Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Holli Conger's Illustration Tips

Mosey on over to Holli Conger's "A Girl Who Creates" Blog for terrific tips on the illustration biz.. Holli is generously sharing her expertise and her savviness with us everyday during the month of December. I have been a BIG fan of Holli's work for several years and it's been exciting to see how her career has progressed. What an awesome gift to have a new tip every day about illustration! So, check out her blog. Today. Don't wait!

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Benjamin Lacombe




Benjamin Lacombe is another French illustrator I discovered in France. I immediately fell in love with his rich, moody, and vibrant stylized gouache illustrations. When we were in Aix en Provenence, I was thrilled to find his children's picture book, "Les Amants Papillons" ("Butterfly Lovers") in a small book shop. The book is written in French, of which I only know a few words, but the illustrations are a sumptuous blend of color, drama, and design. The book is large, 15½" x 7" which is quite large by picture book standards. This allows for the full intensity of Benjamin's gorgeous illustrations with full spreads on many pages. Since this book is probably difficult to find in the US, here are some other titles he illustrated that are available on Amazon: "Lin Yi's Lantern" and " Cherry and Olive". You can see his work at his very creative website www.BenjaminLacombe.com



Check back for more posts on fantastic illustrators and their work!

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Star Gazing - IF


I did these little star gazing frogs a while back, but I thought it could work for this week's theme. I'm hoping to make time to participate in Illustration Friday again! Check out the IF site, as there's always such great work each week around each theme.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Grayson's Elephant


Yay!! I finally finished Grayson's elephant painting for his room. I had a great time painting with the Golden Open Acrylics. I really liked how they stayed wet and I was able to work longer in blending colors. Even thought I still love my Winsor Newton oil alkyds, I think I'm hooked on the new acrylics. I bought a whole bunch of colors yesterday at the art supply store and am trying some more "experiments".
I'll post a pic of the painting in Grayson's nursery soon!

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Open Acrylics


I'm trying new paints, Golden's Open Acrylic, which according to Golden's website, are a slow-drying formulation. I only recently heard of these acrylics and have been so excited to try them out. I usually work with Winsor & Newton's Oil Aklyds. They are quick drying oils and I love the colors. I'm working on a painting for my new baby grandson, Grayson's nursery. Here is a pic of what I'll be painting.
This little elephant stuffed toy is the subject of the painting. This should be a fun experiment. I'll post pics when I finish.. hopefully in a couple of days. Has anyone painted with these acrylics? I'd love to hear any comments about them!

Monday, June 14, 2010

Rebecca Dautremer


I first saw Rébecca Dautremer's illustrations in a small shop in Paris when my husband and I were visiting Paris for the very first time. My husband was attending a conference and I tagged along since I had never been there. While he attended his meetings, I took every opportunity to browse book stores and children's books for French illustrators. Boy, did I find some wonderful illustrators! I fell in love with Rébecca's work and have looked for her books here in the US ever since then.

A few weeks ago I found her illustrations in "The Secret Lives of Princesses" written by Philippe Lechermeier. What a feast of color, design and style flows through this picture book! She creates her beautiful illustrations in gouache and has been illustrating books for over 10 years. Rebecca uses unusual views and every spread has such striking contrast with her color palette. Check out this book if you have a chance.. it is completely captivating. Also check out her website which has many more gorgeous illos.


Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Back on the road again



I have had a long absence from my blog, mostly because I haven't been creating any art. I've been involved with art.. student teaching to get my certification to teach art which was pretty awesome, but not creating my own. I plan to teach high school, middle school, or elementary.. any of those.. I will love it!
Above is a collage I did at a party  of creative women recently led by Johanna Roffino-Hulsey and the party was organized by Johanna and Karen Weiss. It was very freeing and we weren't trying to make anything "perfect"... we were just playing. That evening was the jumpstart I needed to get my creative engine running again. I've begun work on a painting for my new grandson's nursery and also have a couple of other new ideas for paintings to work on. Below are several of the collages done in the class.

I am SOooo excited to be part of Kelly Rae Roberts e-course, Flying Lessons!! Kelly has been an inspiration to me for a LONG time. I've followed her blog and feel like I know her as she shared her successes and ups and downs on her blog. I bought her book as soon as it was published and ordered her calendars and other items. Check out Kelly's blog and her fabulous work here. I can't wait for the e-course to start. It is going to be so WONDERFUL!