Climbing stairs to train platform.

Station Road.  Girl waking up, looking out at train...

Here's another for my Marla Frazee class...love developing this character.  This past week, she took a train to Grandma's house.

Assignment for Marla Frazee's class at Art Center tonight:  abandoned.

Perfect Friday morning interview!


http://blaine.org/sevenimpossiblethings/?p=3543

I'm taking a class at Art Center Pasadena with one of my artist heroes, Marla Frazee. Here's one of her assignments - I drew my character in the style of children's book illustrators I admire: Patricia Polacco, Peter Reynolds, Heath McKenzie, Tomie DePaola, Jules Feiffer, and Chris Van Allsburg!

Not sure who she is yet...

Yee ha!

Listening to Marshall Arisman while I work today:
http://illustrationfriday.com/2010/08/efii-podcast-episode-47-marshall-arisman-part-1/

Better scan of my Fiesta Ladies painting.

I painted the Fiesta ladies...

Still studying at the University of Jerry Pinkney this week...

Well, if great artists steal, I will give it a shot.  Stealing from Degas, Tomie DaPaola, and Jerry Pinkney!  I know they don't exactly match, but I worship so much about them.  I actually was at Books of Wonder when Jerry Pinkney was signing this book years ago, and I foolishly skipped it.  I don't know what I was thinking.  It is a treasure.

 Well, this is just perfect for my state of mind right now.  From the brilliant zenpencils.com

http://zenpencils.com/comic/157-amy-poehler-great-people-do-things-before-theyre-ready/

I had an amazing weekend at SCBWI, full of awe for so many of the authors and illustrators.  But Aaron Becker.  Unbelievable.  Can't stop thinking about his work and his sessions two days out. 

http://www.storybreathing.com/journey/

Wowowowowow.  Back from the SCBWI Conference in Los Angeles, and my head is spinning.  Here's a piece I was working on last week.  More to follow.  I just love Fiesta.

Well, this is it!  Pitching the "book" at the Los Angeles SCBWI conference this Friday.  (Teeth chatter teeth chatter teeth chatter.)

Once upon a time I did some graphic illustrations for the NYTimes.  Here's the dummy for one of them.  The real newspapers are buried deep in my stuff somewhere.

I'm starting a new project that loosely involves the Santa Barbara Mission, so I've been hanging around it, sketching away.

I really hate flying, so I sketched this self portrait the other night on a plane across the country.  It's a great distraction.  (I did have to stop for a while during "moderate turbulence").

Yenta was at the USC Book Festival!  (Kind of...I drew her on some murals...:)  )  bucket list to get some books there some day soon!

I've been cringing about Yenta for Santa lately.  Thinking that there were a hundred things I should have done differently.  And then my sister-in-law sent me this school assignment from my niece last night.  I told her that she made my day, week, month, year...

I teach an Art Masters class at my son's elementary school.  Today we did a project based on the art of Jacob Lawrence.  What I've always loved about his art is his powerful story.  So we talked a lot about our figures.  Who are they?  How do they feel about this school?  We imagined them to have come from the Underground Railroad.  The students all made up their own great stories for their work. 

Here's my finished commissioned Pepperdine watercolor painting, with my big fat copyright across the center.  I was happy with it!

Whew!  I was sidelined by a concussion (they are NO JOKE) but happy to say I am back to it today!  Starting a commissioned watercolor.  Here is a photo of my makeshift light table:  a dresser drawer, sheet of glass with tracing paper taped to the underside, and a battery operated utility light thrown inside.  Voila!