My oh my... a whole school semester since the last post. Buzz buzz, I'm a busy bee. I start practicum on Monday, and I can hardly wait to spend my work day with Gr. 2 kids again.

One of the most rewarding things of this past semester has been working on an A/r/tography project. A/r/tography is arts-based, qualitative research. A = artist/r = researcher/t = teacher. I am learning that a teacher is all of these things. I drew on my experience with a particular student I taught at an English-immersion preschool in Taiwan. Her story and her drawing were my inspiration. This is her drawing...


How wonderful is that?!
I decided to illustrate and make a book to tell her story, but it's not a conventional binding. The planning process was very complex...


Here's a Quicktime slideshow of the book (as always, the images are protected by my copyright; the music is credited to The Album Leaf). The research and teaching components of this project are ongoing, and I'd love to hear what you think.

Apparently y'all are rockin the positive thoughts! I posted the last post, watched some inspirational art:21 and marched myself into the studio. Now the painting is finished! Here's hoping the commissioner likes it. Wow, "commissioner" makes it sound like I am a renegade NYC cop. That's right: Serpico, artist and illustrator. Anywho... here's the painting. 9 x 9" watercolour called New Growth, featuring three grandchildren.

Well, this is the last weekend of holidays for me before the 7 month-long push until the end of my B.Ed. I am looking forward to seeing my Grade 2 class and program classmates again, but always feel like holidays give me a little taste of the way I should be living every day. I finally have some ideas and inspiration for new projects, some new materials I'd like to try and the time to read about other artists, illustrators and people generally more talented than me. I am hoping to finish up a little commission this weekend, but am at the most frustrating point in the project. There is almost always a point where things seem to be going terribly wrong and I should just start over. This is usually the point where I don't want to keep working, thereby prolonging the "magic" of frustration. The piece I'm working on is a watercolour. Every time I work with watercolour I am reminded of how strange it is that, as mediums go, it is traditionally ranked pretty low on the totem pole of high art while being one of the least forgiving painting mediums available. Think positive thoughts for me people!

We spent an early Christmas with my family in Kelowna. A white Christmas is not unusual, but an average temperature of -20 degrees Celsius is uncommon. The snow was so fluffy and delicate. Then home to Vancouver and the blizzard continues! Snow rarely sticks in Vancouver, but our car is buried and snow has piled up under the windows of our basement suite. The snow here is heavy and sticky. The radio has been full of warnings, transportation issues and airport horror stories. Luckily I don't have to be anywhere today, so it's time to start reading the books and watching the dvds we received!

First, some photos I took in Kelowna...








This reminds me of a moonscape. Trippy, man...


And some pictures from this morning in Vancouver...

After a very busy semester and a wonderful but exhausting practicum week, I am free until January. Ahhh, the holidays are upon me. Hallelujah! 9 hours of sleep a night and a belly full of cookies...and some sketching, planning and gifting. A couple sketches below where I am enjoying brush and ink. My ridiculous cat posed for the bottom blurry sketches and is now doing laps around the living room. He doesn't seem able to see the pouring rain through the windows and is desperate for me to take him outside, so he can puff up all his fur and walk backwards into the house.

School continues, busy as ever, but some of my projects have been arts-based. We created visual journals for Art Education class and were given complete freedom, so I thought I'd post some of the pages from my journal for y'all to peruse.

It's been a very long time indeed since I posted. School has been busier than I expected, though I am also enjoying it more than I thought I would. I have slowly been working away on a commissioned painting in the midst of group projects, papers, and presentations. My friend and former coworker has been very patient, so I hope she feels this painting was worth the wait! It's called Poppies and the 2 canvases measure 16 x 16" each.



One of my courses is an Art Education course, so I have been doing some small sketches and bits as part of a visual journal. When I come up for air, I will post some pics.

It's been a long time comin', this post, but I have news. A couple unusual pieces of mine will be included in a group show at the Interurban Gallery (map) in Vancouver. The flyer is above and the opening is Friday, October 24 from 8 - 10pm. Hope to see you there!

I am a full-time student in an elementary teacher B.Ed until next August. I will continue making artwork and posting as much as possible during my studies, but posting will be probably be less frequent. Doesn't mean you can't pop by once in a while!

This latest piece in the flower series will be included in a silent art auction as part of the Passions benefit for the Dr. Peter AIDS Foundation. It's called Tumble and measures 12 x 16". As always, comments warm the chattering void of cyberspace!

Starting work on another painting, this time for a charity auction. Sleeping in like this is the last leg of a holiday, 'cause it is. Looking forward to rousing evening tournament of Cranium. Good times.

A group show opening in early October at Interurban Gallery in Vancouver will hopefully include these two little pieces. They are each 9 x 9" dioramas made using watercolour, ink, pencil & collage elements. It was a lot of fun to work on something different. The photos are definitely not the best, so come check out the show (details to follow in the fall) or check back here for better photos once the show goes up.

I just finished another commissioned piece in the flower series. This lil purple one is Honeysuckle and measures 12 x 12".

I got publicity without being a troubled starlet! Thanks to Jeff Van Geest, the chef at Aurora Bistro, City Food Magazine profiled me and my painting Nodding Onion in their Food & Art issue! You can click on the pics below for the large version and the actual magazine is available at Choices and Capers grocery stores around Vancouver.

I have returned from a lovely, albeit short, visit with my family in hot south central BC. That's right, I'm from south central. Anywho, here's the second of two watercolours my former coworker/current patron commissioned. This one's for her own little baby who will be here soon if he isn't already. This piece is titled Sunflower and measures 6.75" square.

Visiting family for a few days, back and posting next week.

A former coworker of mine has commissioned a number of pieces for new babies in her family, and this is the latest. Such a loyal patron! It's a little piece, 6.75 x 6.75", done in ink and watercolour. I think I'll call it King of the Castle...

I have been asked to make a couple pieces for an art show that will be touring Cantaloop frozen yogurt locations in California! Here's the pieces I am sending. Let's hope the Yankees like 'em and that the postal service treats 'em gentle.



They are both 8.5 x 11" and done with ink and pencil crayon. It was fun to work with ink again, it had been a while.

I hoped to post some pics of a couple drawings I recently completed (not cell diagrams, I promise!), but my old version of photoshop doesn't like my new operating system. I will hopefully be sorting this out and posting new work soon! Until then, feel free to check out my website, with some recent updates thanks to Bruiser Design.

I'm back! I have been taking a biology course as part of the application requirements for a teaching program. Here's what I've been drawing. I'm not joking, but I wish I was.

Yes, it's a diagram of the cell. Thrilling, but I will be posting something self-motivated very soon!

This blog will be on hiatus until June 21st, when I will hopefully have cleared a bunch of stuff off my plate and be able to draw, paint and blog again. Thanks for your patience!

I like you... James Jean


I almost feel like I shouldn't put James Jean's work on this blog because he's just so damn talented. There's no way I can follow an act like his. Check out his website, because nothing I can say does justice to his skills.

Here's the latest! It's called Buttercup and measures 12 x 12". I hope the lovely lady that commissioned it likes the piece.

I like you... Tekkonkinkreet




Just saw this anime, based on the manga by the same name. Although there was one sequence at the end that lasted waaaaayyy too long, this movie was exhilarating to watch. The backgrounds are intensely detailed while the figures are very simple and angular. The background artists really captured the chaotic skyline of so many Asian cities. The two main characters are twisted street urchins with some heartbreaking lines. I've seen bits and pieces of the original manga and am hoping to track down a copy I can really examine. Exciting stuff...

Hopefully just another day or two until I have my latest painting finished and posted...

I spent this evening listening to Art Spiegelman talk about comics, art, graphic novels and visual culture. It was exhilarating. He has such an amazing wealth of knowledge about the history of comics and a huge variety of artists as well as a keen ability to analyze and relish the structure of a compelling page. It's one of those nights where I feel like I learnt a great deal, the largest lesson of which is that I know very little.

Note: The Illustrating Democracy feature will become a monthly feature rather than a weekly one since I haven't received any suggestions for the past couple and my schedule is getting kee-razy.

Each week a new feature called "I like you..." will feature an artist, illustrator; anyone that inspires me. Check out the links to see work by people much more talented than I am.

I like you... Craig Thompson

Seriously, could this guy be a more charming comics artist and talented draftsman? His line quality is so intense, natural and rich. I recommend all his books, but Goodbye Chunky Rice is my favourite. I have posted a couple panels below to give you a taste, but you can visit his website for more.

Illustrating Democracy!

After a little break, I am hoping you are full of ideas. It's time again to submit a comment and see it illustrated by yours truly. First one wins!

I like you... Maurice Sendak

This is certainly a very strange piece of animation, but I have always loved it. Maurice Sendak draws children, and especially children's feet, better than anyone.

As if artists don't have a hard enough job...

My heart truly goes out to Luc Latulippe and the other artists and interviewers whose work has been stolen and is now being sold as part of a $100 book published under a phony ISBN number out of Hong Kong. Please visit Luc's blog or Darren's blog to learn more about how you can spread the word about this completely plagiarized book of artwork and interviews and hopefully provide the artists with a little satisfaction, if nothing else.

Here's my first completed commission in the flower series since my show. This pair of canvases measures 12 x 12" each. I really hope the couple that commissioned me likes them!