Part 2 of the Creative Juice Podcast

Because practice makes perfect, part 2 of the podcast I did with Margot and Jeb on practice!

http://thejuicecast.com/practice-practice-practice-part-2/

Sketch from a group outing with Jeb and the CJ crew

Prague and the Ghost Empire Collecte Biweekly Sketch Challenge

Time, Life and Death... The light topic to kick of the year for the Ghost Empire Collective

It is already crazy busy. I am squeezing things in here and there between deadlines. In order to put together a zine, the Ghost Empire Collective is having a biweekly sketch challenge.

Also, this has been done a while but just scanned it in. This is from photos I took in Prague when we visited in 2008.

Anyway, finishing up my next picture book. I will have stuff to show soon.

Entrance to the St. Charles bridge...

Woozy Frog

Definitely a picture in need of a story...

I have more Austin sketches to post, but I also finished this sketch over vacation. I have been working on it when my computer is restarting, crashing or causing me to wait. It is good therapy and better than throwing the computer against the wall.

I have been listening to a lot of Tolkien podcasts on The Tolkien Professor site while finishing The Fort on Fourth Street for Sylvan Dell. (Out Fall 2013!)

I discovered the podcast listening to Geeks Guide To the Galaxy, another podcast I highly recommend.

Anyway, after 30 or so hours of listening to Silmarillion discussion, fantasy is on the brain (in addition to the Fort on Fourth Street)...

Buckeye Book Fair

Angela Johnson and Me sharing a table. Photo by her cousin Roz.

I have had a really good time both visit to the Buckeye Book Fair in Wooster, Ohio. This year we sold out of a Warm Winter Tail and almost out of Why the Possum has a Large Grin.

Angela Johnson was fun to talk to and made the day pass quickly (which is good when you are at a table all day). She was a big advocate of the Possum Book (and got a copy for her niece).

I bought a couple copies of her picture book Lottie Paris Lives Here illustrated by the amazing Scott Fischer for Christmas presents. It is so cute!

She is best known for her YA books (which I would like to read) but has also authored some amazing picture books in addition to Lottie illustrated by Loren Long (one is a Golden Kite winner).

Here is a sketch I did that day:

I added color to this while I beat Troy and Cline at Scrabble...

Fall Color in Spring Grove

This was an odd sign. I hope they is not a zombie problem here... There were mounds of dirt... :O

Vanessa and I took a walk to sketch fall color at Spring Grove Cemetery Monday. It was a beautiful day and the light was that partly cloudy mysterious feel.

Above is a wooded path the looks like it goes to a strange land of fantasy. One could even imagine a sprite or two there...

The path to...?

Indiana Bat Festival and Aquarium Sketches

In the mood to sketch chrome after Lunken. Still snuck in a dragon... Guess what my Christmas card will be this year...

 It is a bit of a hodge podge of sketches lately. Over the weekend, I went to the Indiana Bat Festival at Indiana State University. Laura Hohman and her husband Jim were nice enough to let me stay at their place so I did not have to get a hotel room. It is a great show! I also love all the taxidermy, weird plastic molded cross sections of plants, cells and animals, and skulls/skeletons that decorate the halls. Definitely different decor than what we had at DAAP!

Today, after our weekly illustrators lunch, Linda Bittner and I went to a really cool  exotic aquarium store called Aquatics and Exotics in Mt. Healthy (in walking distance from her house).

Done at the Indiana Bat Festival over the weekend...

At the aquarium store...

These are so super cool!

A Day at the Renaissance Fair

This woman had a gorgeous fairy costume. The Henna Hut was a cute little building.

The Ohio Renaissance Fair opened yesterday in Waynesville and I went with some family members and fellow artist Amy Bogard. The first weekend is a 2 for 1 deal which convinced me to go.

Amy and I spent most of the time sketching. The festival has expanded a lot since I last visited; there are tons of really cute buildings and cosplay has really exploded in recent years. Lots of elves, fairies, and pirates were represented in addition to the medieval garb.

I actually felt sorry for the people in costume because the air was a humid soup. It was not pleasant.

The Swordsman Theatre and a cute little fairy girl with matching orange crocs.

Lady in the Lake with curious bullfrog.

Loved this tree decor.

Northeast Vacay 2012 Sketchbook Part 3

Sketchbook pages from the Norman Rockwell Museum

After Vermont, we stopped at the Norman Rockwell museum. It was a little rainy, but still worth it. I wrote more about the visit on the Cincinnati Illustrators Blog. As a fan of Howard Pyle, I was not disappointed. The campus was dotted by Norman Rockwell's son's sculptures.

Me standing in front of NR's studio.

We then made the trip to Boston. Here are some images from the sketchbook. We stayed at Taylor House Bed and Breakfast in Jamaica Plain at my friend from high school's suggestion. Super cute area of town...

Our bed and breakfast...

Northeast Vacay 2012 Sketchbook Part 2

Pixie the cat, the cute Rhode Island Reds (Yay fresh eggs!), and the giant forklift (maybe 10' tall?) at the marble quarry.

 

My feeble attempt to capture the light.

As I mentioned in the last post, we headed to Danby, VT to visit our friends Andrea, Ed and Olivia.

The view from their house is breathtaking. Since our only view is of North Bend Road, it was refreshing.

The light was always different and the night sky amazing. It was a wonderful visit and they send us home with honey from their own bee colonies.

I should also mention that they arranged for us to have the most amazing tour of the marble quarry. It was cool to see the operation and scale of the tools required.

The real thing...

Keeley the wonder dog. Such a sweetie!

Me and the neighbor's dog Whiskey. We have a similar fashion sense.

Next, it was on to Boston with a side trip to the Norman Rockwell Museum.

Outing to Loveland Castle

We went to Loveland Castle today with my nephew Joshua. Out in the middle of Symmes Township, this guy spent most of his life building a real castle. The lifestyle must have agreed with him. He died at age 91 and not of old age. He never married, oddly...

Joshua barely made it past the dagger clearance sale.

Cool dragon sculpture

Little entrance gate where I sat and sketched. Note to self: Sketching in the hot sun is a really bad idea. Find a shady spot next time...

Panoramic view

Taos Sketch Journal Workshop Part 1

Except it is not quite Taos yet. We went to Santa Fe First. Here are some sketchbook pages. They had a coupe cats, prairie dogs and chickens at the store in addition to many other wares. We also we to the first of a couple St. Francis churches.

We spend a day going down Canyon Road where there are A LOT of galleries. We saw a lot of cool work but Geoffrey Gorman's was probably my favorite.

Inspired by a boat we saw hanging in Jackelope.

Children's Chapel

We also went to Chimayo, an interesting church complex with a lot of cool stuff to draw. It is known for its holy dirt which people take away in bag and is said to have the powers to heal. Troy is still mad I did not get him some.

Horse on the Grounds

These Mary statues (there were several) were so interesting. They had big eyes and hands...

Finally, on our way to Taos, we stopped for a soak at Ojo Caliente. They have a variety of mineral tubs like iron and soda. It also claims to have healing properties. So by that time, we were set for a good workshop...

There were a couple swallow nests with babies on the porch outside the restaurant. I did this little ink sketch of them

Preparing for Taos

Journal alone

My Main Journal Cover

Breaking in the new sketchbook with Spike...

Vanessa's Lovely Color Study

This is my current journal. I decorated it as part of the class...

As many know, I am going to Taos this month for a sketch journal workshop through the Art Academy. As part of the prep, we are preparing our journals and learning how to get the most out of the least amount of art supplies on the go.

I wish I had this cute little watercolor set when I was in Greece! I have long liked many of the pigments Winsor Newton has for acrylic (I use a hodgepodge of Golden, Liquitex and Winsor Newton for my acrylic work. I go for favorite pigments over brand loyalty), but their watercolors are really nice and smooth.

Today's Warm Up Sketch

Lots to get done today; but first, a bit of fun...

The Silliness Continues...One last Year of the Dragon Sketch

Could not resist this as my warm up sketch... Now back to our regularly scheduled programming...

Happy Easter!

Sketches in Ault Park

Today is the first day of spring and it feels like summer. We have had friends in town for the weekend and decided to go to Ault Park yesterday to see the weeping cherry trees and other spring flowers. I also did some sketches. Ioana always tells me the plant species. (We always joke that she could make up names of some of them and I would never know)

It was absolutely gorgeous!

Afraid of how hot summer will be... On the flip side, I hope there are no freezes so my new blackberry plants I planted last year are not frozen out.

Below are some photos close to sunset.