The New Place...

...is coming along.  Here are some snippets of my studio, some parts you might recognize from older posts, only rearranged.  I particularly love what used to be my main corner desk unit is now a long work table with ample storage.  The desktop is a door I'm thinking of painting.  The only thing I'm sort of tired of is all the black, but it suits me fine for now.  I made the bathroom sign which turned out to be a fun but necessary kitsch, because my guests tend to get confused by where it is given our long hall of doorways. The apartment was built before the 20th C with neat details, so maybe as it comes together, I'll post more.

Studio Q

Has a bit of a ring to it.  What is it?  My new space, again.  I decided to switch my 9H space for another, 24Q, at the art complex.  I'm excited by it for many practical reasons, better insulation, better controlled light, yoga down the hall to name a few.  More to come!

GAGA Arts Festival 2009

I finally found some time to write about my first open studio this past weekend at the Garnerville Arts and Industrial Center. It was a big success thanks to the local community and despite the scattered showers and cooler milder temperatures.

Since I've yet to build up a collection of large paintings, I decided to show the original art from my published work, some of which have not seen the light of day in years. I finally had an excuse to pull them out and hang them, rather casually on clips and string, for all to appreciate, including myself. It was cool to see them all up in one space.

I had a table set with crayons and pencils, prepared an activity book called "The Best Day," where the kids could write about their best day and illustrate it. I also brought my button maker for kids and "big kids" to make buttons. It was a hit! I also created a display on "How a Book is Published: an artist's perspective."

I sold a few books, and while most of the art was also for sale, with the sluggish economy, the pieces were admired from afar.

I most enjoyed talking to the attendees and all the kids. I met many bright children, some who wanted to be illustrators, others who were fascinated by the process and still others who just liked taking the time to create a story. I met a young girl who suffered from Hodgkins Lymphoma and was nearing the end of her treament with a good prognosis. As a survivor of childhood leukemia, we bonded over our "war stories," and before she left she showed me the story of her "Best Day," which she dedicated to me...excuse me...having a moment.

For many it was a big learning process, an eye-opener for local teachers and the regular art appreciator. So indeed it was a success even if I sold not a one painting.

Slowly But Surely

My painting studio is slowly coming together, much slower than anticipated. February has proven to be a month for distractions and paperwork (with tax season in full swing). But with each visit I bring another book, a chair, a couple table legs, and lots of material to get ideas flowing. Of course, and not soon enough, I finally have internet. As a matter of fact, this is my first entry here.

My dog hangs out with me too, so he and I can enjoy walks by the creek. He has a nervous energy that makes him a little uneasy with the building's old creaky sounds, the blazing gas heater above, and the door slams by the new neighbors or maintenance guy. And while I have wonderfully large windows, they sit a bit too high from the floor, which makes him too short to observe his favorite past time, looking out the window watching passers by.

So we're both adjusting after working from home for a good while. But despite some of the changes, I know it'll be a very exciting adventure.

Fresh Space

I'm very excited to introduce what will be my new painting studio come February 1 at GAGA (Garnerville Arts and Industrial Center) located just a mile from my home. It's a modest sized space full of inspirational potential, texture and personality, but most importantly, it's surrounded by other creative people. The old buildings used to serve as textile mills for their first 125 years, and now they house work and exhibition spaces for sculptors, painters, woodworkers, musicians, photographers and the like. As with many converted warehouses in New York City's surrounding towns and suburbs, GAGA hosts gallery shows while private studios are open to the public every summer, for the community to enjoy. So paint I will, and perhaps sculpt and photograph, but I'll be sure to share what I can here.

Cuck-COOL

The bird room, I call it—my new studio. Images and shapes of birds naturally grew to be a theme in my new space—on a painting, a bag, a ceramic dish, a piece of stationery. They live very happily with all the old wooden pieces in the room. But the bird of all birds, the pièce de résistance, is my new cuckoo clock complete with pendulum and little red bird.

Its plastic feathers flip up at every other sound of the cuckoo. It is the trendiest timepiece I've ever purchased, yet it has a timeless quality that I admire. It's cool and weird and beautiful at the same time. Does this now mean that I'm the crazy bird lady? I can live with that.

Black and White All Over

Today I decided that I needed to keep to the consistent black and white elements in my studio, whipped out the white paint and went nuts.

I painted my bulletin board, a few frames, a mirror and my wooden paint drawers...white. Even my ratty pencil sharpener got the white paint treatment. But my bulletin board was calling for more than that, because it was staring at me like a blank canvas. I pulled out the acrylics and painted, well, something black.

Just Hangin' Out

Every so often I will post pictures of my dog, particularly when I think he acts out of character. My husband took this shot in my studio while I was sitting in this chair. Here, he's hanging out while I work. Notice the delicate way he rests his paw on the base of the chair, very cool and laid back. Okay, it's cute, it's my dog, so there.

My Mac is Back!

Exciting news, folks...I've been reinducted into the world of Mac after being a year long PC user. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate the capabilities of Vista on a sweet, souped up duo core laptop, but it does have its limitations. The newer generation of desktop Macs, the Mac Pro, with even sweeter quad core processors, make Photoshop and every other desktop publishing program a dream to run. How did I become a PC user at all you ask? Well, my husband and I are two working illustrators with an addiction to speedy computers who found a need to save (let's face it, PC's are cheaper) and simplify by limiting our platform to one. So once my slow, old mac became more obsolete, we became strictly PC. But, soon enough, I suffered from a bit of separation anxiety and needed a dose of Mac. Plus, my husband needed yet another computer (a 3rd), so he suggested he take over the very nice laptop while I get the Mac of my dreams (and after a few grunts and sighs and 'I want a Mac' tantrums). Isn't that sweet? Mac Pro Quad Core (just 6 little gigs of Ram)... iPhone schmiefone!

Post Show

The SCBWI holds a conference for children's illustrators every spring, organized by Frieda Gates, president of the New York Chapter and wonderful lady. Too bad these conferences don't happen more often. Anyone who knows about freelancing can attest to the need to get out, talk to peers, and fill up on some creative juice before heading back to the board. It goes something like this: we drop off our portfolios for review by about 30 editors, art directors and agents. While the reviews are going on, we sit through a few panel discussions about the children's publishing business.

This year, the speakers were writer/illustrator Emily Arnold McCully, a literary agent (Andrea Cascardi), an art agent (Lori Nowicki), and a couple panels about the graphic novel. My other half, Dennis, was one of those experts:-) I might be partial, but it was clear from everyone else's reaction that he was largely entertaining and informative (as indicated by the many laughs and rigorous note taking). The two people sitting next to me were trying to figure out who he looked like--I heard Keanu Reeves and the guy from 30 Something...hee hee...old reference!

Writer/illustrator Emily McCully was very inspiring. She talked about intelligent writing for children and her disciplined approach to illustration. She said she draws her ideas largely from history, creating fictional characters around specific historical events or people. The result is timeless and fresh. Her characters are usually strong, female personalities that grow and learn through certain conflict. Her pictures are lovely and tell alot about the characters in their visual cues. I really enjoyed her lecture.

A couple of my old friends attended which made the conference that much more enjoyable. Could've done without my nasty headache. Nevertheless, it was a good time. Afterwards, Dennis and I had dinner with my friend Tatyana and two illustrators who were new to New York. Got home around 9:30pm to a mess of a house after a hectic weekend. And today, my desk is left completely cluttered. In the pic, you'll see a clear, acrylic pen holder half-filled with promotional buttons--totally useless objects that look like candy, so they're completely irresistable! Got a lot of nice comments about them.

Now it's back to the board -- refreshed and inspired.