Today’s Art Day Interview is with illustrator Kristi Valiant. Read on to find out more about Kristi and her art.

Q: How did you get started illustrating for children?
A: While I was in art school, I had an internship at a small children's publisher. Then during my senior year, I won an illustration contest to illustrate a leveled reader by Seedling Publications. Those were my first steps into children's books.

Q: Tell us a little bit about the recent book you illustrated.
A: Cora Cooks Pancit is my latest book; it just came out last month, in April, 2009. It's a multicultural picture book written by Dorina K. Lazo Gilmore and published by Shen's Books. In the story, Cora wants to cook but usually gets stuck with kid jobs. When her older siblings head out for the day, she's finally allowed to be Mama's assistant chef and learns how to make pancit, a Filipino noodle dish. The recipe is in the book, and it's super yummy!



Q: What are you working on right now? Do you have any other books or art projects you’d like to talk about?
A: Today I'll be painting an illustration for Highlights magazine. I love Highlights, so this is an especially fun project! I've had a lot of work lately, including interior illustrations for two chapter books, covers for six chapter books, hundreds of black & white line drawings for educational materials, and yesterday, I turned in sketches for an educational project for McGraw Hill. All this work is a huge blessing! But I'm still making time to work on my own picture book dummy that I'd like to start submitting to agents soon. I took part in NaPiBoWriWee last week, and now I have 7 more picture book rough drafts that I'd love to start revising as well.

Q: Do you do non-children’s book art (licensing, fine art, etc.) or art just for fun? Is that art similar or different from your children’s book art?
A: I license card designs and illustrations for Christmas cards every year. Some of those illustrations are in my children's book look, but some are very different. I've also illustrated in a fashion vector style for a fashion magazine and a high-end clothing store.



Q: When someone else has written the text for a picture book or novel, how do you decide what scenes and details to draw?
A: Picture books by definition tell part of the story through pictures, so I try to pick out parts that can be expanded upon to tell a deeper or funnier story by "reading" the illustrations. For example, in Cora Cooks Pancit, I added a dog to the illustrations who wasn't mentioned at all in the text. He follows around the main character and keeps bringing more and more toys hoping the little girl will play with him. She ignores the dog all the way through the book, until the very end when she's lying on the floor playing tug of war with the dog. I don't draw only what the text says for picture books, but novels are a bit different. In a novel, the whole story is told in the text and the illustrations usually just show the action or feeling of what's already told.



Q: Can you explain your art process?
A: I work all digital nowadays. I still have lots of great paints and materials from art school, but my mac and wacom tablet are my favorite tools now. I sketch in Photoshop using the wacom tablet and electronic pen. I move around parts of the sketch and resize and redraw until it's ready. To paint, I use some fun Photoshop brushes that I've downloaded and I've manipulated to look like pastels or watercolor or acrylics or whatever medium I want this painting to appear to be done in. My personal taste is to steer away from creating artwork that looks airbrushed on the computer. Photoshop allows you to play around a lot with their brush creator, so I use multiple brushes as I paint. I work in separate layers, so I can move or edit certain parts of the painting if it's not working. Working digitally allows for so much freedom while painting - I love it! If you're working with traditional paints and you mess up, sometimes you can't fix it, and you have to start over. But working digitally allows me to experiment along the way and if something isn't working, I can delete that layer, or recolor just that area very quickly without it looking retouched. The undo button has become a huge part of my process!



Q: What is your favorite color?
A: Cobalt Blue (I've painted my office/studio cobalt blue and yellow with artwork hung all around - it's so energizing!)

Q: What childhood art supply brings back happy memories?
A: Colored pencils. The Museum of Children's Art in Oakland, CA has a show right now called Then & Now. It shows a current picture book illustration next to a piece of art created by that artist when they were a child. I have pieces in that show and my childhood piece is a colored pencil drawing I did in 5th grade.



Q: Do you have a favorite childhood picture that you remember making?
A: I created the childhood picture I have in the Then & Now show in class in 5th grade. I had finished my schoolwork early and the teacher let me draw. I drew this girl in colored pencil and thought she looked like a photograph. Of course, as you can see, it didn't. But I was proud of it, and got in trouble showing it to everyone around me - they were still working on their schoolwork.

Q: Did you always want to be an artist when you grew up?
A: Pretty much, yes.

Q: Do you use models / source pictures or do you draw from your memory/imagination?
A: All of the above. With source pictures, I have to be careful I don't infringe on anyone's copyrights, of course.

Q: What gets you through an illustration you’re having trouble with?
A: Chocolate and my husband or mom pointing out what's wrong with the illustration.

Q: What illustrated book(s) do you remember from when you were a child?
A: When I was little, I was fascinated with the illustrations by Janet & Anne Grahame Johnstone in Dean's Mother Goose Book of Rhymes. I still am, and I own two copies of that book now.

Q: Is there a children’s book illustrator whose work you gravitate towards in the bookstore now? (You can list more than one.)
A: LeUyen Pham, Holly Hobbie, Adam Rex, Christopher Denise, Amy June Bates, Jen Corace, Adam Gustafson, Elena Kucharik, and more.

Bio: Kristi Valiant loves dancing, cooking, red walls, monkeys, penguins, and mice, all of which can be found in one or another of her children's books. Kristi's newest book is a multicultural picture book she illustrated called Cora Cooks Pancit. She's illustrated dozens of leveled readers and hundreds of black and white line drawings for educational materials. Kristi graduated magna cum laude from Columbus College of Art & Design with a major in Illustration. She grew up in Wisconsin, studied in Ohio, moved to Texas, spent a summer in China, and now lives in Indiana with her husband. You can see more of her artwork on her website: www.kristivaliant.com or on her blog: http://kristivaliant.blogspot.com

Thanks for the interview Kristi!

All images in this post © Kristi Valiant.

Art games are fun!

What are art games? Those are the games that your non-artist friends and family don't want to play with you ... kidding, sort of. Here's an art game that you can play by yourself if nobody will play with you. Or you can play with non-artist friends and family if they're game.

Step one: Think of something to draw (start out with something you are good at drawing, for instance, I would probably pick cows).

Step two: Get out a paper and pencil (make sure it's a big piece of paper).

Step three: Put on a blindfold (you can just close your eyes if you want, but no peeking).
Note: non-artists have the option of looking while they draw - it levels the playing field.

Step four: Draw!

Step five: Repeat, with different subjects, or the same subject (as many times as you want).
Note: If you are making multiple drawings on the same page, you can look after each one and reposition your pencil to a blank part of the page before starting again.

You'll be surprised what happens when you try this, or maybe you won't. I'm always surprised how good it looks, considering that I wasn't looking at what I was doing. Plus it makes me feel better about my real drawings, which look like masterpieces compared to the blindfolded ones.

(BTW, I got this idea from playing Cranium, which is a good game because there's a category that everyone likes, and one that everyone hates. Also, the clay smells really weird, not like real clay at all.)

What are your favorite art games?

Update: I didn't think about adding a picture last night when I posted this (it was late). This morning I couldn't find one to post (I don't usually keep these unless I really like them), so I made a new one (which I actually do like). I also updated step 5 with a note.


Drawing play by play (for those who like that kind of thing): First I made the cow w/o looking, then looked and realized I forgot two of the legs, so I closed my eyes again, which is why they are way off. After seeing that, I moved my pencil over and closed my eyes to draw the elephant (I remembered to draw all 4 legs right away, which is why they look better). The last step was to move my pencil down to write "cow and elephant" and sign it. It's a lot easier to write while not looking than it is to draw without looking! The © symbol was added in Photoshop.

Kazu Kibuishi is a comics and graphic novel author/illustrator of several comics for both children and adults. If you don’t know his work, you’re really missing out.

Kazu’s the author/illustrator of my all time favorite graphic novel, Daisy Kutter (there’s a new Daisy Kutter story coming out soon – yay) and the editor and contributor to the Flight and Flight Explorer comic anthologies (Flight 6 is coming soon).

Scholastic did a series of interviews with Kazu last year about his graphic novel Amulet. There are seven videos in all. They’re all good, but make sure to check out the video “Kazu Kibuishi’s Sketches.” It’s a look at his amazing sketchbook, which has art and notes for Amulet, as well as other projects, including a brief glimpse of Daisy Kutter.

If you want to read some of Kazu’s comics and see his amazing art, he has a wonderful online comic, Copper.

If you’re interested in making comics, check out his comics workshop.

If you’re a children’s book author or illustrator, there’s a lot to learn from and enjoy in the work of Kazu Kibuishi. Check him out!

* Note: Don’t forget to enter the contest to win your very own ceramic chicken. Go here to enter.

Over on Watercolor Wednesdays, Wendy asked me a question that I thought other people might have too. Wendy was nice enough to let me repost her question and my answers here, along with the story of today's painting. Thanks for the question Wendy!

Question:
Then there's the story of today's painting, a.k.a.
How things went horribly wrong, or how forcing yourself to work with a deadline can lead to creative solutions for artistic problems.
For today's painting, I sketched a kitty, then re-drew it on watercolor paper, painted it (multiple layers), then got to the very end of the painting, which is when I normally add the black outline and details with paint or marker.

When I got to the outline stage, I already knew there was something wrong with the face. The drawing was fine but it looked weird now. However, I didn't have time to paint another painting. I'd already spent part of last night and off and on all day on this one. Plus, it has to dry before I can scan it and I didn't have anything else to post today. I had to use the cat.

So I inked the painting, including the cat's face. It looked horrible. Then I tried to fix it. It looked even worse after I tried to fix it (you can't fix watercolor unless you get lucky).

I thought about just posting the bottom of the painting - the grass and flowers looked nice. Or the cat with a blanked out the face like they do on TV. I even thought about not posting anything tonight, but it's almost the end of the month and I've made it this far.

Then I said to my husband, "I could put a mask on the cat."
He said, "No ... unless it's a bee mask."

I'd been thinking of an elephant mask, to tie in with the end of elephant week. Or maybe a big yellow smiley face. The bee mask was a much better idea, since there were already bees in the painting. Plus, quite honestly, there was no way the cat could look worse than it already did.

So I painted a bee mask (with acrylic to cover the watercolor and ink).

Then I waved the painting around and used the hair dryer, and waved it around some more, so I could scan it (while it was still just a bit on the sticky side) and get it up while it's still Monday somewhere in the world.

So here now, is my creative solution (with some help from my husband) for today's painting. I kind of like it, and it's a bazillion, gazillion times better than before the mask. What do you think?

Art Tips: I thought it might be useful to talk about ways to learn how to draw what you can’t draw or don’t think you’re good at drawing.

Everyone has something they can’t draw, or think they can’t draw. I have several things, but this post and this week is dedicated to one of the things that I don’t think I draw very well: elephants. Every once in a while, I’ll draw an elephant that I like, but more often than not I have to draw and redraw the elephant to make it look like a normal elephant and not a mutant creature.

Below is a list of some strategies that I use. What works for you? Or do you just avoid the subject (I do this sometimes, and Maurice Sendak famously did this with Where the Wild Horses Are – when he realized he couldn’t draw horses, they became Wild Things).

Break it Down: Break the subject down into simple basic shapes or pretend you are drawing a stick figure version of whatever it is. The drawings today are my elephant face made with a 3 part process, starting with basic shapes.



Back to Basics: Beginning drawing books and drawing books for kids are great for learning to draw things – if your art is very stylized, it can help to add a foundation to your drawings that give them even more appeal than they had before. BTW, don’t discount those drawing and art books that have unattractive covers. Sometimes they try to put so many things on the cover that it makes it seem like they couldn’t possibly know anything about art. Recently I found a book like that at Borders, in the discount section: The Complete Guide to Drawing and Illustration by Peter Gray. There’s a ton of good info the book, even if there aren’t any elephants.



Research: Find pictures, hire models, go to the zoo! If you don’t know what it looks like, find out.

Repetition: Take as many pictures as you can find of the subject and draw all of them, then look for more pictures or take some yourself and draw again. Repeat this step until you can draw the subject without looking at reference material. Then draw it in your style.

Elephant Week (a.k.a. accountability): This week I'll be drawing/painting elephants and posting them each day. Sometimes it helps to know that other people will see what you’re working on. It gives you incentive to learn how to draw it before you stylize it.

Today's Art Day is about Illustration Friday. Has anyone tried it? Do you like it? Think it's useful?

I've wanted to participate in Illustration Friday for a while now, but this is the first week that I'm joining in. It seems like a great way to prompt yourself to make art based on an assignment and about a topic that you might not have thought about illustrating. Both good things to practice if you want to illustrate for someone else.

The topic this week is, "Fleeting." My painting shows a moose dancing. Because sometimes, you've just got to dance, and those moments are fleeting. I wish those "Gotta Dance!" moments happened more often, don't you?



(The moose is a character in a PB I'm working on, but the art technique is different.)

Today’s Art Day Interview is with illustrator Stephen Macquignon. Read on to find out more about Stephen and his art.

Q: How did you get started illustrating for children?
A: I attended the School of Visual Arts in New York City with the intent of becoming a comic book artist, however in my last year I took an illustrating for children’s book class and that is when I found a home for my art style.



Q: Tell us a little bit about the recent books you illustrated.
A: I have three picture books coming out from 4RV Publishing. “Angeline Jellybean,” by Crystalee Calderwood, is about a little girl who loves to eat jellybeans. ”Colors,” by Dana Warren, is simply a book about color. The difference between this book and other books like it, is that it goes beyond “green means; go red means stop.” It also is about color as a feeling. (Both Angeline Jellybean and Color are out now.) “Would a Kangaraffe Make you Laffe?” by Richard Aaron, is about animals that were connected together, example: half of lion & half hippo. It’s coming out in early summer. Also coming out, in April, is a chapter book I illustrated, for 4RV Publishing, called the “The Art of Science,” by Ransom Noble. Learn more about my books at the publisher’s website.



Q: What are you working on right now? Do you have any other books or art projects you’d like to talk about?
A: I am finishing up “If Fish Could Drive,” by Dana Warren, another picture book, plus two more picture books following this one, “The Marshmallow Man,” by Rena Jones, and “Libby the Odd Squirrel,” by Lea Schizas.

Q: Do you do non-children’s book art (licensing, fine art, etc.) or art just for fun? Is that art similar or different from your children’s book art?
A: Cards for birthdays and other holiday’s friends and family only a few logo designs, but no the style stays the same.

Q: When someone else has written the text for a picture book or novel, how do you decide what scenes and details to draw?
A: I am given a break down on what text will be on what page, so I kind of make it simple just to follow along.

Q: When illustrating picture books (or novels) do you include a visual storyline that’s not in the text or include animals or people you know?
A: No, I have kept things like that out of the illustrations I try to keep to what is written in the text.

Q: Can you explain your art process?
A: I have how I put the Angeline Jellybean cover together from start to finish on my blog.
Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5.



Q: What is your favorite color?
A: I have no favorite color I love them all!



Q: What is your favorite medium to work in?
A: Pen & ink / digital color is a lot of fun.

Q: What childhood art supply brings back happy memories?
A: I think crayons.

Q: Do you have a favorite childhood picture that you remember making?
A: No not really.

Q: Did you always want to be an artist when you grew up?
A: Yes since I think it started in middle school if not earlier.

Q: Do you use models / source pictures or do you draw from your memory/imagination?
A: Yes to all of it, a good reference could really improve your work even when your style is not realistic it is good to know how many toes a character has.

Q: If you could be anything other than an artist, what would you be?
A: I’m also a New York State licensed massage therapist; I enjoy helping people.

Q: What gets you through an illustration you’re having trouble with?
A: Time. I put it aside work on something else. I try my best to forget about it for a while.

Q: What was your favorite toy, stuffed animal or doll when you were growing up?
A: A stuffed mouse; I called it Molly. It was in good shape, until one day my dog thought it was one of its own toys.

Q: What illustrated book(s) do you remember from when you were a child?
A: “The King with Six Friends” by Jay Williams illustrated by Imero Gobbato.

Q: Is there a children’s book illustrator whose work you gravitate towards in the bookstore now? (You can list more than one.)
A: Maurice Sendak, Marie LeTourneau

Q: Did you like to tell jokes or stories as a child?
A: No. I was a quiet kid; I kept to my self.

Q: If you could be a kid again for just one day, what would you do?
A: Go to an amusement park and pay half price. *laugh*

Bio: Out side of working with 4RV Publishing, I’ve been fortunate to be a contributing illustrator for "Stories for Children Magazine," working along side some very talented Writers, Editors, & Art Directors, the experience has been priceless. One of the illustrations I have done for “Stories for Children,” called "A Grand Dilemma," just won the Preditors & editors Readers Poll 2008 for Best Artwork. To read more about me or to see more of my art work please visit me on jacketflap or at my blog.

Thanks for the interview Stephen!
All images in this post © Stephen Macquignon.

DH and I went to the Whitney museum this weekend. It got me thinking about inspiration and where we find it as artists. I'm not talking about reference materials, but real inspiration, the kind of thing that sparks the creative muse in you.

Where do you find your inspiration?

This weekend I found it in the works of Stuart Davis, Edward Hopper, Roy Lichtenstein, Jasper Johns, and many other artists. I used to work at MOMA, and while I don't miss my old job, I do miss seeing art every day.

Art isn't the only thing that inspires me. I can be inspired by a favorite song or a new melody, a book, movie, or TV show. Sunsets and beaches can be just as provocative as a wacky banana sticker, while comfort food and the smell of a rain-soaked lawn can jump-start pictures in my mind.

When we have big projects or deadlines, it seems like the best thing to do is lock ourselves in a room and work, work, work. However, a little inspiration here and there can make those projects better and get them finished faster. It also helps keep the evil inner editor at bay.

What are you waiting for? Go find some inspiration so you can get back to work :)

What inspires you?

Yesterday was supposed to be an Art Day post about portfolios. It was also the day that my Evil Inner Editor (EIE) decided to visit.

It started out innocently enough. EIE was commenting on my novel ideas. To be specific, he was commenting on my plots. EIE likes the premises for my novels, but tells me that my plots, “totally suck.” He says things like, “nobody will believe that; it’s not plausible,” or “you can’t pull that off, not even if you do research,” or “eh, that’s boring, zzzzzzzz.”

I was ignoring my EIE, trying to improve my plots, combining old plots, and working on new plots. You never know when something might work for the EIE.

Then I realized it was Monday. Monday is Art Day, yay! Then EIE decided to weigh in on my Art Day posts. So I didn’t post, because (according to my EIE) it didn’t make any sense and wasn’t helpful, “at all.”

I’m still planning on doing the portfolio post for a future Art Day. Until then, I suggest ignoring your EIE so you can make art and write stories. If you have to, put your fingers in your ears and say, “I can’t hear you! LA La lalalalalalaala!”

Tomorrow I’m expecting a knock down, drag out fight with my EIE. I need him to leave so I can pick a story to start writing on Thursday. One story. Hopefully with a plot. Help! There's also an Art Day post for next week to write.

Maybe I should ask Sheila to chase my EIE away … but then I’d have to promise to write her story, and I’m not sure that’s the story I’m going to pick.

What do you do to get your EIE to go away so you can be creative?

I’ve heard many art directors and editors say, “you’re only as good as the weakest piece in your portfolio.”

With that in mind, I’ve decided to work on some of the weak spots in my portfolio. I’m going to give myself assignments (like the 14 week novel writing project). You can do the same assignments or create your own assignments to address your needs.

The first thing I’m going to tackle is background. A strong or interesting background can add depth to picture book illustrations. It’s also a nice contrast to my simple character based images.

Portfolio Assignment #1: A one-month study of backgrounds and landscapes, broken up into 4 week-long categories.

The goal for the first three weeks is to do lots of quick sketches (at least one a day) of each subject, while paying attention to composition. Think about your portfolio goals while sketching. Gear the size, shape and composition of the sketches towards what you want to illustrate (picture books, novels, covers, graphic novels, etc.).

The goal for the final week is to put it all together and create sketches that you can use for portfolio pieces.

Week One – Cities and towns
Week Two – Country landscapes
Week Three – In the house (kitchen, living room, the MC’s bedroom, etc.)
Week Four – Add characters (Create a finished sketch in each category. Use your previous sketches as starting points if you want. Leave room for titles or PB text, pay attention to composition, and watch out for the gutter.)

Anyone else need to work on their backgrounds? Or maybe give yourself a different assignment?

Next month I’ll be working on expressions (because nobody is happy all the time, even if they were in my portfolio when I first started).

Today’s Art Day Interview is with illustrator Susan Dill Detwiler. Read on to find out more about Susan and her art.

Q: How did you get started illustrating for children?
A: I have loved making art from early childhood, and was always attracted to books with great illustrations. By the time I was in high school I decided that being a professional illustrator was my goal. To prepare (and because I enjoyed it) I sought out ways to use art at school; I was active in the art program, volunteered to design and screen print all the posters for the theater productions and was the art editor of our school’s literary magazine. I went to the Maryland Institute College of Art and studied graphic design and illustration. While I was a student I worked part-time as a sign painter. After that I got a job in the art department of a printing company, where I learned about how artwork is reproduced. I was hired as a staff illustrator for an advertising agency and while I worked there I also began freelancing at night and on weekends. I liked freelance work so much that I decided to do it exclusively. My favorite assignments are for children’s publishing and so I seek them out, with help I have found from the SCBWI. I love a good story, whether in books, or movies, or on television. I think that pictures help to tell a more complete story, and I hope that my pictures touch people in the same way that I was affected by the illustrations I saw as a child.

Q: Tell us a little bit about the recent book you illustrated, ONE WOLF HOWLS, by Scotti Cohn.
A: One Wolf Howls is a picture book written in verse, which counts from one to twelve, following wolf activity through the months of the year. It is beautifully written and as I read the manuscript for the very first time, I got images in my mind’s eye that I was eventually able to reproduce as paintings.



Q: What are you working on right now? Do you have any other books or art projects you’d like to talk about?
A: Right now I am completing a humorous holiday card design for a company that cleans and repairs microscopes. Using caricature, I depicted the staff of the company as elves doing the work of the regular staff. It was loads of fun! I have also started work on a Hidden Picture for Highlights for Children, and I have written and illustrated a picture book based on Aesop’s The City Mouse & The Country Mouse, for which I am seeking a publisher.



I have illustrated two picture books previously; The First Teddy Bear by Helen Kay, and The Wonderful Bicycle Parade by Susan Borges. I did the pictures for two 12-book series of readers entitled Reading Roots: Shared Stories, and I have illustrated magazine stories and poems in Ladybug and Highlighs for Children.



Q: Do you do non-children’s book art (licensing, fine art, etc.) or art just for fun? Is that art similar or different from your children’s book art?
A: I have an agent at Creative Connection Incorporated, who licenses my images for use on greeting cards, paper products, jigsaw puzzles, etc., and I take freelance assignments from advertising agencies. Each assignment calls for a different approach. The variety of styles and subjects I am asked to produce make my job more interesting, I think. Just for fun, I enjoy making ragdolls and stuffed animals for children I know, and when I am at the beach I make large sand sculptures of animals and figures.



Q: When someone else has written the text for a picture book or novel, how do you decide what scenes and details to draw?
A: I consider the pacing of the story and, although showing the most important scenes is usually the way to go, the best illustrations add to the text rather than just depicting exactly what is written. The preliminary work of choosing scenes and establishing the pace of the narrative can be difficult and time consuming, but it is crucial. My work tends to be very detailed because that’s what I liked as a child; the details help create a believable world.

Q: When illustrating picture books do you include a visual storyline that’s not in the text or include animals or people you know?
A: There is a little bit of my German Shepherd, Molly, in every wolf I painted for One Wolf Howls. She was a very helpful model! My Country Mouse has a pet ladybug which I’ve included in the illustrations but not in the text. Also, the boy holding a teddy bear on the title page of The First Teddy Bear looks remarkably like my younger son, although I had no children at the time I painted it.



Q: Can you explain your art process?
A: Clients contact me, either by phone or email, and describe an assignment; if I am interested and available we negotiate the schedule and the payment, and then I gather reference material and produce a pencil sketch, sometimes with color added. Some assignments require a contract and several sketches, and in the case of a book, a dummy. I make thumbnail sketches first, so that the composition of the entire page can be depicted quickly and changed easily, and when I’m working on a picture book those thumbnails are all on one sheet of paper so that the book can be seen as a whole. The sketching process is the real work, for me, and it may take many tries to get to the point where I am satisfied enough to show it for approval. Once the sketch is approved, I proceed to completion of the final art. I transfer the image to Strathmore 500 series illustration board using my overhead projector, and then I apply the color.

Q: What is your favorite color?
A: I cannot honestly say that I have a favorite; colors work for me when they work together. If I was forced to choose only one, it would probably be something neutral like gray or black because I like drawings so very much. There are, however, colors I prefer in my wardrobe, such as rose.

Q: What is your favorite medium to work in?
A: Nothing beats pencil, but I like watercolor and gouache for painting, and I enjoy drawing in ink, either with a pen or a brush.

Q: What childhood art supply brings back happy memories?
A: Oh, Play-Doh! I made animals and figures and little plates of tiny food for my dolls; I even saved my baby teeth and embedded them in a purple Play-Doh dinosaur’s mouth (complete with silver fillings). I learned color theory from the top of the Play-Doh box (red + yellow = orange).

Q: Do you have a favorite childhood picture that you remember making?
A: I drew this picture several times: a cut-away view of a house several stories high, showing all the family members and pets within engaged in various activities.

Q: Did you always want to be an artist when you grew up?
A: I always wanted to make things when I grew up, but the idea of earning a living from drawing and painting didn’t really dawn on me until I was in high school. I still marvel at the concept of getting paid for doing what I love to do.

Q: Do you use models / source pictures or do you draw from your memory/imagination?
A: It depends on the assignment. For One Wolf Howls, I did lots of research and collected many photos of wolves and landscapes to use a sources, because I needed to be accurate in my depictions. I have a four-drawer file cabinet filled with reference photos clipped from magazines and other printed material, and I even more frequently use the internet to find images. However, there are some times when I draw only from my imagination; creation of a character, for example.

Q: If you could be anything other than an artist, what would you be?
A: I think I would like to run a bakery and make wonderful breads and pies and cookies.

Q: What gets you through an illustration you’re having trouble with?
A: Simply taking a break and doing something else (like baking!) for a while can give a fresh perspective on a challenging aspect of an illustration. I often find that when tired I’ll have trouble with something that works out much more easily the next morning. If a drawing stumps me---just looks awkward somehow, and I don’t know why---I’ll reverse it in a mirror or in Photoshop, and the solution is often apparent.

Q: What was your favorite toy, stuffed animal or doll when you were growing up?
A: I had Barbie dolls, a whole family of them, including Ken and Francie and Skipper and others, and my sister and I would play with them for hours on end! I made furniture and sewed clothing for my dolls, and my sister and I would sometimes empty a bookcase to create a house or apartment building for our little families. I still look at objects in terms of Barbie-scale, bottle caps become tumblers, Cheerios become donuts, etc.

Q: What illustrated book(s) do you remember from when you were a child?
A: I had my mother’s original Raggedy Ann Stories, books by Johnny Gruelle, and I was a fan of the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and illustrated by Garth Williams. In fact, anything illustrated by Garth Williams attracted me; Charlotte’s Web, Stewart Little, and A Cricket In Times Square are a few of those titles. Harriet The Spy, written and illustrated by Louise Fitzhugh was hugely influential in my life.

Q: Is there a children’s book illustrator whose work you gravitate towards in the bookstore now? (You can list more than one.)
A: I greatly admire the work of Paul O. Zelinski, David Shannon, Ashley Wolfe, and Helen Ward.

Q: Did you like to tell jokes or stories as a child?
A: There are games I made up that I can fondly remember playing over and over again with my siblings and friends. Sometimes I told stories with pictures; I would cut heads from magazine photos, glue them to paper, and add bodies and speech bubbles. Great fun!

Q: If you could be a kid again for just one day, what would you do?
A: I would spend the day at an old-fashioned amusement park, and go on all the kiddie rides and eat sweet, sticky treats and laugh and scream with joy... but only if I could do it with a friend!

Bio: Susan Dill Detwiler is the illustrator of several books for children. Her artwork has also been used in advertising, on apparel and decorative tins, for games and puzzles and many greeting cards, and has appeared in children’s magazines. She and her husband, also an artist, have two sons. They live in Baltimore where Susan works from her home studio. For more information and to see additional artwork, please visit Susan's website, Sylvan Dell Publishing (publisher of One Wolf Howls), or her licensing agent, Creative Connection, Inc.

Thanks for the interview Susan!
All images in this post © Susan Dill Detwiler.

Today's Art Day was supposed to be all about Spring, because I am ready for Winter to be over. The weather, however, had different thoughts. So today is a snow day. Make snowflakes. Write a poem or a story about snow. Draw a blizzard (or an egg in a blizzard).

You don't have to like snow to participate. Whether you like snow or you don't like snow, make your snow day project reflect your real feelings about the fluffy white coldness outside. And if you're in a warm place, make a picture or a poem about a snow cone ;)

I made snowflakes today. They're bright colors instead of white so they'd show up on my blog, and because I wanted to use Spring colors to make me feel better. I'm not a big fan of snow.



Enjoy the snow day, whether it's in honor of the snow or in spite of it.

Today’s Art Day Interview is a two-part interview with illustrator Laurie Allen Klein. Read on to find out more about Laurie and her art in part one. Read part two here.

Q: How did you get started illustrating for children?
A: In a way, I have always illustrated for children; or perhaps, more accurately, always illustrated with stories in mind. As a little girl I loved picture books and the work of Walt Disney and I would make up stories in my head and draw pictures to accompany them. As I got older I grew to appreciate the wonderful art of a wide range of illustrators and just always knew that was what I wanted to do. In school I was always the one doing the art for the class newspaper or yearbook or literary publication so it was just a natural progression.

Q: Tell us a little bit about the recent book you illustrated.
A: My first children's book (for Sylvan Dell, and first children's book in general) was “If A Dolphin Were A Fish” by Loran Wlodarski. I met Loran when I was showing my portfolio (looking for freelance work) and he mentioned a children's book he'd written. He was looking for an illustrator and I loved the story - a dolphin imagines herself as different animals, morphing into them to demonstrate different physical features and adaptations - so happily jumped at the chance to work on it with him. It was Loran's skill (as a science writer) that eventually brought him in contact with Sylvan Dell. They liked his story and they liked my drawings, all of which were done with Prismacolor color pencils. “Dolphin” won the 2007 Florida Publishers Associations President Award.



My second book, “Little Skink's Tail”, came about as a result of my work on “Dolphin”. The story concerns a little skink that loses her tail in a tragic crow encounter and winds up imagining what she would look like wearing the tails of other animals found in her forest. The little skink doesn't technically morph fully into other animals, but her tail does change each time until, at the end of the story, her own tail has grown back. Sylvan Dell asked me to use paint so all the illustrations for “Skink” were done with acrylic paint on banner canvas. To date “Skink” has won four awards: 2008 The Florida Publishers Associations Best Picture Book and Best Overall Book Awards, 2009 Learning Magazine Teachers' Choice Award, and, most recently, the Mom's Choice Award.



The third book, “Where Should Turtle Be?”, comes out in February. This story is about a baby sea turtle that gets confused by the lights and winds up crawling away from the beach. He gets lost in a variety of different habitats and is unsure of just what kind of turtle he should be or where he should live. Other animals suggest different kinds of turtles, such as a Box Turtle, a Painted Turtle, and a Diamondback Terrapin but eventually our little hero discovers his true identity and returns to the sea. There was an obvious danger that this story could become yet another “morphing” one but fortunately both Sylvan Dell and I agreed to approach the illustrations differently, with the sea turtle meeting the different turtles but not turning into them. The illustrations for “Turtle” were done with a combination of color pencil and acrylic paint.



Q: What are you working on right now? Do you have any other books or art projects you’d like to talk about?
A: At this very moment I am waiting, with crossed fingers, to hear if Sylvan Dell has a new title for me to illustrate but I have a ton of things to keep me occupied in the mean time. I am the on-staff artist for the education department of a local marine park and my desk is full of projects, new and on going. It's a dream position because I am called upon to do such a huge variety of things: everything from outdoor wall murals of life-size whales and polar bears (right now I have a life-size wood cutout of a mother polar bear that needs some touch up leaning against the wall in my hall), to 7' x 22' stretched canvas Florida landscape paintings, to activity book illustrations, camp field guides, and birthday cards. Currently I'm in the process of painting an arctic scene for a behind-the-scenes viewing area, working on a poster illustrating rainforest and ocean depth layers, and soon I'll be starting my first residential home wall mural (of undersea reef life). Loran also has several new stories he'd like me to illustrate and I have a couple of my own I'm trying to finish. And when I'm not drawing I'm always on the lookout for more freelance work and promoting the books I have done. Actually, figuring out a schedule to squeeze it all in is the hardest part!

Q: Do you do non-children’s book art (licensing, fine art, etc.) or art just for fun? Is that art similar or different from your children’s book art?
A: As noted above, I do a wide variety of art and I have illustrated a few books that are more adult or science-oriented (the “Out To Pasture” series would be an example of the former, “Killer Whales: Creatures of Legend and Wonder” an example of the latter) but my overall style is still very much in the children's book vein. Even my “serious” stuff has a kid-friendly look and story-telling quality, that's just the way I draw. Though I often talk about doing some fine art or gallery-type work (and I love all sorts of different styles - abstract, surreal, primitive), I always seem to be too busy to try it. The only time I actually sit down and take time to do a drawing that might be considered just for fun, non-children's book work is at Christmas when I design my annual Christmas card - but really that's just like a book illustration in a smaller form - at least the way I do them (my Christmas cards always wind up with a long and involved story, whether fact or fiction, behind them).

Q: When someone else has written the text for a picture book or novel, how do you decide what scenes and details to draw?
A: It often comes down to the Art Director. Sometimes the AD has a very firm idea of what they want, or at least some suggestions, other times it's left entirely up to me. I'm comfortable either way, but in all cases I do rough sketches first and submit them for approval, making any changes the AD or publisher may request before going to finished art. When the decision is totally mine I tend to read the manuscript a few times and make little written notes on the side. Generally the selection winds up being determined by how many illustrations are needed. Obviously if the publisher only wants 4 illustrations, for example, I have to decide what are the 4 most important or dramatic scenes to illuminate. In the case of children's picture books, at least those that I've worked on, where there are words on every page, I just try to go where the narrative dictates.

Q: When illustrating picture books do you include a visual storyline that’s not in the text or include animals or people you know?
A: Oh there is certainly more going on in most of my illustrations then simply following the text, at least when possible. “Dolphin” wasn't a traditional story, so there really wasn't the opportunity to put in any subtext storyline drawings in that book, but I did include special little visuals when possible. In the illustration of “If a dolphin were an octopus”(that describes how a dolphin has bones and an octopus does not) I put coral and jelly fish in the background, to further illustrate the concept of hard vs soft bodies. Also the St. Augustine Lighthouse can be seen in the background of another picture.

In “Skink” I purposely included a little caterpillar that wasn't mentioned in the text but who shows up every few pages building a cocoon. At the end of the story, when the skink grows a new tail, the caterpillar becomes a butterfly. Also in “Skink”, every time the skink tried out a new tail the next animal that was going to be featured was tucked somewhere on the proceeding page. I live by the state park, a salt marsh and the beach so a lot of Northeast Florida flora and fauna winds up in my illustrations simply because that is what is right outside my back door (or living in my garage) and an easy reference.

The “Turtle” book, for example, features quite a bit of St. Augustine landscape because each of the habitats mentioned in the story could be found in my neighborhood. As far as including people or animals I know, I often use my friends and family and pets as models and it is also well known that I hide my daughters name somewhere in the murals and paintings I do. Her name can be found tucked in one or two of the illustrations of all three books.

Q: Can you explain your art process?
A: I go into a huge and lengthy description of my mental and philosophic process in the Meet the Authors and Illustrators section of Sylvan Dell's website, but the shorthand technical description can be summed up with thumbnails and tracing paper. Whether I'm designing a wall mural, coming up with my annual Christmas card, or roughing out book illustrations I always start by doing small, loose, very (very, very) rough thumbnail sketches on tracing paper, attempting to figure out the best angle or layout. It's often the hardest part, I guess because I'm trying to be instantly creative and pulling ideas out of the ether. Once I start getting some scribbles on the page it gets easier, with ideas building on each other and I enlarge the thumbnails to full size (or as large as reasonably possible, either way the picture is enlarged in proportion to it's final size). Inevitably I hit a technical snag and have to go on a reference hunt but when I finally have some ideas on paper I love the editing process of cleaning up and fine-tuning the sketch. All the preliminary drawing is done on tracing paper because I like being able to lay alternative ideas under the rough sketch to see how it looks and it's a quick and easy way to make changes ( I think I started doing that after watching how old hand-drawn animation was done) and when the rough pencil sketch is right/approved it is transferred to the final material (canvas, paper, a wall) for the finished product.

Q: What is your favorite color?
A: I suppose it would be a cop-out to say I like ALL colors because that's not the question (nor is it entirely true since there are some shades of perfectly wonderful hues that are just ghastly) but my first response is to say I DO like pretty much all colors. However, for a specific color in particular, I guess I would have to say my all time favorite color is blue with the strict understanding that there are a huge variety of blues out there and I like several of them (with variations of slate and blue-grey being top on the list).

Q: What is your favorite medium to work in?
A: My absolute favorite tool is my trusty #2 pencil (specifically Mirado Black Warriors that I find at Publix). Early in my art career, I did most of my personal drawings in pencil and am probably still the most comfortable in that medium. One of my dreams is to illustrate a children's book or YA or adult novel completely in black & white pencil, so I guess I'd better write one. Over the years, however, I have learned to use (and grown comfortable) with other mediums and techniques out of necessity. Learn by doing (and the more you work in something the easier it gets). Prismacolor color pencils are my go-to tools for color work, particularly for small, fine detail pictures. Acrylic paint is what I use for all my faux work, trompe l'oeil and mural paintings. Paint washes work best when I need to cover large areas and while I have worked in oil and water color I happen to like acrylic the best. I also like working in ink and have done a fair number of line art that way. And just recently I rediscovered scratchboard and am now having a lot of fun with that technique (I originally learned the technique in high school but had little need to use it again until a large scratchboard project prompted this new interest last year). My 2008 Christmas card was done in scratchboard.


The Ghost of Christmas Who and Other Relative Dimensions: This is my scratchboard Christmas card from last year. The explanatory story that accompanied the card filled a full sheet of paper (and even then was set in the tiniest point size so it would all fit). For those interested I'll be happy to explain all the details!

All images in this post © Laurie Allen Klein.

Today’s Art Day Interview is a two-part interview with illustrator Laurie Allen Klein. Read on to find out more about Laurie and her art in part two. Read part one here.

Q: What childhood art supply brings back happy memories?
A: Clay. I love working with clay but don't think to use it very often - probably because I don't have a good place to work or own a kiln. I've also had some fun success with oven-baked clay and papier-mache. I enjoy the 3-dimensional quality of those things and there's something very satisfying about getting your hands all goopy. And let's not forget library paste - though not necessarily for its art properties (I think of it as more of a food group).

Q: Do you have a favorite childhood picture that you remember making?
A: I wouldn't say I have any specific favorite, but I do still have quite a few of my earliest childhood drawings - mostly of dolphins, dogs, deer, and horses - stored away in my flat file cabinet. I also have a notebook of sketches my best friend and I did together in elementary school. And of course I have all my favorite pieces and Christmas cards in a couple different portfolios. My absolute favorite illustrations I have framed.



Q: Did you always want to be an artist when you grew up?
A: Yes. I knew I wanted to draw since I was a little girl. Occasionally I dreamed of working for Disney or Industrial Light and Magic (and yes, I did apply to those places) but it was always as an on-staff artist. And I never abandoned the dream of illustrating children's books.

Q: Do you use models / source pictures or do you draw from your memory/imagination?
A: I once had a college art professor tell me the human mind is not nearly capable or creative enough to imagine all the intricacies in nature, and that I should always use a reference when drawing or painting. Of course my initial reaction was one of righteous indignation believing my mind was plenty capable and creative enough - thank you very much! But I have since come to the realization that, at least in my case, my teacher was right. I use my imagination to come up with the initial idea or concept, and certainly rely on my memory to flesh out the sketch, but I have found my work is so much stronger if I have a model or a reference photo handy when I go to the final clean up stage. Even if I'm creating some sort of fanciful fictitious creature, like a unicorn or a dragon, or doing a cartoon or anthropomorphic character, the figure is so much richer if it has some basis in real animal form.

Also, when it comes to doing a series of book illustrations it helps to look at other styles and work to spark the imagination. My first response when roughing out a picture, for example, is to automatically go with the easy, standard, side view - and sometimes that is indeed what the picture calls for. However, often on my second or third revision of the sketch I start searching for a more dramatic angle or unexpected perspective and that's where looking at other poses, or real trees, or a living animal (if one is readily available) gives me a much more interesting approach. I take photos of landscapes and people in interesting poses and I have shelves full of books just to help jump-start the creative inspiration process.


The Taleweavers: I wrote a little story that goes along with this illustration. All the elements represented are taleweavers, or story tellers, in some fashion. The little doll the child is holding belonged to my mother.


Q: If you could be anything other than an artist, what would you be?
A: Oh there are tons of things - though I'm not sure all of them have an actual title. A marine biologist comes to mind; I'd love to study dolphin interaction and the songs of whales. I also love philosophy and archaeology and history. I'm fascinated by music and so wish I could play an instrument (my daughter is a Vocal major and I love talking music theory with her). I'd like to work in a museum - be it art or natural history, or own a wonderful old bookshop. I'd love to work in films - specifically in the creative concepts departments like WETA or ILM (though I guess that's getting close to art again). Then again maybe I'd like to be some sort of animal curator or a park service ranger. Or perhaps do something along the lines of Francis James Child and collect the ballads and folktales of past civilizations or the songs and music of other cultures. Obviously books and words would be involved.


Tasha & Taliesin In the Company of King Arthur's Bard: This is an example of using my own pet as a model and my manic obsession with research. Tasha was our beloved Welsh corgi of 14 years. She died in November of 2007 and i wanted to honor her memory. I could think of no better companion then Taliesin, considered the greatest of the Welsh poets. Again, there are tons of little elements in this picture that all mean something or have historic significance and the explanatory note that went with the card filled a page.

Q: What gets you through an illustration you’re having trouble with?
A: My neighbor, and the woman who owns the place where I get my copies done. Seriously! During “Dolphin”, “Skink” and “Turtle” (as well as a few other paintings I've struggled with) I was brought to tears a number of times because things weren't turning out the way I thought they should (I am my own toughest critic). My neighbor would come over every day and look over my work and tell me it was fine and I was being too hard on myself. Even now, when I have a new project she'll pop over and ask if I need any encouragement. The other friend has publishing experience and talked me off the ledge when I was ready to give up on one of the books. I raced over to her office one day (again in tears), threw the uncompleted remnants of that book's illustrations on her desk, and asked her when I should call the publisher and tell them I couldn't do the job. She calmly looked over what I'd done and said, “You aren't there yet” and pointed out how much I had really accomplished. Sometimes it just takes a different, fresh perspective or another point of view. I also find it helps to walk away from the picture for the night and look at it with a fresh eye in the morning - inevitably things always look better the next day. Or I have thought of a way to solve the problem.

Q: What was your favorite toy, stuffed animal or doll when you were growing up?
A: Oh, that's a tough one because I still have most of my toys, either in boxes out in the garage or scattered around the house. I'm afraid when it comes to books and toys I just won't grow up (to quote Peter Pan). I have my toys, my mother's doll collection (and all her “Five Little Pepper” books) and even a good number of my daughter's stuffed animals I thought were too cute to give away when she out grew them. I'm often reminded of the scene in “Toy Story” when a once beloved toy is consigned to a box in the attic or the yard sale and get quite a pang when I reluctantly have to bump one of my toys from the place of honor in my art room and move it to the chest in the living room to make way for something new. Heavy sigh. As far as childhood goes - growing up I had the prerequisite plastic horse collection and many of the Stieff animals (still have them all in fact) but if there is one thing I wish I still had, or that was still possible to find, it would be my “Disneykins” - tiny, hard plastic-material, very detailed, Disney characters that I absolutely adored (and played with so much they simply didn't survive). It should be noted, in the interest of full disclosure, that I STILL buy toys - for myself - today, with my current collection full of Star Wars and Doctor Who action figures and collectibles. I just love when I find some new figure in the store or when a box shows up in the mail after an extensive Internet search.

Q: What illustrated books do you remember from when you were a child?
A: On the bookshelf behind me I still have my original copies of “A Little Princess” by Frances Hodgson Burnett with illustrations by Tasha Tudor (one of my favorite illustrators),”Nightbirds on Nantucket” by Joan Aiken with these great line drawings by Robin Jacques, “The Turret” by Margery Sharp (a Miss Bianca Mouse adventure) with illustrations by Garth Williams, “Charlotte's Web” and “Stuart Little” by E. B. White (and Garth Williams again), “Rabbit Hill” written and illustrated by Robert Lawson, all the “Winnie-the-Pooh” books, most the horse books written by Marguerite Henry and illustrate by Wesley Dennis, “Thee Hannah” and “Henner's Lydia” written and illustrated by Marguerite De Angeli, just about all the Beatrix Potter books. And that's not even a fraction of the children's books and picture books I've collected for my daughter, and myself, over the years. Great stories with wonderful diverse approaches to illustration - color and black and white. All memorable.

Q: Is there a children’s book illustrator whose work you gravitate towards in the bookstore now? (You can list more than one.)
A: I don't know that I specifically look for a particular artist, but there are some favorites - Tasha Tudor, Beatrix Potter, Arthur Rackham, Kay Nielsen, N. C. Wyeth, Maxfield Parrish, Norman Rockwell, Edmund Dulac, Edward Gorey, Alan Lee, John Howe, Trina Schart Hyman, Brian Froud - that never disappoint. The rest of the time I just buy things I find compelling - either the story or art just grabs me and I'll pick it up. I rarely go into a bookstore and come out empty handed.

Q: Did you like to tell jokes or stories as a child?
A: I suppose I did, though I really can't say I have a strong memory of it. I certain made up stories for myself (and still do) and I loved when we got creative writing assignments in school. I'm much more a story person then a joke person either way.

Q: If you could be a kid again for just one day, what would you do?
A: That's an interesting question because there really isn't a lot I can't do now, even though I am no longer a “kid.” I still love toys and books (and now I can buy exactly what I want - when I want). I still love costumes and make believe. Probably, truth be told, I wouldn't necessarily want to be a kid again so much as I'd love to just be able to dress up and indulge in all my kid-like fantasies and obsessions and passions, every day - without attracting the attention of guys in white lab coats. I'd like to travel through space and time in the TARDIS with the Doctor, wield a lightsaber as a Jedi knight, sit in the parlor of 22B Baker Street and listen to Mr. Holmes play his violin, communicate with dolphins, ride a flying horse, tame a dragon, swim with Nessie, walk through a wardrobe and wind up in Narnia, be part of the Fellowship that hikes across Middle Earth, have Christmas dinner with the Cratchits, dance with wizards, sing with troubadours, and talk to the animals… and I guess the best way to do that is to just keep drawing!

Bio: Born in Philadelphia, PA, I got my first introduction into the art of illustration watching the local TV affiliate children's program, “Gene London's Cartoon Corners General Store” (where Mr. London told stories, usually along the lines of fairy tales if I'm not mistaken, and drew accompanying pictures before introducing the cartoons). When I was 8 or so, my family moved to St. Petersburg, FL where books and Disney movies (not to mention dolphins and manatees) provided a lot of my creative inspiration. After graduating from high school I went to a small liberal arts college, Maryville College, in Maryville, TN (in the shadow of the Smoky Mountains) majoring in Art. From there I made my way to Atlanta, GA where I worked at a photography and slide show company as a graphic & paste-up artist before eventually going off and trying my hand at a freelance art career. I did illustration work for the Georgia Wildlife Federation, the Atlanta Botanical Society, Callaway Gardens, and Athens Magazine among other clients, and it was during this period that I illustrated my first book, “Out To Pasture” by Effie Leland Wilder, for Peachtree Publishers. Some eighteen years later (give or take) I began to miss Florida and wanted my little girl to have the same sort of “beach kid” childhood I had so, in one of those impulsive decisions that sounds either incredibly brave or simply stupid, my husband and I quit our jobs, sold our house, packed up our daughter (and the dog), and moved to St. Augustine. The rest, as they say, is the stuff of myth and legend. Laurie’s “Meet the Illustrator” profile can be found on the Sylvan Dell Publishing website.

Thanks for the interview Laurie!
All images in this post © Laurie Allen Klein.

Today’s Art Day interview is with illustrator Wendy Martin. Read on to find out more about Wendy’s art.

Q:How did you get started illustrating for children?
A: I’ve been an artist my whole life. I’ve always wanted to draw and paint. I started out my career as a graphic designer doing fine art in my spare time. I was actually making some inroads into the gallery setting when I discovered I was pregnant. So my spare time was soon eaten up with child rearing. Once, a friend was over as I was putting my daughter to bed and listened with fascination as I told her some bedtime story in answer to a question she had asked. My friend declared I should write children’s stories and illustrate them, too. I laughed it off, but a seed had been planted and 5 years later I started my first children’s book.

Q: Tell us a little bit about the recent picture book you illustrated, RABBIT'S SONG, by S. J. Tucker and Trudy Herring.
A: S.J. Tucker is an amazingly gifted musician. Trudy Herring, who S.J. affectionately calls “Mama Dragon,” has studied Trickster tales for much of her life. S.J.’s performing partner (they are fire-dancers) was having a birthday a few years back and Mama Dragon wrote him a poem for it. She based the poem on her knowledge of Trickster tales and pulled from many different stories to complete the verses. Then she gave it to S.J. to set to music. The musical version came out on S.J.’s CD entitled “Blessings” in 2007. Someone at the publisher’s heard the song and approached them about making it into a picture book. The women agreed and then I was hired to do the illustrations.



The story is about the Trickster God and his search among all the animals of the world for those to represent him and his lessons to man. After his search he finds Rabbit, Coyote, Raven and Crow. The animals say they are not great enough for his needs, but he disagrees and shows them how they will help. The story is a feel good one where the nice guy finishes first for a change.

The art I created for this book really stretched me because there were so many characters. Most of the people who’ve seen my advanced copy make the comment about the illustrations being so detailed. It was a lot of fun to recreate the story Trudy was alluding to in the wording for each animal. I spent a LOT of time on research for this book.

Q: What are you working on right now? Do you have any other books or art projects you’d like to talk about?
A: I’m not under contract for any other projects right now, but I do have several I am perfecting before I start submitting them for possible publication. One is a really goofy picture book about a girl’s hair taking over the world. The ultimate in a bad hair day. I have been working on two YA fiction fantasies. And another author friend of mine and I started a adult non-fiction book a couple of years ago that we are revising (again) before handing it over to an agent to shop to publishers.

I also create monthly coloring pages for the yahoo group the publisher set up for me. The current series is called the ABCs of Lesser Known Goddesses. At this writing I am up to letter “L.” I do a lot of research for these coloring pages, too. Some of the old goddesses aren’t exactly appropriate for a children’s coloring page. So I have to be careful about which ones I choose.

Q: Do you do non-children’s book art (licensing, fine art, etc.) or art just for fun? Is that art similar or different from your children’s book art?
A: I am a member of Watercolor Wednesday. It’s a group of 25 children’s book illustrators (both published and unpublished) and each Wednesday we are given a prompt to paint an illustration from. That’s just for fun. At least it was until just recently when I had the bright idea that we should be creating portfolio pieces! The other artists thought it was a wonderful idea, so now we have a month to work on a prompt for a portfolio piece. The newest prompt is to illustrate scenes from the Brother’s Grimm version of Snow White.

Last spring I was approached by a cross-stitch pattern maker to license some of my art. She asked for some of my older fine art florals as well as my newer style of Art Nouveau flavored kid’s illustration.



I think the only real difference between my single images and my picture book art is the need to include text and not have too much going on behind it. So the book art tends to have fewer background patterns and such.

Sometimes, if I have some spare time, I’ll do cartoony sketches for Illustration Friday prompts. But recently with all the books I’ve been working on, spare time is spent with my family. I travel a lot for book signings and that leaves little room for being with them during the time I’m on the road.

Q: When someone else has written the text for a picture book or novel, how do you decide what scenes and details to draw?
A: I’ve usually gotten some kind of notes from the book editor. They give me general direction in which to head. I’ve heard from writers that their characters take on lives of their own. The same thing happens to my characters when I draw them. I’ll have an image in my head but when it comes time to get it out the end of the pencil onto the paper details and things I hadn’t imagined originally just show up.

It happened a lot in Rabbit’s Song. Even with so many animals actually named in the text, other animals kept showing up while I was drawing. I’ve learned just to go with the flow instead of fighting it. I don’t know where it comes from, but I do know it really adds a lot to the look of the book pages.

Q: When illustrating picture books do you include a visual storyline that’s not in the text or include animals or people you know?
A: For my first book, I was really inexperienced with book illustration. So the images are very straightforward and taken from the text, for the most part. I used my daughter as my model. At the time she thought it was really cool to be in a book and that I was writing and illustrating one “just for her.” I used a lot of friends and family members as characters throughout the book. It was a lot of fun when the book finally came out and they got to see what they looked like in my illustration style. I think most of them were pleased.

By the time I worked on the next book, I’d learned a lot more about book design/illustration. This book didn’t use a model for the main characters. I was also having some health issues with my hand – a kind of tendonitis in my thumb, which made it really difficult to actually hold a pencil or paintbrush for very long periods of time. I think the illustration suffered for both of these things. But in this book, there are hidden pictures in most of the pages. Kids go crazy for the interactive quality of the book. The book is about a fall harvest ritual and I have a squirrel collecting acorns in his own story line completely outside of the text.



In Rabbit’s Song, the character of Trickster was based on a musician friend of mine. He was totally thrilled to be asked to model. He was even more thrilled when he saw the art and realized that he’d modeled for a starring role. He told me he was very honored with the way I had rendered him.

Q: Can you explain your art process?
A: A couple of years ago I decided to do a time-lapse explanation of one of my paintings. So I’d work on the image a little and then scan it in, work on it some more and scan it. Then I created a web page on my site and explained what I was doing in the images. I plan to update my process page in the near future with how I go from thumbnail to finished book illustration, too.

Q: What is your favorite color?
A: I have a limited palette for most of my paintings. Occasionally, I’ll switch out one color for a “new” color in the same hue. I did that for Rabbit’s Song. I got a new blue. It’s my current favorite color for painting. The company calls it Intense Blue. To see it look at Raven. He’s mostly that blue. There’s also a lot of the blue in the sky. I had 5 different blues on my palette for the book. Each one different.



But my next book may have a completely different favorite color. I love color. It’s hard to have just one favorite.

Q: What is your favorite medium to work in?
A: I work in both watercolor and digital art. At this point, I think my style is matured enough that it is hard to tell the difference in the finished images. The project I am working on really dictates which media I use. I love both of them for different reasons, but if I absolutely had to choose just one, I’d probably go with the watercolor. I am a traditionalist at heart, and while digital art is wonderful, the happy “accidents” that happen with actual paint and water just can’t be repeated on the screen. At least not yet. Some of the new software comes very close, but there’s still that bit of control the digital world has that watercolor doesn’t.

Q: What childhood art supply brings back happy memories?
A: I loved coloring with one of my babysitters. She would outline images in very dark color and then lightly fill in the rest. I still remember trying to color with my crayons the way she did. I guess I had some hero worship or something going on there. After all it was just crayons and a coloring book.

I still use crayons. They are so easy to pack. They are self-contained and because they are “children’s art supplies” I have a psychological license to play. I highly recommend buying the big box with the sharpener in the back for creative bocks. Works every time.

Q: Do you have a favorite childhood picture that you remember making?
A: It’s framed and up on the wall in my dining room. I must have been in first or second grade. We had been instructed to draw a turkey. Always the rebel, I drew a turtle. He was crying. When I was asked why, I said because all his friends were turkeys and they had their heads chopped off so they could get eaten. It was in crayon. The paper used to be black or dark blue or something like that, but the drawing is so old, the paper has changed color to a dirty grey green. It makes me smile every time I see it.

Q: Did you always want to be an artist when you grew up?
A: I can’t remember ever wanting to be anything else.

Q: Do you use models / source pictures or do you draw from your memory/imagination?
A: I do both. I use reference and models to make sure things like proportions and body mechanics are accurate, but once I have those things buckled up, the sky’s the limit on what my characters may be doing.

Q: If you could be anything other than an artist, what would you be?
A: A spoiled house cat.

Q: What gets you through an illustration you’re having trouble with?
A: I tend to eat chocolate when I am having problems with an illustration. I guess I should try another tact. I’ve put on 20 pounds since my first book!

Q: What was your favorite toy, stuffed animal or doll when you were growing up?
A: I never really had one. I still have the first stuffed animal I ever received. My grandfather was so proud of me. I was his first grandchild. I had bright red hair when I was born, so instead of a teddy bear he bought me a lion. I’ve been collecting lions ever since.

Q: What illustrated books do you remember from when you were a child?
A: Go Dog Go, Fox in Sox, Palutchkia and Tak-tak, Where the Wild Things Are, The Little House series, The Narnia series, Myths of the Greek Gods, and The Patchwork Quilt

Q: Are there any children’s book illustrators whose work you gravitate towards in the bookstore now?
A: David Catrow and David Weisner

Q: Did you like to tell jokes or stories as a child?
A: No. I was terribly shy. Still am. But, I have learned to tell stories to kids now.

Q: If you could be a kid again for just one day, what would you do?
A: Daydream and watch clouds, read my favorite books and be lazy all day long.

Bio: In addition to illustrating children's books, Ms. Martin has worked on projects for such well known companies as Baker, BIC, Caldors, Physicians Health Service, May Company, Purina, Sears Portrait Studios, Southern New England Telephone, Yale University and The US Veterans' Medical Administration. She is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, the Graphic Artist Guild, and the St. Louis Watercolor Society. Visit her web site to learn more http://wendymartinillustration.com.

Thanks for the interview Wendy!
All images in this post © Wendy Martin.

On Thursday, I blogged about writing what you DON’T know. Today I’m going to suggest that you draw or paint what you DON’T know.


Image © Stephanie Ruble

When the conference ended on Sunday, my friend Emily suggested that we go to see the butterfly exhibit at the Museum of Natural History. So Emily, Angela and I went to the butterfly exhibit thanks to Emily’s friend Paul, who was nice enough to get us in and show us the butterflies. Thanks Paul!!!


Image © Stephanie Ruble

I’ve seen butterflies and I’ve even been to a butterfly exhibit before, but this time was different. I made a friend! They released new butterflies into the exhibit while we were there, and this little one flew right to my hand, crawled on top of my camera (which made it hard to take pictures – Paul took the one below). She stayed with me until we were ready to leave, when they coaxed her onto a leaf.


Image © Paul Berger

My new friend and the other butterflies I saw and took pictures of inspired me to draw what I don’t know. I’m not a butterfly artist, or at least I wasn’t before. Since that day I’ve done tons of sketches and several paintings. At first I tried to make them look like the pictures, but I’m not a realistic artist.


Image © Stephanie Ruble

Now I’m painting pictures inspired by the butterflies and they’re much better … although I don’t have any to show yet. Soon! I hope. Until then, I'm posting pictures of some of my other friends, in hopes that you will be inspired to draw or paint a butterfly (or even write about one).


Image © Stephanie Ruble


Image © Stephanie Ruble


Image © Stephanie Ruble


Image © Stephanie Ruble

Or you could paint something else that inspires you. Adrienne summed it up wonderfully said in the comments section the other day, "I guess if you stick only to what your comfortable with, you don't discover any fresh ideas."

Go create something new, different, daring, and fresh!

I was lucky to be able to attend the SCBWI NY Conference this past weekend. Several speakers talked about doing a project that's calling to you, instead of following trends or the marketplace.

Sometimes you need to write a story or paint a picture that's just for you. It's the kind of project that keeps you up at night, or the brilliant idea that nobody but you will understand. It could be inspired by a story on the news, your kids, or a trip to a museum. You're passionate about it. You lose track of time while you're working on it.

Your evil inner voice says, "No, don't do that! Nobody will want that project! It Sucks!"

Tell your evil inner voice to be quiet. Create that story or artwork, even if you think that nobody will ever want to read it or look at it. You'll never know what it could be unless you let down your guard and lose yourself in that crazy idea you have.

The funny thing about "just for you" projects is that they have the potential to be your best work. Art directors and editors love to see art and read stories that the creator is passionate about. When you take emotional and creative risks, it can bring out universal truths that resonate with everyone, not just you.

Write that weird story you think will be boring! Draw that odd image that you think will be ugly! You might be surprised what happens when you stop thinking and just create.

Do a project just for you!

Today’s Art Day interview is with author/illustrator Katherine Zecca, who illustrated: “The Strange Life of the Land Hermit Crab,” “River Song: With the Banana Slug String Band” by Steve Van Zandt, and “In My Back Yard” by Valarie Giogas. She also wrote and illustrated A Puffin’s Year. Read on to find out more about Katherine’s wonderful art.

Q: How did you get started illustrating for children?
A: I got started by asking myself a question.  What would make my heart sing?  I
was a scientific illustrator for NOAA Fisheries, and the National Marine Mammal Lab for a dozen years.  I got a contract with the National Zoo to illustrate a book about Pollinators.  It just got me really excited about the possibilities and the challenges in the publishing world.



Q: What are you working on right now? Do you have any books or art projects you’d like to talk about?
A: I am writing a couple of non-fiction books, developing the research needed, which to me is really fun. I also enjoy contacting biologists whose specialty is about the animals I am writing about.

Q: Do you do non-children’s book art (licensing, fine art, etc.) or art just for fun? Is that art similar or different from your children’s book art?
A: I live on a beautiful nature preserve, I look forward to spring when I can start doing some sketching and painting outdoors.



Q: When someone else has written the text for a book, how do you decide what scenes and details to draw?  
A: I do some rough drafts and small sketches. Generally try to memorize the story, really get my head into it, to the point that I see the pictures. Then I start sketching ideas out, looking for visual references. I find some of those from my own sketchbooks sometimes from photographs I have taken.

Q: When illustrating picture books, do you include a visual storyline that’s not in the text or include animals or people you know?
A: I have used my friends and neighbors as models, used my dogs for "Why Puppies do That."

Q: Can you explain your art process?
A: If I am illustrating someone else’s story, I will start with their words, try to get a visual picture in my head. Then I start sketching and making notes to myself.  From there I find images I like, refine them and pass them on to the creative director. After I get their approval I enlarge them onto heavy water color paper and refine the drawing again. I will usually make small color samples of a page before continuing onto the final painting. On River Song I focused on complimentary colors to really push the feeling of the seasonal changes.



Q: What is your favorite color?  
A: I love every shade of blue

Q: What is your favorite medium to work in?
A: Right now I enjoy acrylic inks, very bright and easy to control, use it like watercolors

Q: What childhood art supply brings back happy memories?  
A: Top of my head...hmmm finger painting

Q: Did you always want to be an artist when you grew up?
A: I had no idea I had any talent what so ever, it was cultivated in my twenties.

Q: Do you use models / source pictures or do you draw from your memory/imagination?
A: I use everything at my disposal. I think I have stored memories, sometimes images just come to me from a favorite hike, horseback ride in the mountains.   



Q: If you could be anything other than an artist, what would you be?
A: A jazz guitar player, a stand up comic, a pilot

Q: What gets you through an illustration you’re having trouble with?  
A: I like to go for a walk with my dogs, and basically get away from my drawing table. Sometimes just doing the dishes or cleaning the house gets me going again too, but I would much rather go for a walk with my lab and basset.

Q: What illustrated book do you remember from when you were a child?
A: The one book that has truly influenced me was Charlotte's web. I have an original copy that was given to me by my brother in 1962. I was reading it before it became popular. Since then I have been following a life path that directly relates to that book. I didn't realize this until I say the latest film made. Between my absolute love of all animal life, farms, rural settings, illustrating, and writing.  This is why I like doing school visits because it gives me the chance to really connect with children, to hopefully inspire them.

Q: Is there a children’s book illustrator whose work you gravitate towards in the bookstore now?  
A: Chris Van Allsburg hands down.

Q: If you could be a kid again for just one day, what would you do?  
A: Ride my bike, make forts and hug my Mom again.

Bio: Katherine was born in Weisbaden Germany, and as lived most of her life in the Pacific Northwest. She moved to Vermont just a year ago. Previously a staff artist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, she created illustrations of fish, whales and seals for marine biologists. In her new career as an author and illustrator, Katherine is able to use her life experiences and wonderful voice of writing to authenticate her books and share her moving experiences to encourage children to learn about the world of nature. Katherine enjoys camping and sketching on long walks in the woods with her Basset Bailey and her black Lab Hunter. For more information, visit her website: http://www.katherinezecca.com or her cafepress shop: http://www.cafepress.com/zeccart

Or contact Katherine’s agent Lori Nowicki at: http://painted-words.com/KatherineZecca.htm

Thanks for the interview Katherine!

All images in this post © Katherine Zecca.

Adrienne tagged me for the Kreativ Blogger Award. For this award, I’m supposed to list seven things I love. Since everyone seemed to like the last meme I did, where I combined 2 memes, I thought I’d combine the Kreativ Blogger Award with today’s art tips. What I’m going to do is list the 7 things I love about working with ink, or things I don’t love that can be turned around to something positive. I’ll add a tip after each number, which makes 7 art tips in this post :)

Does it sound like fun? Or just plain crazy? Let’s find out!

One: I love working with pen and ink.
Tip: After doing a few drawings in pen and ink, go back to your regular medium and see what happens. I find that drawing in pen and ink brings more life to my acrylic painting.

Two: Ink washes are nothing like watercolor washes, which can be frustrating.
Tip: If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. An old saying that came true for me last week when I finally found a way to make painting, with acrylic on paper, work. Unfortunately, I still haven’t made ink washes work. (The ink doesn't spread like watercolor, but seeps into the paper right away, making it hard to do a wash.) After the breakthrough with acrylic on paper, I think the type of paper and/or the amount of water could be the problem. Either that or I need a bigger brush. I’m going to keep experimenting until I get a result I like.

Three: Ink washes work well on small areas.
Tip: Play around with washes that fill in areas of your drawing. Once you master that, it may help you discover how to do larger areas of ink washes (at least I hope it will).

Four: Colored inks offer a variety of choices.
Tip: Different brands produce different results. The new Liquitex acrylic ink colors are bright like their paints. Higgins colored inks are more transparent and pastel.

Five: I like using a pen with my colored inks, instead of just using a brush for a wash, or coloring in my drawings.
Tips: Try using different colors to outline and shade in a drawing, and see what happens.

Six: You can use pen and ink just like a pencil or regular pen.
Tips: Write notes, doodle, sketch, draw free-hand, have fun! You never know what will happen when you let go and play.

Seven: Ink is more permanent than watercolor.
Tips: Try combining pen and ink with other mediums, like colored pencil, watercolor pencil, collage, acrylic, gouache, watercolor, or cut paper.

Now I’m supposed to pass on the Kreativ Blogger Award to seven other people (who can do the original 7 things I love. I can only pick seven, which is hard, so I put names in a hat and picked: pbwriter , annamlewis , Kelly Polark, jamarattigan , Jacqui,kellyrfineman  , and lkmadigan  . If anyone else wants to play too, go for it!

It seems that not many people do pen and ink anymore, so I’m going to give some basic tips for starting out with this medium. Maybe people will want to try pen and ink :) I used to do a lot of pen and ink art and have recently started again.

* Buy a starter pen set (get the one that’s for what you want to do, art, calligraphy, etc.) that has a holder and several tips.

* Try out all the tips to see what kind of lines they make and which ones you like best (there are big differences in pen tips)

* Waterproof ink is great because you don’t have to worry about it smearing after it dries (but it will smear when wet, so be careful).

* Wear old clothes and work on a vinyl or plastic tablecloth or surface (so you don’t ruin good clothing or tables).

* Keep a small piece of drawing paper by your work surface so you can tap extra ink off the end of the pen and/or test the line. Sometimes I need to refill my pen, but I want a really thin line (and don’t want to change tips) so I run the ink down on the scratch paper until it’s the way I want it for the real drawing.

* You can do a light pencil sketch before you use ink if you want to plan out your drawing.

* You can use a brush to create watercolor-like effects with ink. (More on ink washes next week.)

* Ink now comes in all sorts of colors. You don’t have to just use black, although there is a certain beauty in black and white. (More on colored inks next week.)

* If you have any pen and ink tips, please share them in the comment section, or if you blog about them, let me know and I’ll include your link. Thanks!