Maria Sibylla Merian & Daughters at the Getty


Merian's Crocodile from the Princeton Digital Library
I was clicking around and found this croc and art by this artist and was floored. Today I was nosing around to see if red or black ware was Greek or Roman at the Getty siteto find out that there is a show currently there of Maria Sibylla Merian (1641-1717) and her daughters Johanna Helena and Dorothea Maria. Check it out. Whoa.

now




It was a golden evening at our little Trumansburg Farmers Market with the Piggery selling no end to yummy stuff, bundles of sunflowers and fresh beans, baby clothes made of old printed teeshirts (totally cute), natural cosmetics and scents, a table of garlic (with signs identifying around seven different species). Kitty had a rich crepe. I bought bread and a tiny jar of pate for R. to have after his long trip to Boston. Boy Wonder called about his camp experiences and the sheer, hard work they were being pressed into doing with training for Cross Country. I hope some of this sticks as he could need a bit of a jazz to get him started.

Chet came by with all sorts of tales of terror from the world of Lawnmower-y--ignition troubles, oil troubles, $700 troubles. It was fascinating. Tim is busy on a lift scraping the old lead paint off the fascia. Lucy, his dog is leading Shady into trouble...so its a bit just to keep track of them and their antics.

It is the first day of August tomorrow. I guess that is when summer officially begins for us!

Gotta go. The boy awaits our arrival to haul him home.

cotton head


Isn't this sweetness itself? I think I need to go used books shopping and buy up a clutch of Provensen literature as I need to try to be them and see what happens. Not copying, but trying out there little hints and ideas. There might be something here. I love their layout style (Animal Fair has some nice approaches with grids, lettering etc) and then this stuff from the Bible book (along with the stuff from Mythology which rocks). I am all over their stuff.

In my sleep deprived stupor, I re-read my Jean Tuttle notes and found I had the wit to write down her influences, so I spent a bit of time googling the italian futurist Fortunato Depero, the fabulous Provensens, Beardsley and Leonard Baskin who was noted but not necessarily as an influence but in looking over her work, he fits there too. There is a lot for me to glean from looking at these influences as they resonate with me too--to different effect. I found a limited number of George Stavrinos, cited both by Jean and Nancy Stahl as inspirations for them and actually remembered his work which I have always associated with the world of Ziggy Pop and Disco Bunnies. His work is muscular, figurative work which given the world of airbrush that was happening at the time was singular. I dont know if I see it in either Jean's work or Nancy's for that matter.

We didn't wrap it up until 4 a.m. so putting my head down wasn't as simple as it appeared. I got 4 hours and got on the road (stopping at TJMaxx for paper napkins and paper goods for the present closet, and cute polka dot underwear for Kitty to sweeten the deal relative to the SAT coaching she has been resisting). I didn't wreck the car coming home actually staying on the road and driving the speed limit...and now, I can get dumb and design some things.

Onward to functional dumbness.

urg.


It's 2:24 a.m. Something screwed up in the paper feed and lost us a ton of time...so instead of bedtime at midnight, we are looking at 3:30 a.m. and I am not the most charitable right now. I have been going since 5:30 a.m. and then some. I am a bit freaked out that I will not sleep and need to drive home as a living zombie (jacked up on coffee). However, I have been pulling examples for the Jean Tuttle paper I am doing along with blabbing on about this and that with the text. I did enjoy learning about her influences as it points up cool stuff about her work...and becomes something for me to reflect on. I have 80% of the revisions to the Business Plan completed, so at least this is forward movement.

I really would like some time to decompress. Its been solid since I came back. I still am coiled up like a spring...and it doesn't feel that good.

Alice and Martin Provensen, The Golden Bible for Children: The New Testament., 1953

Genre Idea


So, Vin Di Fate assigned a genre image in a "delivery system" (ie Pulp, Slick, Movie Poster). I think I am going to do something with the Chinese mythological creature, The Monkey King, otherwise known as Sunwukong.

"Monkey King (or Sunwukong) was born from a stone. He wanted to be like the immortals and be free from death. He was extremely smart and capable, and learned all the magic tricks from a master Taoist. He could transform himself into seventy-two different images such as a tree, a bird, a beast of prey, or a bug as small as a mosquito so as to sneak into an enemy's belly to fight him or her inside out. Using clouds as a vehicle, he can travel 180,000 miles a single somersault......."
Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies, Cornell University

See what I mean? Fab. He is also a character from the Bejing Opera with his own mask and iconography.

I show you these images from Harry Clarke as his work and techniques are something I have been looking at, juxtaposing with Beardsley, and Warhol, and trying to make sense from something that I am stunned by.

Am on my pressrun. We have seen at least 8 forms with two more today. Bit of a snag with a background tint and had to pull the form to correct. I hate doing that, but thats why they pay me the big bucks to go on press.

Back to normal by tomorrow p.m.

back

Brooding sky. Rain seems likely. Work oozing out of the computer. Tomorrow, need to drive to Rochester for a pressrun. Got all the information and files to CA for the Design Annual. That stuff really takes time even with the desire for electronic files which one would think would cut the time. Have surprise guests coming. Will need to get groceries for the casual dinner that I don't have the stuff to make. Need to get mozzerella and pasta we will get tomatoes at the farm stand, and we have green beans. It never is simple despite my hubby's desire for simplicity. I will need to pack and prep before even that.

a blurrrrrrrrr........


This is Hartford's class of 2008. We started the day talking about pulp fiction covers with Vin Di Fate with a quick review of the project due mid September and mid October. I was feeling shaky about it until I spent some time in the car with Randy Elliot who pushed me around to thinking about how to make it a fun project. It is either a movie poster for Marie Antoinette or the chinese movie about the Monkey King...(I am leaning toward the King). Thanks Randy!

We had our Ted and Betsy crit on Friday--basically all day with all sorts of interesting and very viable books being presented. It was remarkable to see the breadth and depth of the various comps--that it was a boost for each individual and the group in general. The crit went from about 9:30-3:00. We rushed back to throw our clothes into our suitcases and dress for the closing reception of the thesis work and the lovely dinner at the 1877 Club (where the fixe prix lunch is served--complete with white tablecloths and napkins). There were awards, speeches and happy talk. Ron Mazellen outdid himself with his remarks making points with delightful personal stories and reminding us to hold to the 3 "C"s which makes great illustration and life in general advice.

Three Cs:
> Do not Compare
> Do not Complain
> Do not Conclude--you never know.

There were tons of hugs and tears with Dean Power Boothe reminding us that this was not a traditional graduation and that this love fest was planned in the nude (NOT) for next year. I am googling for a nice red burka with the logotype embroidered on it...
Goodness! Its only a year away with a block buster scary class. Should be good...but on rails.

We gathered poolside at the dorm (Residence Inn, Avon) and ate and drank and talked until the wee hours. I had the pleasure of tales of Murray and Ted, Carol and Betsy and their fun times particularly at Coney Island with the geeks and freaks show. I love these people. They tell even better stories than the books they seem to constantly spin. I would love to join their tribe. Ted and Betsy are off to Iceland to see and photograph the puffins. I am so Jealous!

Rode home with Randy Elliot, a star inker and illustrator in the comic book world. Randy is a high energy, really bright guy with lots of ideas and insight. I was tired and was trying to talk and fell asleep mid sentence waking myself up and connecting what was going on in my brain with what was coming out of my mouth...not cool...and Randy was a jewel with my dysfunction. I finally woke up...and we had a great talk about him, his family, his work...and the energy he got from the week. It really made the time zip by. Plus, I had a chance to meet the real Tomboy! (the subject of his book and 1/2 of his super gal book). She is better than the poem--a real can do, smart and funny girl.

The home team picked me up from Randy's--and we had a quick dinner in Skaneatlas at Doug's Fish Fry...and we gabbed all the way home. I put my head down around 8 after a swim with both kids, a husband and a waterdog..and didnt move until 8 a.m. today. We got A. to Cornell for his 4 days of Cross Country training. He was thrilled to see us go! I hope it proves to be fun.

One more time in the beautiful lake with a chat with Princess Kitty...with a wet dog and a hot, shedding cat and now we are here.

Gotta go>> more later

antics in the classroom



There is a lot I love about illustrators as a group, a tribe, a collective think on things. However, if you have a bunch of illustrators and a pen or piece of chalk, it can be a hilarious time in no time. There have been these wonderful drawings on the white board in the Vin Di Fate suite, and as you can see, the antics are amazing given it's 8 a.m.

Day before the end of the first contact period


Rain coming down in buckets today. The sounds at the studio always makes one think that there are downpours on sunshiny days. So, at least the weather matched the sounds. We are all looking at the end of the week, and the melancholy is settling in, that our camp is almost done...and though we are fatigued and punchy, we have had a great time working hard, discovering aspects of our work we didn't know was there...making new friends, learning from each other and our wonderful teachers. We are going to all feel quite tired and deflated after such a hypercharged two weeks.

Vin Di Fate spoke on Surrealism,Science Fiction, Fantasy and the Supernatural Horror (ie. Dracula). He touched on the philosophy of Zeno of Elea and his questioning of what we see, how we see it and how to make sense of what we see, and logic. It was very mind mending and I am fearful I am too dim not to fully understand the fine points of what he was quickly getting out...but the quote from Chris Matthews that Vin quoted kind of summed up the top line of the discussion: " Are you going to believe me, or are you going to believe your lying eyes?" Expectation versus reality as it relates to the concept of Persistence of Vision.

We worked with Betsy and Ted Lewin today. They did their walk about, asking questions, pushing people gently to better their projects and from what I saw walking around, there is a lot of very good, very finished work. I must admit, as I got further into it today--the look and feel began to gel, and many of the spreads of my book need to be redesigned...punching up the scale, and really tweaking the design. I intitially started with a "pack the suitcase" approach...and now its looser, and more designy (at least in the spreads that I am happy with). So, I feel that I am ready to really work this thing...and that it's not all polished and shiny--it's at the starting line. I had a nice talk with Bill Thomson (a stellar children's book illustrator, fellow SU alumni, and professor at the University of Hartford) about style, about multipicity of style and his ideas and approaches to this. He was a very good crit and I really appreciate his interest (albeit I have Doug for my thesis)--I'll take whatever comes my way.

It was pretty much solid work with bookends with Vin. The dorm had free hamburgers and sodas in the breakfast room--so we did a little hanging and gabbing with our upperclassmen about their work, their classes, their understanding. We have a really amazing group of people. It is so remarkable to have more than 5 to hang out with...more PLUDs (people like us,dear). More people to learn from.

Whoa. Home Saturday. A to Cornell on Sun. Office time on Mon. Pressrun Tues> Wed. Gotta get K rolling on her AP work, on her tutoring for the PSATs and on her math. Work to do with her. Gotta get the Business rework of the business plan by August 15th. Sept 15th a color comp for the Genre Class, Oct 15th for final for genre class, Oct. 30 for the two papers. Ithaca Art Trail is October 11-12, 18-19. So, It will be busy. I need to really plan this out.

Tick tock. Time to put my head down.

Another day at the candy factory




Film Fun girl by Enoch Bolles. All other pinup girls, George Petty.
Great talks by Vin today. Pinup girls galore--hello Betty Grable, hellow Betty Page. Who is today's pinup? The Spears sisters? Paris? Scarlett? Do we even have these candy coated girls? Vin says something very funny when clicking through the work of Albert Vargas, George Petty, Enoch Bolles, Bob McGuinness, Gilette Elvgren, Peter Driben, Alan Anderson, Roy Best, Boris....these girls are " Cute as a button, Dumb as a post". Totally. When seeing these images with these words, makes it a laugh riot. Then, on the way home Paul Z. cleverly knits it to the coppertone girl with the little dog--as a form of this cheesecake, this pinup girl phenomenon. And when you take that further, there is something unsavory about the little girl with a naked bottom in the context of this work...and that we happily accept it as part of the advertising icons.

We had dinosaur painters, the nature guys (love the work of Ned Seidler), and action adventure work.. Lots of great images...some pretty garish colors that really work.

Betsy and Ted Lewin reviewed the design of book jackets and book merchandising. Then we had a day of work. Ted and Murray looked at my sketches and are encouraging me to continue the hand drawn approach socking in solid colors where needed. Hmmm. This is the scary zone...So, I need to roll as I have drawing to continue this evening. I plan on working until 10 and then heads down. Still not enough caffeine for me.

Several of the two year folks showed their work to Betsy and Ted while we gathered in the coffee room at the dorm. It was great to mix it up.

More later>>

wheeeeeeeee!


I was tromping across the quadrangle from "the building with it's own cell phone tower" (and banking machine), dragging no end of stuff (notebooks, one million pens, and the usual) and was struck with what a nice day it was. So, I took pictures as I walked and the image above is what this crazy "camera" can do on the fantabulous iPhone. Takes a bit of getting used to, but this is a very nice tool for the weakminded and scattered such as yours truly. Looks a bit Danny Yagmin-eque? don't you think?

Big nice news. We were invited to have lunch at the 1877 club, a white tablecloth, light wood, cushy chairs, light filled dining room that has a fresh buffet for around $10 a pop. The sheer volume of white flour and sugar presented for dessert is overwhelming and my classmates are loving it (I have to admit that it holds no thrall over me...). But the salads and soups are lovely and non institutional--so it truly is an oasis for the tired and stunned such as ourselves. This is no Syracuse! Nice facilities, really nice people, great working spaces, plenty of plug-ins, epson printers, lets not forget :AIR CONDITIONING, a cool dorm for grown ups and the traditional Tinkelman special: great teachers, great students, great alumni. Worth every hour, worth every cent. Need to go into this further, but it 6:23 and I need to move.

We also just discovered a cool coffee shop (with great coffee and derivatives) in the lobby of the library. How spoiled we are! No reason to go to the cafe in the lesser Student Union. Should be fun!

More later, coffee and clean clothes await!

The Round People and The Flat People




I have to admit it...I am tired. Tired when I go to bed, tired when I wake up. I may just take a bit of a break tonight, drink some water and go to bed early. Truly, I feel like I have been dragged through a keyhole backwards. But, prior to my date with my pillow, I figure I will give you a short one, two, three of today.

Once again, Vin Di Fate was fascinating. We reviewed the Romance genre this morning and Action/Adventure this afternoon. Vin moves pretty quickly, weaving ideas, approaches, context and style into a fluid hour that whizzes by. The classic guys just make me constantly check on whether I am breathing. That Coby, John and Al are such amazing guys. I love the flat color, the simple compositions using architectural elements or aspects of the picture to help do the work. Parker really knows how to use the page--employing the fade away as well (or better than Cole Philips). Seeing Mark English again was a blast from the past...and it reminded me of how much I like his work. And the tone-y, chic Joe Bowler work that really is like opening the windows into yesterday--so beautiful and sensitive that it is illustration poetry. The Queen of the bodice rippers, Elaine Duillo is an amazing illustrators--the pure center for the work we see today on the peggyback racks embossed and gilded.

NC Wyeth and his interpretation of Action/adventure topics (Treasure Island etc) and Howard Pyle....WowWow Wow. I was taken with the illustrations Frank Schoonover did (Tales of Arabian Nights) and their good design--perhaps more feminine than the others--but beautiful. I love seeing the model Steve Holland pop up in the James Bama and other illustrator's work. And lets not forget Remington (I have a hard time loving Russell)--Mr. Color, Mr. Dust, Mr. Muscle. Fort Worth was the dose I needed to adore this guy. Such clean work.

We had the Lewins today--It felt like we didn't have much time to work in class as we had presentations etc. So, I was a bit short trying to lean into my work and not be a hand model or helper. I am feeling selfish, but thats where the sleep deprivation is coming in...thus the early night tonight. Betsy and Ted shared their work with us...each with a story one either laughs out loud about or tears up about. The Lewins are great illustrators and story tellers. I could listen to them all day. This formula of teaching guarantees that by the end of day Tuesday, our heads have gone to strained peas...with no electrical charges...I am going to dive on this tomorrow.

Our Lunch and Learn talk was the gumdrop of the week: Murray Tinkelman on Decorative Illustration. Murray qualified the world of illustrators from those that see their work in the round and those that see things flat. I am a flat person who has been wishing to be a round person despite I cannot go there. Murray said as an aside, when he does realistic work, it still is a flat piece--and you know, that's true with me. Sign, sealed, delivered...I am a flat.

Murray addressed the aspects of decorative illustration as he sees it:

> Contained complexity
> 2D
> "Too much is not enough." Chico Marx, Duck Soup
> Own aesthetic
> pattern against simple shapes
> no deep space (remember Bunny's request to consider layers as rigid stage sets--right on)
>"'Our species has an inate love of decoration...the Bauhaus ...sacrificed a huge chunk of humanity."

As Lori Ann Levy- Holm, brilliant in a hot pink shirt, scribbled on my sketch pad " Can you say "Validation"?".
I think she pretty well summed it up for me.

I need to boil on this a bit.

>>as an aside, Murray had a Syracuse alumni from the Newhouse School come and present his work, his comics and the newest of his projects>> www.itsjerrytime.com. It says it all. Love it.

Day One, Week Two


Was surfing around to find a placeholder to celebrate the week of the history of illustration genres (from this British site>>)
with Vin Di Fate. Vin was really great with a cultural overview--pointing up political, arts, celebrity, music, space exploration, nuclear/ technology in a chronological context. He set the stage for the discussion this week to delve into all sorts of pulp topics--which promises great hilarity and new insight into these historic genres and how to approach them now.This is not my world so there is a lot to learn. All of it is new. Should be wonderful.

The Lewins dove in and gently took us through a review of "how to" along with stories and approaches as it relates to the zillions of excellent books they have done. They are so engaged and kind--helping each student on his/her way to accomplishing a 32 pp. comp at the end of the week.They truly love their work, the process and creation--with a direct point of view that allows them the space to say no (an inspiration for me). New for me is the book real estate devoted to the title and half title page (3 pps of the 32 that is dedicated to intro--and not directly the story). I have collaped the "What is Pink" poem by Christina Rossetti along with the color detail spreads showing butterflies, bugs, flowers, grasses, leaves, ferns, birds, fish and such in a "find it" format. Have some work to do tonight. I am working small, and plan on scanning them in as we go through it. More tomorrow.

Murray introduced us to the Cooper Studio at lunch. He took us through the wonderful story of how he got the job at the studio--the sheer intimidation of the waiting room filled with starched men with wingtip shoes and leather portfolios with our Mentor arriving in a baseball jacket with a red rope portfolio with his drawings glued to board. It was a quick in/quick out for the other illustrators and Murray rolled in to meet Charles Cooper who silently reviewed his work and then, reviewed it again...offering Murray a space and representation--and a start at the foremost studio at the time. The artists at the Cooper Studio were compadres/family supporting and teaching each other, working on the jobs brought in by the sales staff-- The key take away was this was the finishing school for Murray, a place for him to grow as an artist and professional--working cheek to jowl with Joe deMers, Jon Whitcomb, Bernie di Andrea, Joe Bowler, Coby Whitmore, Bob Jones, Herb Tauss and many many more. I had put Haddon Sundbloom into the Cooper group and was corrected by my mentor and member of the Cooper Studios that Sundbloom (known for his Coca Cola Santas) never was part of Cooper. From Murray: "Coby Whitmore met him in Chicago and Coby was his apprentice and driver.He also gave a copy of "The Art Spirit" to Coby." That is the link.Another interesting point was that Murray was the decorative illustrator amongst all these "kiss kiss" boys. We were chatting about this in the car back to the dorm tonight--with my companions wishing that the studio system was still in place--allowing an apprenticeship program for the new illustrators and as a centralized way to promote and build a business.

Good news! I just got a note from Communications Arts!
This message is intended for Q. Cassetti at Luckystone Partners.
Congratulations! One of your entries has been selected by the 2008
jury to appear in Design Annual 49, the November 2008 issue of Communication
Arts.

And that piece was the Chicken Chokers CD cover ( in the audio/visual packaging category). Guess where the Carol Elizabeth Jones album is going!

Jackie's perfect illustration house






She's a perfect --with charm matches her work, her environment, and always a delight to be with . He's perfect--a musician who bakes, makes ice cream and puts together this smashing party for a pile of strangers. Little one is perfect--sending notes from his bedroom to the front hallway, who likes to sport a wonderful George Washington wig in the local parade. The house is very Beatrix Potter where you can believe that frogs can row boats and mice can bake bread. The gardens are beautiful filled with lilies, echinacea purpurea, yarrow. and campanile. There was a lovely miniature japanese maple in a corner. The yard is filled with trees and places to discover. Our hosts made two tents outside with tables and chairs, tables and chairs below the garden, and tons of places to perch in the large great room inside. There were wonderful things to eat from seafood kabobs, fruit kabobs, barbeque chicken, great bowls of all sorts of salads and lets not forget the blueberry pies with fresh peach ice cream or lemon sorbet. It was an absolute feast --from the filled plates to our eyes and senses. What an unbelievably nice gift to all of us.

Paul Z. and David L and I had a nice time at the Big Y (why not?) provisioning for the great week ahead. We got some food and fired up the grill outside and had our own mini picnic for dinner. I cook for 40 anyway...I should just cook every night...hmmmm...whats for tomorrow? it was really nice sitting outside and having a visit. Paul and David are inspiring and smart. I think I am going to learn a lot from them as artists and really good painters.

Next week's professors have arrived. I am beginning to wind up again. You know, the Tinkelmans have totally figured this out...let everyone relax...and then whamo...away we go again. This week is History of Genres with Vin DiFate(here's Irene Gallo's interview with Vin for a bit more information). We have the fabulous Ted and Betsy Lewin all week to work on a children's book (you know, the "What is Pink?" poem with the specimen box spreads in between). I am psyched to get going on this as it is said there is a wealth of information delivered...all dead on from thumbnailing the book through looking at press sheets (I have a bit of experience with this with my publications work--so maybe I won't be so lost as I have been recently). I am excited about getting going on this too.

More on Jackie Decker's beautiful work>>

A Connecticut Picnic




Luxuriant, sleeping until 8. Strolled down to the breakfast spread to find a roundtable my fellow students actively engaged in talking about art, illustration and their learning. Whoa. A lot over hard boiled eggs. Really fun hearing the recap of yesterday's museums, their impressions, their understanding, their personal work and collections. No shortage of brains, experience and ideas. Indeed, the students do a lot of teaching.

Have spent the last two hours modifying my business plan which, surprisingly has moved since 2006. It has been very enlightening and fascinating to see what my goals and hopes were in 2006 and where they have gone combined with my new understanding and knowledge. I feel I have another few hours on this--and it is extremely gratifying in the growth and in the anticipation of future growth in the next year. It's really encouraging to realize that the platform I start this program on is at a much more mature place as a designer and as truly, an illustrator. Two years ago I was reluctant to even call myself an illlustrator with belief, and now I can almost say it with my heart. The business plan says I am an illustrator...(and a designer). I have made money as an illustrator. My clients think of me as Q. And Q. can do all this stuff...which includes illustration. This is a lens I should use more often.

The images above are portraits from the New Britain Museum. I love the naive qualities of these images...the sheer graphic impact, the way they are designed, and how fresh they feel today.

We are off to a picnic at Jackie Decker's house. Not only is Jackie (look for the beautiful bear on the bottom of this post) an amazing person, but she is a charming, a top drawer children's book illustrator who, with the right connections could become a celebrity. She deserves it. She is taking on so much with the added week of work, but why not have 50 people on a Sunday afternoon descend on you? When does the sanctification begin? Maybe they would like a Chokers CD??

Gotta wrap it up. More later>>

More later>>

More>>





The New Britain Museum was a small, interesting collection nicely curated with illustration work hung alongside fine art. It was a tight group of images presented right as you entered the galleries. We were greeted by a strong Wyeth and a sweet Maxfield Parrish of a farmhouse, an evening image that you could almost smell the cut grass and hear the peepers and crickets. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the pulp covers matted and framed along with the original painting. These wonderful images (shown above) were showstoppers along with as Lori Ann Levy-Holm referred to the Dean Cornwell, "a juicy one". She is right, that Cornwell is a rich one... Murray had arranged for us to see a group of images from the collection later in the day--so we had a sneak peak at some beauties from the collection.

The New Britain Museum also had a Walton Ford image with monkeys, a tremendous room of Thomas Hart Benson, a lovely Grant Wood (kind of out of the sweeter palette and and a bit more serious than my favorite Grant Wood ( George Washington as a child), a Paul Manship small bronze (but you know any Manship regardless of scale is a big Manship...they have such presence). There is plenty to see--and for all of us, plenty to talk about.

Its late.