Tuesday, October 4, 2011

New Illustrations

Two of my illustrations hit newsstands this month; both portraits: Dorothea Dix for Cobblestone, and Virginia Hamilton for Ohio Magazine.

Cobblestone wanted Dorothea Dix shown directing a crowded hospital ward. With the complicated composition and large number of figures, I decided to combine a traditional drawing with digital paint and color for more flexible editing.

Ohio Magazine wanted an image honoring Virginia Hamilton’s legacy as a pivotal figure in children’s literature. After sending several sketches, the art director and I fell in love with the concept of a field filled with book-like flowers. With the simpler composition, I created the illustration using traditional media, my preferred method.

I’m so proud of both these pieces; many thanks to my art directors, Debra Porter at Cobblestone and Lesley Blake at Ohio Magazine, for giving me the chance to create them.