Look, Mama! A fun guy!
April 22, 2011
How awesome every single “first” is. Side by side this morning drawing, Tulsi draws her way into her first “fun guy”, all by herself, and shouted, “Look, Mama! A fun guy!” She laughed out loud cause it was “fun” to make, too. Don’t you wish you could remember your own first “fun guy”?
New Illustration for Northern New Mexico Birth Center
April 18, 2011
I recently created this illustration to represent the Birth Center in Taos where Tulsi was born. The midwives wanted something that felt “nurturing, supportive, magical, compassionate, gentle, spirited, mother&baby centered…” and that read as “northern new mexico” — mesa, mountains, desert wildflowers, butterflies, hummingbirds. I think we succeeded! I had fun dreaming this image up with them and am excited to see how they use it (on printed material and product for fund-raising)! And, thanks to my friend Penny for the lettering help!
Our relationship with the midwives has been a pure blessing. They gave us so much love, respect, attention, support, time, information, and the BEST care I could imagine. I have endless respect for ALL they do.
This is my world…a sneak peak into my new book: Same, Same but Different
April 13, 2011
The countdown has begun! :) My next book will be in bookstores in just FIVE months — September 13th. And I just got the go-ahead to share the cover art and 3 interior spreads. WoooHOOOOOO!
The two boys become friends thru the mail…with their drawings and musings…and discover beautiful surprises in their “same, same but different” worlds.
You can pre-order it thru your local, independent bookstore or here with Powell’s Books (soon, i hope), or now on Amazon.com here.
I’ve mentioned before that this book has been an epic journey for me. Beautiful in every way. And epic in the way that journeys can take you to wild places in the world and in your heart that gift you with priceless “aha!” moments over and over. The idea for this book first sprouted when I jumped out of my safe, comfy creative-corporate existence and into the unknown, to the other side of the world, facing nearly all my fears head-on. And, also to simply experience ‘something else’ and to connect with little people. There’s a lot more to the story…wandering, love, another book, a baby, becoming a mother, and more…all nourishing food for the soul, and a book! Thanks to ALL my family and friends for their support with this one, and to you, for your patience. Hope you enjoy the visual glimpses…
OH! And with this countdown, I plan on posting all sorts of fun things about this book — PROCESS, Q&A on how to prepare and present your kid’s book for publishing, classroom skype visits, behind the scenes on the making of this book, a book trailer, and more — on the 13th of every month thru September 13th. I will be giving away 6 signed copies, one name chosen from comments on each of these posts. So stay tuned! And leave a comment below. Today’s comment question: WHERE in the world inspires you most, creatively, and how? (art, writing, cooking, music, fashion, etc.) Please share specifics … I’m working on a travel wish list and want to discover new lands!
Be the drawing you wish to become.
April 5, 2011
This week was a tough one. We all have Spring colds and felt pretty miserable. On the positive side, Tulsi and I got 24-7 snuggle time for about 5 days straight. :) Today we all began to feel a wee bit more like our normal selves. This afternoon Tulsi and I sat side by side, drawing for a big deadline tomorrow. She sensed I felt a bit cloudy and stuck, maybe because she heard me say, “this is awful. Mama can’t draw.” And she replied, “See Mama?” and proceeded to take me on a ride through one of her magical drawings.
Thanks, Tulsi. It was JUST what I needed. No fear. Don’t think. Just play.
When she was finished, I said, “WOW! Your drawing makes me so happy.” And really, I was amazed and totally inspired. And she’s just turning 2. It’s only just begun.
I went back to drawing, and as I began, Tulsi said, “WOW, MAMA! Tulsi Happy!” Click here or on the drawing to watch her demo on my Facebook page.
a list for today.
February 19, 2011
what i’ve been doing besides blogging…
- discovering again how much i love doodling and drawing letters with odd things like icicles and food coloring, candles dipped in ink, henna, carved potato prints, lemon juice and fire, and stencils inked with ragged old ink pads
- goin’ with the energy of late nights and long naps and patrick’s super yummy chai and making major progress on the chai book…!…and holding an art raffle here.
- one, two or three fancy tea parties a day with my favorite little studiomate and fun mama-tulsi projects like sewing a kitty cat doll (see tea party pic below) when tulsi realizes no kitty cats live in our house and says we should make one
- super fun project development on two new alphabets for Oopsy Daisy
- frequent walks around the stuppa and “play” visits inside the stuppa with “Boo-daa”
- playing with our hens Frida, Frannie, Rosie and Posey (who are just so much more fun since the roosters left the scene…Roo-roo-Diego sadly gave up his life in a brave fight with a dog to save his ladies…and the second-fiddle rooster who we thought was a hen suffered from too many rooster-hormones so our neighbors cooked him up in a winter stew…we are vegetarians)
- gathering eggs daily, some still so warm, and baking quiches and fritadas and burritos and muffins and breads and cookies and french toast, and planning to paint eggs to hang from a tree in the Spring
- staring into my almost-two-year-old sweet girl’s magical eyes and following her lead — spontaneous yoga in the greenhouse, ring-around-the-rosie in the bath tub, and “fancy” band-aides from patterned fabric scraps and ribbons for countless booboo’s
- planting onion seeds and swimming thru countless seed catalogs and making garden lists in my head
- finding endless inspiration in friends like Rhett and mama bloggers like Maya
- embarking on a wild, dreamy and slightly scary ride of illustrating a tarot deck for a great publisher
- and constantly whispering “thank you” for this beautiful sweet family of mine
New Canvas Art with Oopsy Daisy!
January 26, 2011
I can’t believe I’ve been illustrating for children this long, and this is the FIRST princess piece I’ve ever done. Hee. The commission was to create an “exotic princess” art with a Taj-like building. My client wanted it to have a wood-cut-print sort of feel, like on fabrics from India and the Middle East. As a suggestion, they like it with this beautiful bedding (the Marina Collection). I had a lot of fun carving linoleum stamps and layering the prints over textures and collage. It was such a nice balance between hands-on-playing and digital.
Oopsy Daisy also recently licensed these two pieces for canvas reproductions. So fun! All three canvases are available in my shop. Just click on the images or go to “shop: canvas reproductions”. I love that these canvases are all produced in the US, and they are AMAZING quality. So crisp, and the color is perfectly yummy. I hope you like them!
my friend’s super inspiring mural.
January 12, 2011
Above: Tracy McGuiness and her son Roy, at work on a mural at Roy’s school in the U.K.
Eight years ago when I was first in Nepal volunteering at Sunshine School, the students and I created a 60′ mural in their playground on a brick wall. I didn’t have any paint supplies and ALL that was available was big pales of white paint and teeny dyes of primary colors. Still, we did our best and had a really fun time. And it was the perfect activity to practice English. Sadly, the dyes were no better than food coloring, and the mural slowly washed away with the monsoon rains. :)
Kid art has always been a HUGE inspiration to me. They are so free spirited and see no rules or boundaries. When Tulsi started coloring, I gave her a 3′x4′ sheet of foam core and she would sit in the middle and twirl around, coloring with two crayons at once. She seemed to be sculpting her world as she felt it. It was amazing to watch.
Have you ever heard Picasso’s quote, “All children are artists. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” It’s such a huge responsibility to ‘let them be’ with their art, don’t you think? To inspire without drowning their spirits. They are such sacred years.
I’ll never forget when I first sat in on an “art class” in Nepal. The 4th graders were at their desks copying exactly what the teacher was ‘attempting’ to draw on the large black board: Mickey Mouse. My heart literally sunk. I had never “taught” art before then, so I looked to my favorite instructors for inspiration. The first thing I did with them was to leave the school grounds. The rooms were small, stuffy and dark and way too small to stretch out. We walked around their ancient village and just looked at the intricate, wood carvings on the temples and the old palace and all its sculptures. And we drew “on location” — my FAVORITE painting class in art school. I honestly don’t think the kids had ever drawn from their own eyes before because they stared blankly at their paper and pencils and asked, “How should we draw the temple?” I don’t remember what I said, but I’m thankful I didn’t say too much. And truly beautiful, unique interpretations came to life that were ALL different. I’ll never forget Bina’s temple that reminded me of an ornate wedding cake and Niraj’s very circus-like houses and temples patterned with jester-type clothing. Watching these kids discover how they saw and find joy in expressing themselves was just awesome. I’ll never forget it.
Whew. I didn’t know I was going to write about that when I started this post, but my friend Tracy‘s mural photos brought up those memories. Tracy is a painter/illustrator/mother in the U.K. who I knew from way back at Hallmark. I liked her instantly, especially her free spirit and vision. She has sent me quite a few quirky photo shoots with her son in hand-made costumes and his drawings of robots and monsters that always get my own imagination going. Sometimes she sends her illustrations inspired by his drawings. She recently sent me these photos of a mural project she created at her son Roy’s school (which she and her own mum also went to as kids). The coolest thing about this mural is how she collaborated with the kids, collaging their art with her’s. Check out all the photos of the process and details on her site here. She explained how they “coated local newspapers with translucent paint (to reveal words/names from the surrounding area) and cut out shapes to create the characters to collage onto the background, very much as a homage to the Henri Matisse ‘paper cut outs’ style.”
I just LOVE it! Tracy obviously inspired the students to PLAY in their art, and she did such a cool job of integrating it all with her own art. It makes me want to collaborate more with Tulsi. And HOPEFULLY one day return to Nepal, and create another mural at Sunshine School with the kids and Tulsi — a mural inspired by Tracy’s!!
help! my travelin’ eye (in the classroom)!
January 10, 2011
My Travelin’ Eye was recently reviewed by Donna Firgurski and her energetic and thoughtful posse, the Kiddle CRITers. Donna has a unique way of reviewing a book with the Kiddle CRITers — a manuscript of the students’ in-depth, uninterrupted conversation about the story. It seems they always get to the heart of the book. When reading their review of MTE, I giggled and sighed and even melted a bit. They “got” it. Following their review are some fun lesson plan ideas from Donna for use in the classroom. Check it out here (and their archive!). Thank you Donna and Kiddle CRITers! I really enjoy your blog!
This brings me to what I’ve been excited to write about for a long time –and PLEASE, I need YOUR help! I have received many emails from teachers over the past couple of years asking me if there are any lesson plans written for my book, My Travelin’ Eye. — specific ideas and activities. And since there are none that I am aware of, I thought it might be inspiring and helpful for teachers ‘out there’ to gather some ideas and make them available on my site. Donna’s ideas were the perfect motivation.
In the spirit of my mom — “Jenny Sue, we just have to get creative!”
So, even though I’m not a teacher, I have given it my best try (and maybe there is something there to use :) ), AND I also thought I’d send a request out into the blog world to see what YOU can (or already have) come up with. Teachers, HOW have you used it in your classroom? How do you/could you use it differently for different age students? Parents, what sort of discussions come up when you’ve read it with your little ones? Do any activities naturally follow?
Donna’s lesson plans focus on Jenny Sue’s eye challenge and for kids to put themselves into her shoes to get a better view, both what is positive and difficult — which is great, I think. Compassion and empathy, and simply trying on someone else’s shoes…or, um glasses. Often when I’ve read my book in schools, the kids naturally cover up one eye with their hand when Jenny Sue gets her patch. It’s fun to watch them discover how it’s a bit tricky to just have one eye.
This is another idea that I’ve used when I visit with classrooms, with the focus more on storytelling. This might be for older grades 2-3:
Writing a story from a memory in the first person. No rules. And, as authors, it’s OK to embellish your memories! Also, include real-life detail into the art. It could be as simple as a one paragraph story OR they could develop a longer story with multiple illustrations. Whenever I visit with students and read my book, I want mostly to inspire them to tell stories and create pictures. For me, my life and memories are where I find stories. (I’m not the author who makes up stories out of the blue.) I always tell them that I first got the idea to write about my eye from staring at my birth announcement photo and how I immediately noticed that my left eye was traveling from the get go. To help get them started, I share what some of the little ‘details’ in my book mean — like when Jenny Sue is kneeling in the sink looking into the mirror (which I specifically remember doing — I still remember how hard the sink was on my knees and shins). She is wearing the No. 83 football jersey which was my oldest brother Freddie’s and who I thought was the coolest. It’s these details that make an artist’s pictures unique. There are many more details like this in my book…all the students in Jenny Sue’s classroom are real-life friends I had in gradeschool. And the scene with my mom making fashion patches — that is the table and wallpaper in the kitchen I grew up in, and my mom did the newspaper crossword puzzle faithfully every morning.
A much simpler activity I did with a few hundred students in a very short time:
Create a cloud landscape mural in their hallway. We talked about how we all see differently from each other — just like Jenny Sue. That is why we draw, sing, dress, and think differently. Each student thought of one thing in their life special to them and drew a cloud in that shape. The mural turned out so fun with 200+ unique clouds!
Another idea I came up with: Create a super hero character whose ‘power’ is based on a weakness or disability that is turned into a strength. These would be positive super heroes, of course. :)
Thanks in advance for sharing your ideas and feel free to pass this along to teachers you know! Please write them in a comment or email me at coloredsock@mac.com. I want to add a page in my book section that shares everyone’s ideas that teachers can put to good use!
happy happy.
January 7, 2011
Tulsi prefers to be either naked, or dressed in at least 10 layers. Her funny smile and excitement over everything is contagious.
After a whirlwind 2 1/2 week trip to the midwest for work+holiday, we are really happy to be back in the mountains. The night we got home I was outside in below 0 degree weather, climbing stacked strawbales to check on the chickens and tuck them in for the night. I had to laugh at how much fun this was. The city was ok, but I am such a mountain girl.
And happy new year! It’s always nice to have closure and fresh starts, even if sometimes nerves and uncertainty are mixed in. I have been feeling a little discouraged at my efforts and successes/struggles with my art lately and the lack of time for it. (You’ve heard that before — it’s a rollercoaster I’m sure I’ll continue to ride for some years as a mama+artist.) Patrick did an I ching reading for me and “retreat” is the theme for me this year. I think of a lot with that word. Quiet, reflection, letting go, soaking up, refueling, learning, growing, playing, praying, following my intuition, no expectations… Thinking about this helped me to let go into this new year and be excited about whatever it brings. It helped me drop any funny, unrealistic expectations of myself that come from a place of comparing myself to others and trying to “keep up” with them. What a relief. Hee. I feel so free.
My friend Maria has been blogging for almost a year at 52 Flowers, posting a poem+painting every week “exploring the nature in human nature”. It was a challenge she gave herself but also a retreat of sorts. Check it out. Her art is so fresh and heartFULL and really inspiring to me.
I hope to blog more soon. I have so much more inspiration to share from our trip and friends and home and art. :)
matchbox inspired spices.
December 8, 2010
When we were in India the last time, we collected discarded matchboxes on the roads. There are so many, and it’s sorta like trading cards among travelers. These, along with the countless, amazing retro designs from India’s past (recorded in the beautiful book, LIGHT ON INDIA by Warren Dotz), inspired me to create chai spice icons for our chai book-in-the-making. These are most of them…Tulsi and maybe a couple others are still coming.
One of the best (and most challenging) parts for me with this journey in self-publishing is being my own art director and creating the illustration “jobs” throughout the book. I can’t wait to dive into the recipe section. I LOVE illustrating recipes, and perhaps even more, I LOVE being a taster for all of Patrick’s creative masala chai concoctions! It’s going to be a really yummy winter here…
<< prev·next >>
© 2012 jenny sue kostecki-shaw · coloredsock@mac.com · 575 586 1726
