice your drawing, study the masters: fine artists and illustrators, do your research, and produce the best work possible). Plenty of socializing with inspiring illustrators. Not to mention a couple of extra days exploring in LA...and a brand new pack of double-sided colored pencils from an adorable shop in Venice Beach. What more does a gal need to get in the creative groove?