Unfortunately, I am no longer illustrating a children’s book for Tanglewood Press. The break was a somewhat unexpected and can only be ascribed, I suppose, to a difference of artistic vision. We parted ways after I had completed and submitted the final art for the cover. I was quite happy with the work, but the publisher felt it was not quite what they needed. Of course I am now anxious to see the book published and on the shelves just so I might see what sort of imagery they were shooting for.
Here I’ve posted what little I feel I can rightly reveal of the cover art work that I completed for Tanglewood Press. Yes, I know, it doesn’t show much, but to reveal anymore would not be quite fair to the author, I think.
And I must say that Tanglewood did pay me for my work and were very prompted in doing so. I can’t complain about that.
There were two blessings from this experience. The first is a new way of working which I am anxious to employ again. The second is that my schedule is now free to take up a new project which has come my way. But I will have more to say about that as things develop.
The Wizard of Oz
Tomorrow, Saturday September 11th, my Wizard of Oz poster will be auctioned at the Zachary Hebda Foundation gala. To say the least I’m excited and anxious to know how much money the poster will raise for cancer research. To recap, the Zachary Hebda Foundation is dedicated to the research and cure of childhood cancer. See their site HebdaFoundation.org.
Hopefully I’ll have an update on Monday.
The Wizard of Oz
ADG | Creative commissioned this poster as a part of a fund raiser for the Zachary Hebda Foundation which was established to increase awareness and research to cure childhood cancer. Zachary Hebda died of leukemia in 1999 - I believe he was six years old. The poster features the characters from the Wizard of Oz, because Zach was very fond of the movie. You may notice that the yellow brick road forms a Z – for Zach.
View the larger version here.
Tanglewood Books
Last week I agreed to illustrate a children’s book for Tanglewood Press and yesterday morning I signed and mailed the contract, so now it’s official!
Perhaps the most well known book in Tanglewood’s catalog is The Kissing Hand, by Audrey Penn. It’s always nice to know I’ll be in good company. Of course I can’t say much about the book I will be illustrating except that it will likely be published in fall 2012. However, I can say that upon my first reading of it I liked the story very much. I didn’t have to convince myself of that. Visually speaking, it is just the sort of story that I would like to illustrate. It will be a 32-page picture book – so there’s a lot of work to do between now and then. And while I’ve lately been experimenting digitally, I think it best if I use traditional pastel.
In other news, this past weekend I completed a Wizard of Oz poster for a charity. This morning I dropped it off and they were very pleased indeed. I will try to post it here on the site by the end of this week.
The Children of Kinsley House. A Tale of Redemption
This beautiful tale of redemption captures the essence of the redemption through Jesus life, death and resurrection. Told in allegory form the story is a fresh new way to impart the grand story of redemption to your children this Easter.
Written by David Sutherland. Illustrated by Jeffrey Brian Fisher. Published by Imagine Kids Company Ltd, 2009. 48 pages hardcover with 24 pastel illustrations.
The book may be purchased through Focus on the Family New Zealand.
Down The Rabbit Hole
This illustration of Alice is one of six children’s book illustrations for a series of pop-up books called Step Inside. My illustrations were for Step Inside: Alice in Wonderland. The books were published by Fernleigh Books in England. I believe Fernleigh now goes by the name Cat’s Pyjamas. It was hoped that the series would be picked up in the U.S., but it looks like that fell through. Not long after I completed the illustrations Barnes & Noble stopped carrying the series. Of course I was a bit disappointed.
Anyway, this image is a composite as each layer of the pop-up had to be illustrated separately. So the grass and the cat are on one piece of paper and Alice was on another. Each scene has four layers. I attempted to photograph the page, but it didn’t work so well. In the end I decided it was best to composite the layers in Photoshop and give each layer a subtle drop shadow to indicate the intended depth of the page’s layers.
You may view Alice here.
The Pool of Tears
This illustration is the second of six children’s book illustrations for Step Inside: Alice in Wonderland, which was published by Fernleigh Books in England. Fernleigh now goes by the name Cat’s Pyjamas. Sadly, this book was never picked up in the U.S. and not long after I completed the illustrations Barnes & Noble cleared their shelves of the series.
This image is a Photoshop composite as each layer of the pop-up had to be illustrated separately. So the grass and the cat are on one piece of paper and Alice was on another. Each scene has four layers. I attempted to photograph the page, but it didn’t work so well. In the end I decided it was best to composite the layers in Photoshop and give each layer a subtle drop shadow to indicate the intended depth of the page’s layers.
You may view Alice here.
Advice from a Caterpillar
This illustration is the third of six children’s book illustrations for Step Inside: Alice in Wonderland, published by Fernleigh Books (Cat’s Pyjamas). Sadly, this book was never picked up in the U.S. and not long after I completed the illustrations Barnes & Noble cleared their shelves of the series. If anyone knows where I could buy a few extra copies I would love to hear from you!
This image is a Photoshop composite as each layer of the pop-up had to be illustrated separately. So the grass and the cat are on one piece of paper and Alice was on another. Each scene has four layers. I attempted to photograph the page, but it didn’t work so well. In the end I decided it was best to composite the layers in Photoshop and give each layer a subtle drop shadow to indicate the intended depth of the page’s layers.
You may view Alice here.
A Mad Tea Party
Here is the fourth of six children’s book illustrations for Step Inside: Alice in Wonderland, published by Fernleigh Books (Cat’s Pyjamas). This one appears as the book cover. When I began the project I was pretty excited because I had seen the book series on the shelves at Barnes & Noble. However, shortly after I completed the illustrations Barnes & Noble cleared their shelves of the series and I’ve never seen them there again. If anyone knows where I could buy a few extra copies I would love to hear from you!
This image is a Photoshop composite as each layer of the pop-up had to be illustrated separately. So the grass and the cat are on one piece of paper and Alice was on another. Each scene has four layers. I attempted to photograph the page, but it didn’t work so well. In the end I decided it was best to composite the layers in Photoshop and give each layer a subtle drop shadow to indicate the intended depth of the page’s layers.
You may view Alice here.
The Queen's Croquet Ground
Here is the fifth of six illustrations for a children’s pop-up book called Step Inside: Alice in Wonderland. The book series was published by Fernleigh Books in U.K. However, Fernleigh now goes by the name Cat’s Pyjamas. I had hoped that the series would be picked up in the U.S., but it looks like that fell through. It was very sad. Anyway, the images I have been posting are Photoshop composites. Each layer of the pop-up had to be illustrated separately. Meaning, the grass and the cat were drawn on one piece of paper, Alice on another, the hole another, and the rabbit’s hallway another. Each scene has four layers. I attempted to photograph the page, but it didn’t work so well. In the end I decided it was best to composite the layers in Photoshop and give each layer a subtle drop shadow to indicate the intended depth of the page’s layers.
You may view Alice here.
Who Stole the Tarts
The final illustration of six for Step Inside: Alice in Wonderland. Published by Fernleigh Books in U.K. Fernleigh now goes by the name Cat’s Pyjamas. I suppose I should post the ISBN. Hmm… maybe later. If you want to see the cover of the book – other than on this site – go to CatsPyjamasBooks.com. If you don’t see my work on the home page then check out the Classic Tales section.
This image is a Photoshop composite as each layer of the pop-up had to be illustrated separately. Each scene has four layers which had to be illustrated on four separate pieces of paper. I attempted to photograph the page, but it was a bit tricky. In the end I decided it was best to composite the layers in Photoshop and give each layer a subtle drop shadow to indicate the intended depth of the page’s layers.
You may view Alice here.
Step Inside: Alice in Wonderland
A wonderful retelling of a timeless classic featuring beautiful pastels illustrations – each a 3D scene composed of four separate layers. 12 pages with six 3D illustrations, including the cover. Please contact Cat’s Pyjamas for distribution information.
You may view these six illustration in my Classic Tales gallery.
Faery Gifts
Here is a pastel illustration I completed a few years ago. Looking back I can’t remember exactly how I came to have this fox and faery together. I really enjoyed working on this piece if not simply for the colors. Naturally as I look on it now I’d like to put it back up on the easel and make some adjustments, but I must press on.
You may view it in the Fantasy Gallery.
Bedtime Story
Hmm… it going to take me a few minutes to remember for which magazine this was created. Ah yes, I believe it was Decision magazine. The article title was, I believe, Too Close to Where You Got In, or something like that. It is colored pencil, which I love, but simply don’t draw fast enough. That is to say when I consider some of the things I would like to draw colored pencil just isn’t the right medium. For this small illustration it was perfect.
Not sure why I placed it in my Fantasy Gallery, but there it is and I must confess I’m a bit tired of organizing these galleries. I need an intern or something to do all this stuff.
The Woodsman and the Serpent
I’ve always liked Aesop’s fables. Somehow I doubt they are even mentioned in public schools these days. Hopefully I’m wrong and children still have a love for them. To-date I have only illustrated two of his fables, but I hope to do more. The Woodsman and The Serpent is my favorite of the two that I’ve illustrated. I had previously displayed a cropped version on my Fables Gallery, but today I have uploaded the full version which is much taller.
View the full-sized version in my Fables Gallery.
