GO, POPPY, GO!

I just received word that my newest book, Dream Big, Little Pig!  By Kristi Yamaguchi, has debuted at number two on The New York Times Best Seller list.  I couldn’t be happier about such great news.  Way to go, Poppy!

Poppy

I’m now represented by Rubin Pfeffer and the East/West Literary Agency.  I’ve known Rubin since my very first book was published in 1986.  He was a wise guiding voice then and continues to be a great influence in my children’s book journey.  I look forward to future projects with Rubin and Deborah Warrren at East/West.  I mention this as we celebrate our first collaboration, Dream Big, Little Pig!

THE FUTURE ON DISPLAY

I had the privilege of serving on the panel of judges for this year’s Columbus College of Art & Design’s Art of Illustration exhibition. 
 

AOI at Rivet Gallery

The exhibit features the best of CCAD student illustrations and is organized entirely by students.  I was part of a group of professional alumni jurors, which included- Linda Bittner (CCAD, ’88), Tim Bowers (CCAD, ’79), Eric Fortune (CCAD, ’99), and Scott Hull (CCAD, ’77) as well as Illustration Chair C. F. Payne.
 

 

 

Award winning image and artist, Tyler Bolyard.

Awards, including prizes from various sponsors, were presented for best of show as well as first, second and third place.  Additionally, five selections identified as “judges favorites” received an original work of art from the respective judge

My “judges favorite” selection was an image created by Tyler Bolyard (senior).  Tyler is a very talented artist with a promising future.  He actually had 5 pieces selected for this year’s AOI show, including a three-dimensional piece…awesome stuff!  I thought I’d shine the ole’ blog spotlight on Tyler for a job well done. To see more of his work, check out: http://tyrassic.blogspot.com/

Bowers, Bolyard and "judges favorite" award.

The show opened March 5 at Rivet Gallery, 1200 N. High St. in Columbus (the Short North), and continues through March 25.

Wishing you the best-Tyler!

Well, back to the drawing board,
Tim.

Art Block for Ghana

I had a chance to contribute to the Picture Book Project Foundation's Art Blocks for Ghana- a charity art auction of original works created by top artists within the animation and illustration community to promote boarding and education of orphaned children in Ghana, West Africa.

Your Move

A preview of the art was held in NYC and will now open in LA at Gallery Nucleus on March 12th, 2011.  If you are in the area, check it out.  There are some really great images that have been created for the event.

If you are interested in the auction or the art, you'll find more info. through these links:

March 12th 2011, 7pm-11pm
Gallery Nucleus Event and Launch of the Online Auction.

TWITTER  (follow and mention Art Blocks)
@pbpfoundation

FACEBOOK (photos, updates and information) invite friends to "like" the page http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Art-Blocks-For-Ghana/166672736692656

TO BUY TICKETS
http://artblocksla.eventbrite.com/

Auction Link
http://donations.ebay.com/charity/charity.jsp?NP_ID=43741

BLOG
www.artblocksghana.blogspot.com

WEBSITE
http://www.picturebookproject.com/PBP/artblocks.html

I hope it's a successful auction and will help a lot of children.

GO..GO...GOLDFISH!!

NEWS...FLASH...

COVER

I was just informed that one of the books that I recently illustrated was selected for the IRA-CBC Children’s Choices 2011 List!

INTERIOR ILLUSTRATION

Memoirs of a Goldfish written by Devin Scillian, published by Sleeping Bear Press.

A great way to start the new month. 

 

EVOLUTION OF A STUDIO

 

Tim’s first studio

I’ve created my artwork in a variety of spaces during my career.  As an employee at Hallmark, I worked in a small cubicle next to many other artists in small cubicles.  As a freelance artist, I’ve worked in: a kitchen, bedroom, garage, basement, laundry room and for the past eleven years, in a space actually designed to be a studio.

Hallmark artist cubicle

I’m not sure that it matters where I work.  I’ve painted some of my best images in small, tight quarters.  Maybe it’s different for each artist and depends on the type of art that’s created.
I think that it’s important to have a space set aside for creating your art, where you can feel comfortable, focus and be inspired.  It’s nice to work in a space that minimizes distractions but over the years, I’ve found that it’s sometimes unavoidable.  Good lighting is also very important and allows you to see color more accurately.  Years ago, a drawing table and cup of coffee were the only things I needed but through the years, that has evolved into a need for storage space, a work table for cutting, sculpting, assembling, etc., along with a computer and files (for the business side of things) and book shelves for my books.  A drying rack comes in handy when working on many illustrations at once (children’s book projects) and an area for projecting images (sketches) with an overhead projector.  A cup of coffee is still on the list.

The kitchen studio worked when I was single.  I ate at restaurants most of the time so the kitchen was available.  It was easy to grab a snack and I could clean my brushes in the nearby sink.  After I married, the kitchen wasn’t such a good idea.  Then, an extra bedroom was a much better place to work.

Soon after college and marriage, my wife and I moved from Ohio to Kansas City and I worked at Hallmark.  I also maintained a studio in our house, where the artwork for my first two books; The Toy Circus by Jan Wahl and Pajamas by Livingston and Maggie Taylor, were created in an unfinished basement room.

 Basement studio

After years of working in all kinds of spaces, I’ve landed in a nice, big studio with good lighting, storage and a coffee maker, of course.  It’s everything I could imagine as the ultimate workspace and it’s been great.

 Current studio

I appreciate having such a nice place to work but the next studio will likely be smaller and that’s fine with me.  As long as I’m comfortable, inspired and can focus on my work.  There are pros and cons to each studio and the challenge is to adjust and be creative in whatever space we have.


Well, back to the drawing board.

Dream Big!

I recently finished the artwork for a new book that will be published in the spring of 2011.  Dream Big, Little Pig was written by Kristi Yamaguchi and will be published by Sourcebooks, Inc.

It’s such an honor to work on this project.  Kristi Yamaguchi is an amazing person, a gold medalist in ice-skating, a winner of the popular television show: Dancing With the Stars and a champion for children through The Always Dream Foundation.

I really enjoyed developing the characters for her book.  The story is funny, heart-warming and an inspiration to anyone faced with challenges as they follow their dreams.

Kristi Yamaguchi is the most recent gold medalist I’ve worked with, but she’s not the first.  Many years ago as a high school student in Troy, Ohio, I landed my first job at a local sporting goods store.  The owner of the store was Bob Schul, the only American runner to have won the Olympic gold medal in the 5000 m, at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. 

I was a lousy sales person.  After I botched a few customer returns, Mr. Schul, knowing I had talent in other areas, allowed me to be the store’s artist.  I drew designs for jacket embroidery, team logos and various sport awards.  We were both much happier when I was drawing instead of selling.  Mr. Schul has been involved with the world of running for years.  He’s been a coach and mentor to many others with dreams of becoming a winning runner.

So, I’ve been fortunate to work with two Olympians, using their golden celebrity status to benefit others.   Whether skating, running …or drawing, becoming our best begins when we dream big.

Dream Big, Little Pig by Kristi Yamaguchi skates into your favorite bookstores in March 2011.  I’ll keep you posted. 

Dreaming of a White Christmas

I enjoy creating texture in my artwork. Much of my educational publishing work is done with this technique.  I’ve also created a few picture books, using a textured surface to create the artwork. Though much of my art is more realistically painted, I find a certain amount of playfulness and experimentation when working with texture in a more graphic approach to the illustration.

This snowman is a small illustration in a holiday series that I created a few years ago.  I wanted to incorporate a folk art influence and an overall texture in the painting.  I usually start with a piece of three-ply Bristol and apply a thick coat of gesso, brushing in various directions. When the gesso is completely dry, layers of thin acrylic color are applied.  Here, I start with a light brown wash, spatter the entire area with dark brown paint (using a toothbrush) then outline the drawing with black paint.

Now I paint semi-transparent washes of color (I like to see the spattering and under painting through the color washes) and dry-brush some shaded areas of the snowman with a light, gray blue. 

  
With opaque white, I start to create some form to the snowman, being careful not to cover too much of my line work.  I like to be able to see most of the paint layers, including spatters and under painting in the final image. 

  
After the color is applied and the rendering is complete on the snowman, I continue to add decoration. Snowflakes, rosy snowman cheeks and some detail is added to other areas of the painting.  I also start the placement of some hand-lettering at the top and bottom of the illustration.

Here is the finished illustration. After completing the image and lettering, I use an exacto blade to sweep across the surface of the illustration, scraping off some of the higher brush stroke ridges. It just adds a bit more interesting texture. I did this same thing a few years ago on the art for a book titled, Gorgonzola, A Very STINKYsaurus (Katherine Tegen Books- HarperCollins). This texture technique was also used on other books I’ve illustrated: Fun Dog, Sun Dog and Cool Dog, School Dog (Marshall Cavendish).

It’s exciting to wash, spatter, dry-brush, scrape and render, all on a single image. This technique is a nice break from my time consuming, tightly rendered painting. So grab your gesso, toothbrush and exacto blade... and have some fun!
 
Have a wonderful holiday and Merry Christmas!