For the love of SCBWI and looking for lost treasure

It is very important to find just the right thing to wear when 

you are preparing to become a fit and healthy bun, like me.

As you can see, I'm ready for anything!

Well, I'm off ...

Yoga Bun is a young bun, set on getting in shape and in touch

with the Infinite Universe.

We play together.

We eat treats together.

We read together.

We ride together.

We're best friends.

Blast Off

Who do you think you are?

Hey, up here!

Now what...

These are character studies for animals 

who would like to star in  their own children's books.

They've been pestering me for weeks and 

months to flesh them out, create "style guides"

and the like. 

I've promised that one day each of them will 

find their way into one or two or hopefully 1000 

picture books for kids. 

Nothing is certain, 

but without hope, you're lost, right?

I attended the SCBWI Conference last weekend

with my lovely friend, illustrator, Yuko Katakawa. 

I also had a chance to see Joyce Hesselberth, a friend from VCU.

She and her husband, David Plunkert, run Spur Design 

in Baltimore and sell art prints (predominantly) for kids. 

Both do stellar work. It's great to know people doing 

what they truly love!

Bunny Valentine print available @ Society 6

The conference renewed my faith in the business and has 

inspired me to make something happen this year.

No, I did not win the portfolio showcase, nor 

did I win a simple door prize, but

I did enjoy fabulous speakers like Meg Rossof, Mo Willems, Shaun Tan

and Julie Andrews, yes that one, 

with her daughter, 

Emma Walton Hamilton. Oh, and the man who put 

the "I" in SCBWI, Tomie dePaola was there this year!

I had no idea just how brilliant Shaun Tan was until

seeing his presentation, nor how many series of books

Julie Andrews and her daughter had written.

The 1st series was illustrated by Julie's ex husband,

the renowned production designer, Tony Walton.

I was aware of how funny Mo Willems is,

but it sure was fun to be reminded!

I chose "breakout" sessions with creative directors,

Patrick Collins of Henry Holt and 

Isabel Warren-Lynch of Random House Kids.

I wish one-on-one critiques were offered, 

but with 999 members in attendance, it would be tough

to get through them all in two days!

I'm not sure how many illustrators were there exactly, 

because SCBWI includes, not only writers of 

picture books, but also chapter and

young adult books.

:::

Despite meat locker temps in the Hyatt, it was a wonderful

experience overall. Stephen Mooser (President) and Lin Oliver,

(Executive Director) create an open friendly atmosphere

where illustrators and writers have an opportunity 

to meet each other, enjoy a cocktail or more

and feel a sense of community.

I'm even considering a trip to the LA conference in August,

you never know :)

Thanks for stopping by. 

xo, A

Birthdays are FUN

* I recently had a birthday *

This gem was given to me by my friend, Melissa Zexter.

She's responsible for other fabulous finds like, 

Pastel Bears on Scooter

Shocked & Appalled  Lamb

and Cart-Pulling Poodle

Whaaaaaaaaaat?!?!!

That's right and now  Meeee-OW!

:::

What more could I ask for? 

and then,

I unwrapped this classic from my friend, Kristine Lombardi, Cannonball Simp!

If you've never read this, you should, if only to appreciate just how 

politically incorrect it is. 

I love John Burningham's illustrations. The story is funny and 

Simp is endearing. It's one of my favorites in Kristine's 

extensive vintage children's book collection and now I own it :D

:::

Tossed, literally, into a trash dump, this fat small dog with only a stump

for a tail is left to fend for herself.

Like so many survivors, she finds her way to the circus

and you guessed it, becomes a star!

:::

I received many lovely gifts this year and one is a bottle of red 

I'm about to open right now!

I met friends at The Jake Walk on Smith Street

in Brooklyn and enjoyed a really fun night with some of my favorite people!

The cocktails were tasty and our waitress couldn't have

been more accommodating whenever we needed an 

extra table or chair. I'll definitely go back.

:::

Fortunately, the start to the year was a positive one because

my 1st job of the year was in a cold dark dank

stage that wreaked of sewage and mold.

Our Union safety rep had some air purifiers added and, as usual, 

we got the job done. I value that can-do attitude in the 

film/commercial business, but at times you have to wonder ... 

Oh well, it feels good to sell more soda ;)

Sunday, I attended my 1st CBIG (children's book illustrators group) meeting.

We met in member, Ruth Karpes' lovely apartment on the upper east side.

Martha Rago, Creative Director 

at Harper Collins Children's Books, talked to us about 

the essentials, what makes 

a book stand out, what she looks 

for when acquiring a story and the artwork for it. 

She gave examples with strong Narrative like 

Where the Wild Things Are, the Gold Standard. 

Maurice Sendak's text and art are in total harmony. She also shared

soon to be classics like Peter McCarty's Henry in Love, 

Distinctive Character driven series like, Fancy Nancy 

and Pete the Cat, which was initially self published by

Eric Litwin and James Dean.

Emphasis on Composition & Design books like,

I just stumbled across this sweet animated short

of Bob Shea's Race You to Bed 

and Melissa Sweet's Balloons Over Broadway 

She spoke about Voice and Skill, stressing that your 

Technique should be impeccable! gulp

Martha also talked about Universality, 

what is it about a character that touches you?

and Concept, like Herve Tullet's 

Press Here, a why didn't I think of that book! 

and Suzy Lee's Wave, among others, which uses the gutter to full effect.

She also talked about humor and favorites like,

William Steig, Mo Willems, Lane Smith & Jon Klassen.

Of course, there are practical concerns we need 

to consider as we scratch & claw our way into the publishing world.

The number of new writer/illustrators Harper Collins

 takes on each year, drum roll please............ 

about 2 to 3.

 Martha was generous with her time and gave an informative enlightening talk.

It was a treat! and there were treats :)

I was hoping to have my portfolio critiqued by her, but alas

my name was not chosen in the lucky lottery held afterwards.

It was fun to see other people's work and I'm motivated 

to make mine stronger before the SCBWI Conference in February.

I've considered adding the category of 'Sketches' to my site,

so I was happy to hear that Martha enjoys looking at an illustrator's

studies. It's a fun way to gain insight into someone's thought process, 

see how characters are developed, etc.

So today, I added some of mine. Click Here to view :)

I'm sure I've shared most of the decent ones here on Blipadee, 

but I like having a bunch on one simple page.

:::

Btw, if you love children's books and haven't seen the 

Beatrix Potter exhibit at The Morgan Library, you still have time!

Twenty two of her private "Picture Letters" to children are on display,

as well as, original art, books, toys & games. 

It's a well done, incredibly charming show.

It closes January 27th.

photo courtesy Kristine Lombardi

Oh, and make sure to ask our friend, Monique 

about the secret stairway in the Library!

Thanks for stopping by :)

xo, A

Christmas Pins & Holiday Art

This set of Commodore candle holder angels is one of my favorite

finds this season. 

Since becoming a regular on Pinterest, I no longer feel the need to 

own everything that charms me, but I did see a similar set in Jen's Closet on Etsy. 

hmmm

The worried angel on the left is so sweet and I love their varied expressions. 

The one next to her is like, what's wrong? pull it together, 

while the one next to her is like, huh, when do we sing? 

and the angel far right appears to be checking out some fella!

Holt Howard Reindeer candle holder 1950s

I thought I'd share some of the cute Christmas images from my

Pinterest Holiday board

They're mostly vintage, hard to resist the cute & the kitsch,

especially at the holidays.

Okay, this tree and room look hideous, but I'm sure someone once thought it was stunning. 

Oh, Jane.

Frosty Balls! Great stocking stuffer

This is Hatcher Pass in Alaska, beautiful.

Pinterest is packed with pins of cute animals. Still, this guy managed to stand out.

bottle brush snowman 1950s

Lefton snow baby figurine, looking demonic. Perfect for the holidays.

Not Christmas-y, just love them!

I adore this illustration and most of the old Holiday covers. 

As a magazine fan, I was surprised I'd never

seen Holiday before stumbling across these covers on Pinterest.

It was published from 1946-1977 and ran mostly long form travel pieces.

I just found a blog devoted to Holiday Magazine by 

Josh Lieberman and this is an interesting piece he wrote for The Paris Review 

here's a tiny excerpt -

"The most puzzling thing about the lost history of Holiday is that the magazine published so many famous writers: Joseph Heller, Irwin Shaw, Arthur C. Clarke, E. B. White, Arthur Miller, Gay Talese, Paul Bowles, Steinbeck, Saroyan, Kerouac, Cheever, O’Hara, Bellow, Thurber, Faulkner. 

It was in Holiday that Truman Capote declared that he lived in Brooklyn—by choice!"

Greetings from Brooklyn

I did a little window shopping in the West Village last week and

came upon two cool shops, Sockerbit , meaning sugar cube in English,

specializing in Scandinavian candies :)

I stopped for their sweet window display, showcasing

super cute matchbox mice by the Danish company, Maileg 

Next door is Shalva. The nicest salesgirl (in window) was giving out samples. 

I tried their hand scrub, with minerals from the Dead Sea. It felt fabulous and left a 

trace of oil, making my hands feel softer than they've been in years! 

I will definitely return to buy myself a luxurious gift or two :)

This unusual vintage card with dog face is by John Hovenstine

He's made several cute & funny cards like this, available at 

J.Hovenstine Studios on Etsy. Wish I had bought the double pug card for a friend.

Bob Staake from "Look Another Book"

I'm happy to report that I finally made it up to The Original Art Show at 

Society of Illustrators

Maira Kalman from "Looking at Lincoln"

There was a lot of terrific work! 

Unfortunately, I took the worst photos of some of my personal favorites.

Here are just a few of the pictures I can share. 

Dan Santat from "Bawk and Roll"

It's fun to see the originals plus read the names of the art directors,

editors and publishers that collaborate to make children's books the works of art 

they're capable of becoming.

Copies of the published books were included so you could compare the 

original to the reproductions and see the full stories. 

Several kids were there enjoying the exhibit and a few others, like me, 

were busy taking notes and studying details.

Jessie Hartland from "How the Dinosaur Got to the Museum"

I envy these illustrators, of course, but it's inspiring to see exhibits like this 

and to get a close-up view of the level of work being made.

Chris Van Dusen from "Randy Riley's Really Big Hit"

There seems to be an equal amount of old school painting and digital processes 

at work, as well as some nice combinations of the two. 

There was also an elaborate cut-paper piece by Giles Laroche 

Back to holidays

Have a lovely Christmas

Thanks for stopping by :)

xo, A