Really missing Svalbard

 The last few days I've been able to really go back into all of the photos and trip logs of my June 2024 past trip to Svalbard. A whir of emotions surround it, mostly being a sense of nervousness that I'll never be able to go back and see those far off places. Even more-so, I miss the barquentine Antigua. She was the 44th member of the trip, and I felt her kind presence the whole time. When I was in the Arctic, I had very little trouble working in my sketchbook and observing all of the amazing details around me. Back in my studio I am artistically frozen - unable to capture or translate all of those amazing emotions I felt back there. Unable, or is is fear? I'm worried that my limited talent and ability will not be able to capture everything I love about that place.

I'll keep trying. It's why my 2025 New Years card is so late.

Contemplating a Return!

Well, it's nearly the end of another year, and FIVE years since I've posted to my old blog. I miss this type of diary entry. Social media has taken some strange turns and we now see the limitations of the immediate.  

These five years past have been incredible - both in their celebrations and losses. Always fortunate to still be spinning around the sun. This year in particular was mind blowing. I was fortunate to be able to travel to the Arctic Circle (80˚20'61 N 008˚48'46 E to be specific) aboard the tall ship Antigua accompanied by some of the most incredibly giving and talented artists, crew members, and guides that I will NEVER forget. I still dream of being aboard the ship and the vividness of the midnight sun is so permanently etched into my heart. I'm on a constant mission to return again soon.

I've was fortunate to visit Denmark, Norway, Svalbard, France, Austria, and Hungary. Five of those countries are completely new to me! I'm still overwhelmed thinking about it. Antoine and I have now been married for FIFTEEN years, but I've officially known him for over 29 years. He's the best friend and loyal partner I could have ever hoped for. And, many joke that we run an animal menagerie, complete with Kiwi & Gaetano (chihuahuas), Matryoshka (Russian tortoise), Tampa (yellow bellied slider turtle), Poprocks & Batman (bettas), Bang (green terror cichlid) and two stocked aquatic tanks. We welcome many fuzzy friends while pet sitting for others throughout the year as well (Ollie, Lucy, Linus, Chappy, William, Tesla, etc.)

The last big news - and it's not 100% official just yet... but I think I've sold my second authored book. It's only been 22 years since the last one! And you may have guessed it... it's all about tallships and my mildly recent obsession with sailing! 2026 is going to be an amazing 250th anniversary celebration for the United States and I hope my book help usher in the amazing ship parade planned for the eastern seacoast. More on that later!! January will have two new book releases, too! Bea Birdsong's adorable Goat is the G.O.A.T.! and the phenom Elise Broach's Bulldozer & Friends book one! Wooooooof, what a year.

There's always a mix of emotions at key transitional moments, and a new years day is not exempt from this. There's the hope of future's promise, but also the regrets of opportunities not seized. Whatever the intensity of the emotion may be, it's important to stay present to adapt to this ever changing time that we live in. 2025, I think you will be nothing short of cuckoo🍌bananas. Let's do this! Happy New Year every one.

ps.) There's still new beers being had!!!

Which witch is which?

Here's a quick sampling of some quick warm-ups and practices I've been making as of late. Trying to give costume design a go! It's been very fun to create this motley assortment of witches.

Also, AHOY!

Oh! And since the post in 2017, I've become an ocean lover. So strange! I've fallen in love with sailing! You see, I don't really love swimming in the water, but I love flying upon the water surface, at an 18˚ keeled over angle! Alas, it's the winter months here in New England, and the boats are just beginning their winter sleep. I'll miss the vitamin D!

PASSWORD!!!

Holy hannah. I finally remembered my password for the blog! I was locked out for so long.
Well, it's been such a long time since I've updated, so I don't know where to begin, truthfully. The new year is almost upon us, and many projects have come and gone. I am happy to say that I am working on a picture book currently and loving every minute of it. I'd love to update more in the next few weeks.

Phew! I'm back!!

Cascade

I don't consider myself an ocean lover. I've never lived more than a half hour's drive from the seaside, and perhaps I've taken in for granted. But for some reason, the vastness of the ocean is such a strong metaphor in my work. I've used it frequently in images about fear and the future. Always looking for a few moments to paint for myself, I again found myself drawn to the idea of a lonely ship, cutting through the stillness of the water.

But this time, I wanted to clearly show the impending doom to the viewer. Would our sailor notice the approaching cascade? Time can only tell.

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!!

It's KRAAAAAAMPUS week again!!!!

The Dead Swamp

I'm so excited to have finished the third painting in my childhood memory series. I've been having so much fun taking a break from other work making these, and I have a fourth forming in my mind already.

The Dead Swamp is located in southeastern Massachusetts and feeds into the larger Hockomock Swamp. In Wampanoag, the name Hockomock translates into "place where spirits dwell", and my childhood experiences there could corroborate that name. During the seventeenth century, the Hockomock Swamp was used as a fortress by the Wampanoags against invasion by early white settlers. It played a role in King Philip's War as a strategic base of operations for Metacomet (also known as King Philip) to launch assaults upon nearby white settlements. My town was largely unscathed because of the friendship between Metcomet and the Leonard family who operated the first Iron Works in the new colony. The Dead Swamp provided not only fish and game, but also inland protection from some of the harsher New England seasons. While the swampy areas have their beauty of flora and fauna, there's a much darker side to this mystical place. There have been accounts dating back to the 1700s of will o' the wisps (or feu follet), poltergeists, large thunderbirds, ghost dogs, and  larger than life snakes. All this makes the provides the perfect combination to fuel a young girl's imagination.

On one cold, fall day... this very swamp called our names. From just over the hill, where the path lead into the swamp, we heard a whisper that carried towards us as we biked up the hill. First I heard it, then my friend. There was no denying that this was no ordinary voice. And it wasn't the last time that the woods called my name.

Inktober... in November or Sloooovember

For the past few years, I've really been trying to embrace Inktober, not only because I love ink, but also to just get out of my normal daily work routine. All of this is easier said than done! So, my slower than molasses self is still trying to get the last few images done. Therefore, we're in Slovember. Wait. DAMNIT. I swear when I started this post it was still November. It just changed into December. Well, curses! I'm still going to try and get the last few leaves in by the end of the year.

I decided that this year I wanted to make a longer series for Inktober. I tried to do random drawings in the previous year, and I would sometimes have too much hesitation on what to draw. Since I was a small child, I've loved learning bird and their songs, so I decided to increase my natural knowledge into native New England trees. Sure, maples and oaks are well known, but what I didn't realize was the broad variety that existed. As I researched further, some of these trees are transient, in some trees like the Bear Oak grow in newly deforested or fire damaged area. You don't typically see them in old growth areas. This series encouraged me to get out of my studio and take a walk in neighboring woods and fields, looking for new leaves and shapes I hadn't noticed before. I'm thinking of trying out evergreens next October. I mean October, November, December. Ugh. I'm so slow!

A Long Long Time Ago

So much time has passed since my last post, and with it so many things have happened. 2016 has been a tumultuous year, but the urge to push on still exists, with much thanks. New chapters, new projects, new resolutions. With some more structured time, I am hoping this will be the first of more posts here.

Something that I have discovered is integral for the sanity of an illustrator is finding time for yourself. Sure, a walk in the woods is great, but what I crave most is the time to make an image just for me. I carved away a little time early this year to do just this. It's from a long, long time ago, back on my childhood street with the best friends and neighbors a kid could ask for. I grew up close to thick New England swamps, rich with folklore and maybe even some mean neighbors scattered within. We friends stood up to both real and imagined foes with bravery and on this particular day... rotten tomatoes from the garden. The Kirklands lived beyond the woods, and every now and then would try and provoke us into a verbal argument through the tall pines. We totally annihilated them that day.

This is the second of what I hope will be a very long series of remembered childhood moments. I'm hellbent on trying to capture how special this neighborhood was and how much it's affected my adult psyche.

It's good to be back, and I've just fallen in love with Switchback Brewery and I am ITCHING to do a review!! NEXT TIME!

 

2015 Fall Class Demo

Each semester, I like to take a moment to talk about process, and finding one's own method of working. I use it as an excuse to paint some moody people. While watching the Three Lives of Thomasina (one of the best Disney film about a cat that brings a family together, through her mysterious death and reappearance), I sketched this sulky lass.

Viterbo 2015 (aka The Summer I Almost Melted To Death)

I'm slowly catching up with some posts here, and I am happily enjoying the New England fall weather. As I look back to my month of July spent with Fred Lynch, his family, and the journalistic drawing students I remember just how hot it was on those Italian streets. We had over 25 consecutive days of 95˚ F and above. Now, I am... as I like to say... a delicate flower. I need 70˚ or lower! HA! While I am complaining about the weather, I'd like to shift focus on the amazing students and fellow faculty members that made this summer one of the most memorable. I count myself blessed to be able to sit, observe, and record the comings and goings of this ancient town. Viterbo is a lively, gritty city full of tiny alleys and bizarre adventure. I just needed a few months to cool off afterward! Here are a few of the scenes I was able to capture.

Inktober and The Alien

Fall is in full swing, but temperatures are quite lovely. Perfect weather to take the saucer out a few more times before the first few flakes fall.

 My dog is quite bizarre in all senses of the word, so it only made sense to have her looming over Evergreen Street.

While I am not able to participate everyday during Inktober, I love the excuse it gives me to try something fun... and maybe a little silly!

Floral Inspiration

Today, as the temperatures struggle to go beyond 17˚, I am looking at J.J. Grandville's Les Fleurs Animées. I was able to purchase this book for my husband at Christmas along with another featuring his amazing ink work. Grandville's characters and scenes border on the absurd but always have such an amazing accuracy of personality and expression.

J.J. Grandville was born at Nancy, in northeastern France, to an artistic and theatrical family. The name "Grandville" was his grandparents' professional stage name. Grandville received his first instruction in drawing from his father, a painter of miniatures. At the age of twenty-one he moved to Paris, and soon afterwards published collection of lithographs. Grandville's ability for political provocation made his work much in demand. He worked in a wide variety of formats, from his first job illustrating the parlor game Old Maid, to illustrated newspaper strips of which he was a master. One of Grandville's supreme achievements, at a time when French printing technology was ascendant, was Les Fleurs Animées, a series of images that are both poetic and satirical. But perhaps his most original contribution to the illustrated book form was L'Autre Monde, which approaches the status of pure surrealism, despite being conceived in a pre-Freudian age. Leading members of the Surrealist movement such as André Breton and Georges Bataille recognised in Grandville a significant precursor and inspiration for the movement. The rock band Queen used part of his artwork for the cover and backcover of their 1991 album Innuendo. Even they knew how awesome Grandville's work was!