Boo Day

Have a spooky time tonight when

the witching hour arrives!

studio cat

My assistant, sleeping on the job, as usual.

Since the Mexico Splendido trip, I've gotten copies of my latest book from publisher Kar-Ben,

finished illustrations for another, and am now working away on paintings for a show in October at Red Sky Gallery here in Charlotte. Here's a preview:

Yes, definitely "and now for something completely different". This show is with a group I belong to, pARTners art, and the theme is our lovely local greenway system, many miles of it with forest and trails and ponds and bike paths and deer and ducks and foxes - no end of inspiring flora and fauna.

I'm working everyday, still so many more ideas to work through, so I have "miles to go before I sleep", especially since my only assistant is a total deadbeat!

Mexico!

I know. It was last month. But next week I'm off for "Yoga and Art in the Yucatan" with my friend (from kindergarten!), Dr. Laura Vick, anthropologist/primatologist/Mayan authority. It will be muy splendido and I'll return refreshed, renewed, ready to spill all the saturated sunny Mexican colors I'll soak up into my current work.

This image, from deep down in the archives, was a sample for a publisher with a book about Mexico. I did not get the job. After awhile, I stopped doing these worm-on-hook, aka "spec" pieces. 

Adios, mi amigos!

Nature moment

Early A.M. view from my studio balcony. Six deer just sauntered across the far horizon. The leader noticed movement when I stepped out to watch and they "high tailed"(yep, that's what they do!) into the trees. The rest of the head count: five squirrels climbing trees, four geese squawking, three cardinals flying from branch to branch, two dogs waiting for breakfast, one fat cat starting the morning nap.

All this, and I can get in the car and be at the
Bechtler Museum of Modern Art in 15 minutes.

Except

I have too much work to do today (gratefully).

In good company!

As this is the closest I will ever come to basking in Shirley MacLaine's bright light, 

I'm sharing my first little job of 2013: I was contacted by this children's theater about usage rights for an image I made years ago for American Girl Magazine, "Happily Never After", which happens to be the title of their next production. So my art will be on all their promo pieces.
A shiny sparkly way to start the new year! 

Nice surprise! 

I walked into the Cabarrus County Arts Council gallery last night and four of my kid's book paintings had little red stickers. They'll be in the permanent collection of the new children's book room at the county library in Concord, which makes me so happy that they will be shared with lots of kids. I have six pieces in this current Arts Council invitational show, "Hey Diddle Diddle- art that calls to the child in all of us". And what excellent company I'm in- many artists showing zippy, playful 2d and 3d work! Show is up through December 19, if you find yourself anywhere near Concord, NC.

Illustration Friday: Water

I live in NC, where we're just starting to add sweaters to the wardrobe rotation- a welcome relief from a long hot summer. This is my first submission to Illustration Friday, and in so doing, was moved to finish this image, which had languished in my "in progress" file for months- a real "problem child". I think we're on speaking terms now, as I look out my window at autumn leaves Falling.

Back to School

This is a new illustration for an on-line promotion my agent, Tugeau 2, is sending out.

The direction was to think back to what is best, or worst, remembered about this transitional time of year, when everything changes- the air is crisp, the leaves are turning, it gets dark earlier, and the long slow summer days are history.

My first thought was the intoxicating smell from that just-opened new box of crayolas, preferably the 64 crayons one. It was the smell of limitless creative possibility. I raced out to Walgreen's and bought a new box, brought it home, cracked it open, took a sniff. Just as with Proust's madeleine, I was 8 years old, getting ready for first day of school tomorrow.

Not bad for a $5.35 (tax deductible) investment.

Has anybody seen my skate key?

Salome riding her elephant

I was thrilled to see this wonderful drawing, top, by Salome Lema Franco, six years old, who lives in Colombia, South America! She has books I've illustrated, given to her by our mutual friend, Patricia, and she was inspired by my illustration, bottom, in THE NEW QUOTABLE WOMAN book. I love the energy, the spirit, the flat out joyful friskiness she gave this image!  Love that little dancing tent. Six years old. I'm taking a lesson from Salome, and from Picasso, who famously noted that "All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up."  Thank you, Salome, and never stop drawing!

Earth Day

Earth Day came and went. I did not plant a tree, but I drew someone who did. She's my alter ego, Julia. I've mentioned her before. She does everything right, starting with staying 10 years old. She likes to climb trees, collect interesting sticks, rescue spiders, ride into the wind, and draw. Julia is always dressed for adventure; you never know how the day will unfold!

All you need is

http://youtu.be/BAm3D626NLI

Happy Val's Day!

Love, Judy

Angels and Cowboys- why not?

Hello to the season of serious feasting, frivolity and merriment that begins around now and continues through New Year. This illustration appears in Gulfshore Life Magazine's November issue, with the Here & Now monthly column. It's always fun trying to combine several seemingly unrelated events and activities that are happening on Florida's lovely gulf shores (where they really know how to celebrate), and end up with an image that makes both sense and non-sense, if that makes any sense! Here we have the Ritz-y Angel Ball, the Bootstrap Boogie Barn Dance, and Florida Blues Festival all happening simultaneously in my digital parallel universe. Illustration is so much fun :)

Among the many things I have to be thankful for this turkey day, there's having something I love to do, and someone willing to pay me to do it. This is actually J.K. Rowling's recipe for happiness, and I couldn't agree more. Happy Thanksgiving!

MOO!

Today I'm sending out a batch of new postcards I had printed at moo.com. This image is another from The New Quotable Woman book, illustrating a quote by Margot Fonteyn (whom I actually SAW dancing with Rudolf Nureyev in NYC at the very end of their careers):

"The one important thing I have learned over the years is the difference between taking one's work seriously and taking one's self seriously. The first is imperative and the second is disastrous."

The ballet "Coppelia" lept :) to mind. It's about a doll that comes to life with some silly robotic choreography that makes it a fun ballet to take children to, but for the dancers, it's no less serious work than "Swan Lake".

Back to the postcards- it's not often I see my work in print and it looks better than I hoped it would. A lot better. I ordered 60 using 6 different designs. Now I have to find 60 people to send them to... preferably people who hire illustrators.

Suggestions gratefully accepted!

Quotable

Announcing THE NEW QUOTABLE WOMAN mini edition, coming soon to a book or gift shop near you!

This is a tiny book with pithy quotes from lots of wise women who have lived large enough lives for their words to rate being collected in a book like this. For me, it will be a nice portable portfolio since each and every illustration in it is mine, and most feature my "ladies".

The cover art is from feminist journalist Rebecca West's quote, "Life ought to be a struggle of desire toward adventures whose nobility will fertilize the soul." I immediately visualized riding an elephant through India, as that is my idea of having a grand adventure.

My very favorite quote didn't make this book, however, as the author is precluded by gender:

"Be yourself; everyone else is already taken." Oscar Wilde

What else are you going to do?

Frida

My first post since Val's day! I've been (happily, gratefully) busy assembling 20+ images for my latest illustrated book, The New Quotable Woman, published by Running Press and due out in September. It was my pleasure to create images as true as I could conceive them to honor the likes of Frida Kahlo, Margaret Mead, Indira Gandhi, Margot Fonteyn, Anais Nin, among other wise women who had much to say, succinctly. Brevity is, indeed, the soul of wit, as Polonius pointed out in Hamlet.

As for Frida, she expressed her soul and wit, love and pain in her paintings, mostly portraits. "I leave you my portrait so that you will have my presence all the days and nights that I am away from you." In my image, Frida is released from her bed, her broken body mended, free floating, at peace. Alas, she's one among many in the arts for whom an early tragic death was a solid career move.

Birdy love

Happy "Bird's Wedding Day", a.k.a St. Valentine's Day! It recently came to my attention that once upon a time in Sussex, England, February 14 marked the first day of Spring when birds flew about and chose their mates. Chaucer wrote a poem about it, "Parlement of Foulys" (middle English...Lit majors, you know who you are). This sounds like a lovely custom, worthy of celebrating with a loved one, preferably over a glass of something with bubbles. Forever more, my Val's Day will be all about Bird Love- so long, Hallmark and FTD. Come 2/14, I'll be bird watching to see if they really are flocking together two by two, filling the sky with the music of their mating calls. Love is literally "in the air". And it's a LOVELY excuse to welcome Spring a few weeks early.

New Year bluebird

The new year seems to be in a much greater hurry to get on with it than I am. Already mid-January and I'm still getting organized. I love the New Year holiday for it's hopefulness. That first day or two, it feels like a major transformation is really possible, that the New Year Elf will come in the night and take away the old me and leave a changeling me who is all the things I'm often not - organized, productive, efficient, prolific, articulate, precise, inspiring, energetic. I would call her "Julia". Lots of new possibilities are in the 2011 works, so no reason to be anything but hopeful. If I don't wake up one day soon as the changeling me who gets things done pronto, maybe I'll wake up as the me who takes some time over morning coffee, thinks about the big picture of my little life, tries to be kind to people and is always open to the miracle of an idea. May the bluebird of happiness visit you and me (or Julia, as the case may be) often in 2011.

Merry and Bright

The season of good cheer and celebration is upon us, ready or not. Time to pry ourselves away from studio interests and obligations, dust off social skills and do the HoHoHo dance! Here's my 2010 Santa, partying away in very cool ankle boots. This is obviously pre-Christmas Eve, as he would be too tired to kick up his heels for quite awhile after the big night. So wishing to one and all a merry happy bright festive Christmas, Hanukkah, Feliz Navidad, Kwanza, what have you! And hopes for some peace on Earth in 2011.

Listen

Listen. It's different from hearing. Listening involves...involvement. And attention. And concentration while your brain processes meaning from sound, then chooses an emotional response. Working in the studio, making this image, I was listening to (in no particular order): Etta James, Bright Eyes, Otis Redding, Edith Piaf, John Lennon, La Boheme, Bruce Springsteen, Cat Power, Django Rheinhardt, Elvis Costello, The Ventures, The Corrs, Charlie Hayden, Cocteau Twins, Lou Reed, Rufus Wainwright, U2, George Harrison, Bob Dylan, Bach, Thelonius Monk. Thank you, iTunes, for playlists and genius mixes, for freeing us from the tyranny of complete albums (apologies to certain purists who consider this musical blashemy). Listening and responding emotionally while painting is one "multi-tasking" function I happily embrace.

I thank all my studio musical inspirations for "listen".

It's always something...

Last weekend I attended a Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators conference here in my fair city. Writers outnumbered illustrators by about 10 to 1. Luckily, I am equally interested in words and pictures. Scribbling furiously, I tried to capture every spoken word, piece of advice, do this, don't do that, offered so generously by the excellent faculty: Laurent Linn, AD at Simon & Schuster, Alvina Ling, Sr. Editor at Little Brown, and Liz Waniewski, Sr. Editor at Dial. Now, back in my real world, sitting alone in front of the blank page (or screen), what will I be able to make from all of this? Surely something finer than before. What I love (and sometimes hate) about this life as an itinerate creative is... everything you produce comes straight out of your brain. You go out into the world and look, and listen, and gather information, relationships, experiences, places, characters, dialog, stories. Then you bring it all back to the studio, sit with your blank page and see what, if anything, you have to say today. Jasper Johns said "Do something, do something to that, and then do something to that." It's the only way I know to begin anything.