Letterpress Crows

In an amongst all of my graduate show prep, I'm also consumed by an awesome new project illustrating Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple's Crow Not Crow. I don't know how much longer I'll have access to the letterpress capabilities here at the University of Edinburgh College of Art and I really wanted to see what the title would look like using this lovely and ancient style of printing. Luckily, folks are moving past the making of art to the hanging of art for the shows, so the print lab was blissfully uncrowded. The nice thing, too, is how comfortable I've grown with these processes. I'm able to just pop in, print some items, clean up and pop out with ease. Love it! I collected the letters I wanted to use in various fonts, then I put them together and inked them on this gorgeous and ancient Eagle press. Here's what I did.You'll notice that some of the letters were missing from some of the fonts. Also, I printed them several times to get various degrees of degradation in the text. I scanned them in and created the full text.I tried adding a crow drawing to see if I liked it.And yeah, I like it, but not for a picture book. This looks more like a whisky bottle label or some such. So, next I tried to create some hand drawn text. I liked this much better....

What? You think I'm going to show you? No way man! Not yet!

Graduation Show - READY!

Friday at 4:00pm was the cut-off. All the displays for MFA and 4th year BFA students had to be completely finished, ready for grading. It was a mad rush up to the very end for most. Vacuums were whirring, items were tweaked, but mostly people just stared.
     We just stared at our displays thinking about the years of hard work that went into the creations - the challenges, the highs, the lows...everything.
     It's bittersweet. It's such an incredible accomplishment, and yet, it signifies the end of an amazing journey. Gads, I'm tearing up just typing this. I have indeed learned what I came here to learn - how to extract my deepest emotions and put them on a page. Because this experience has laid me bare, stripped me raw and rebuilt me. I am so immensely proud of what I have accomplished. We all are. And in the end, we are sharing something truly special. Here is my space. (Some of these images can be viewed larger.)



Here is Boris' space. I'll get more photos from the opening nights coming up.It seems appropriate that the children's book people were right next to each other.
     I got the final moments running up to 4:00pm on video. I apologize for the poor video quality, but you can still get the idea of the energy in the room. It's tradition to cheer in that final moment as we are all ushered out of the studio, which will now remain off limits to us while VIVA interviews are held, internal grading, and external audits are carried out. Our tutors played it up - Jonny led a proper "HIP, HIP, HOORAY!" Astrid and Harvey created an arch for us to pass through. (Sadly, I didn't catch the tutor dressed all in white who ran through the building honking an enormous horn to call TIME!) Click the image to watch on YouTube.Afterwards, we did indeed go for celebratory cocktails at Footlights, one of the closest pubs. We laughed and cried and had a marvellous time. As we should have - because we were CELEBRATING! WASAI! (Taiwanese "WOW!")

Friday Link List - 12 May 2017

From MilTech: Is There Hope for Authors Who Want to Sell More Books?

From The New York Times: Peter Spier, Illustrator of Children's Books, Dies at 89

From Muddy Colors: Artist of the Month: Joseph Campbell

From Brightly: 10 Legitimately Funny Books to Read Aloud with Your Kids

From Brightly: 7 Authors Celebrate the Teachers They'll Never Forget

Also from Brightly: Books Like The Hobbit: 12 Epic Fantasies Worth Reading

From iNews: 101 weird and wonderful objects that define Edinburgh - click through to see the entire list! One of my tutors created #42!

Jane Kurtz's PLANET JUPITER

Where do you write your books?
by Jane Kurtz
      It seems like a simple question—suggesting a clean desk and a row of tip-sharp #2 pencils (assuming anybody remembers what those are).
      At my messy desk, I type answers to interview questions. I type responses to students enrolled in the Vermont College of Fine Arts MFA in children’s and YA literature program. I pay bills and dodge the swordfish that lurk in Quicken.
      Rarely do I dream there, pulling words out of the air and onto paper or screen.
      One time, I vowed to document every place I worked on a book. The photos included airplanes and vans and libraries and a lovely patio in the Philippines where I was doing an author visit. Now that I teach every semester, I don’t speak as often, although I was in a Russian international school last month—and, yes, writing on the long flight.
      But for my new middle grade novel, Planet Jupiter, three places pop to mind.
      The first was a yard choked with ivy and creeping buttercup. This Portland house was a rental in a run-down neighborhood for decades, and I didn’t mind sharing the yard with weeds. In fact, I declared, I was a friend of weeds. I transplanted a lovely plant with yellow flowers and maroon leaves, hoping it would spread like crazy.
      And crazy is how it spreads!
      Some kinds of oxalis are well-behaved. But I had a “little nasty” sometimes known as creeping wood sorrel. It sucks nutrients and moisture out of the soil, throws down tough tap roots, and can spit its seeds (as many as 5,000 to a plant) as far as 13 feet away. Yikes.
      I loved eating blackberries from my very own yard. Turns out they were Himalayan blackberries spread up and down the West Cost by Luther Burbank, who was on a quest to develop fruits and vegetables that could be shipped on America’s new transcontinental railroad.
      Burbank had success stories including freestone peaches, Shasta daisies, and elephant garlic. But Himalayan blackberries erode soil and crowd out native plants and animals. In Oregon, they fill fields and cover tractors. Did I work to dig it out!       It took me several years to create a Backyard Habitat for birds and bees and butterflies. Along the way, I met people who think the solution to the world’s food issues will be insects.
      (Yes, Jupiter eats a grasshopper.)
      Every time I was out exploring roots and soil, I came in to jot down a few more sentences for my scenes.
      The second location was Ethiopian culture camp.Yes, I spent most of my childhood in Ethiopia and came back as a seven-year-old to face awkward and confusing questions. Yes, I volunteer for a literacy project in Ethiopia and through that experience ended up with an Ethiopian daughter-in-law and Ethiopian-American grandchildren. But it was at culture camps for adopted and Ethiopian-American kids that I heard the comments and stories that gave me the material for Edom, Jupiter’s adopted cousin.       When I was reading a revision aloud to my brother’s third grade Portland class (he, Chris Kurtz, also being an author), even sophisticated urban kids seemed pretty sure that an adopted cousin wasn’t really Jupiter’s cousin. Recently, I asked an adoptive mom whether her fifth grade daughter feels hesitant to talk about her Ethiopian heritage. “No,” the mom said. “But she’s embarrassed about adoption.”
      In 2004, the peak year for Americans adopting from overseas, 22,884 children arrived from places like China and Ethiopia and South Korea. International adoption turns out to be anything but easy for most U.S. families. I did my best to be a humble listener to people’s truths.
      Finally, last summer, I was finishing a revision of Planet Jupiter when I was selected as one of two faculty members in the VCFA MFA program to lead residency in Bath, England. I went early--to sightsee and get over jet lag. Instead, I spent an entire day in a charming, historic B&B not setting one toe outside the door, writing, talking to no one except my brother (via Whatsapp), because I was hopelessly stuck.
      Luckily, outside the window was a busker, singing Irish tunes.       And Jupiter is a busker.
      I once asked a painter if it was true for her what people say about writing a novel…that it doesn’t teach you how to write the next one. She said, “Of course. Because if I painted to a formula, my work would be formulaic.”
      Although I went to Bath to teach, it was a crucial place for me to learn the things I needed for my final touches of my revision. For me, to be a writer is to write everywhere with an open heart and learner mind.

Exams and Shows...

It's been a nutty week already. MFA1 and MA students had their semester assessments Tuesday and Wednesday. So our studio looks like this: The desks are set up neatly to display each students' work like this:

That said, examining didn't begin until noon, so up until then the studio was in complete chaos. Here's Ann-Kathryn trying to finish up.Meanwhile, upstairs on the 4th floor, chaos continued to reign. MFA2 and 4th year undergraduate illustration students are busy completing their displays. Here's Nadee nearly finished.The lucky folks had help.Sienna helped me. It's good experience for those who will be doing this themselves next year. And my space is mostly finished except for one book that I'm waiting for a part from the metal shop on. Karin liked it. (Not many folks wanted their pictures taken today as we are all in our grubbies, and looking and feeling it too! At any rate, I don't want to spoil it for you, so this is the peek at my show!

Coloring Page Tuesday - Termites

     When's the last time you read a book good enough to chew on? CLICK HERE for more coloring pages!
     CLICK HERE to sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted each week and... Please check out my books! Especially...
my debut novel, A BIRD ON WATER STREET - winner of over a dozen literary awards, including Georgia Author of the Year. Click the cover to learn more!
     When the birds return to Water Street, will anyone be left to hear them sing? A miner's strike allows green and growing things to return to the Red Hills, but that same strike may force residents to seek new homes and livelihoods elsewhere. Follow the story of Jack Hicks as he struggles to hold onto everything he loves most.
     I create my coloring pages for teachers, librarians, booksellers, and parents to enjoy for free with their children, but you can also purchase rights to an image for commercial use, please contact me. If you have questions about usage, please visit my Angel Policy page.

Friends Come a Vistin'!

This weekend kicked off tourist season in Edinburgh, at least where my friends are concerned! Friday, Julie Hedlund (Colorado, US) and Sarah Towle (London) came to town. We took them to The Ox:Where they tried Scotch Eggs, Scottish Lobster, and Whisky (of course)! Sunday I met up with long-time colleague Roxie Munro. We worked together a bit on Sarah's Time Traveler Tours. It was so nice to finally meet up in person! Sunday, we got a last minute email that a friend from Athens, Georgia was in town on a beer-tasting trip! So good to see Pete Dasher even if just for a moment at The Hanging Bat! Monday, Loraine Joyner, former Art Director for Peachtree Publishing came through town with her sister and sister-in-law during an enormous 31-day-long travel adventure. We took all of them to dinner at The Educated Flea. How lovely to connect with this dear and old friend on this side of the pond! Truly, one of the funny things about living in Edinburgh is how much I haven't had to miss folks from the states, because they come HERE! Winter is quiet, but during the warmer months, we enjoy a constant stream of dear friends coming to or through and it's a treat to get together! So, y'all keep on visiting!

VIDEO: Elon Musk at TED 2017

Elon Musk is the inventor of PayPal. Since making his fortune, he's been spending it on innovative ideas like building a rocket to get people to Mars, drilling transportation tunnels under LA, and creating digital brain enhancement devices. No matter what you think of his ideas, he's a fascinating and forward thinking guy. I am exited to share his latest TED Talk! Click the image to watch on Inverse.com:

Show Prep - READY!

The hard part is DONE! My exhibition space is ready for the graduation show. Ahhhhhhh, relief!It required lots of paint, hammers, a screw driver (no drill), and a few well-earned plasters (band-aids). But it's done! All I have to do now is write up my final summation for grading, and fill my space with all my projects!What with, you ask? Here's a hint:More soon!

Graduate Show Prep

Dear Readers, Please be patient with me right now as my life has been consumed with completing my MFA (and diving into another project - more on that soon). I hope to be back to my regular blog features soon. Meanwhile, Thursday we painted our 'skins' - the panels for our graduate show display spaces.The irony is that I am an illustrator, and I hate painting! If we had been painting something, like a big whale or something, I would have been fine. But no, we had to turn everything WHITE. But anything, even something you generally dislike, when done with friends, can be fun. Catherine ended up entertaining us most of the time since she is recovering from an injury . I caught her in a moment of working, which she shouldn't have been doing! That said, we were all hurting. We had eight panels to paint and plinths and shelves. Each needed several coats of primer and then white. FYI, it's really hard to see what you're doing when you paint white on white. We were all snow blind by the end!So, it was an actual treat when we got to Nadee's panel, that needed to be painted PINK! We saved it as a final reward.It was hilarious when we realized that Catherine's shoes were an exact match.By the end, we were ALL hurting and exhausted. But y'know what? We did it! Next step is to hang the skins and affix shelves, vinyl lettering and such. We're getting there!

Friday Links List - 05 May 2017

From CNN Media: Are physical books the new vinyl?

From Creative Scotland: House where Peter Pan began gets £5.7 million transformation

From The Federation of Children's Books Groups: The Magic Formula for Writing a Picture Book by Timothy Knapman

From Science of Us: People With This Personality Trait Literally See the World Differently

From The Atlantic: Torching the Modern-Day Library of Alexandria - this is fascinating and a must read for readers and authors!

From PW: Women Rule in Indie Publishing

Graduate Show - It's Coming!

It's hard to believe that it's nearly time for our graduate show here at the University of Edinburgh College of Art! We've all been finishing projects, ordering fancy business cards, sending book mock-ups off to Blurb.com, and trying to design our spaces. I'm happy to say that all my major projects are now finished, although currently it doesn't look like much.The 4th floor of our building has been cleared out and in its place, our graduate show spaces have been constructed.Each creator gets one piece of a 3-way pie to display their work. They put us MFA Illustration students together towards the back. I'm quite pleased with my spot as it will be facing the pop-up store where I'll be able to sell some of my wares. And yes, behind the construction boards, that is indeed the castle. Not bad.This is a bittersweet time. I'm so excited to put my show together, but I'm also sad. I would be an MFA Illustration student forever if I could!
     As is, we have to have everything in place by May 12th for our internal and external auditing (grading). Then the big show will begin! June 1st will be business night, when the uni invites a slew of art/creative directors to come scout it out. (People even fly up from London for this!) June 2nd will be friends and family night. And then June 3rd, the show will open to the public for two weeks.
     I've been to every show since we arrived in Edinburgh, and they are so fun! It is a building-wide showcase of all the graduating students from costume design to product design to illustration in our building (Evolution House), and sculpture and painting, etc. up in the Hunter Building. It is basically an explosion of creativity and I am thrilled to be a part of it this year! More soon!

World Press Freedom Day

Today is the day we celebrate our right to speak freely, to report freely, and to stay informed by a fair and unbiased media. (As in, governments shall not control what is reported.) These rights are currently under attack, so it's important to reflect on how important this is. Feel free to share my image if you agree.

Coloring Page Tuesday - Thistle

     The national flower of Scotland is the thistle (of "Thistle and the Rose" fame). I think they're beautiful. CLICK HERE for more coloring pages!
     CLICK HERE to sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted each week and... Please check out my books! Especially...
my debut novel, A BIRD ON WATER STREET - winner of over a dozen literary awards, including Georgia Author of the Year. Click the cover to learn more!
     When the birds return to Water Street, will anyone be left to hear them sing? A miner's strike allows green and growing things to return to the Red Hills, but that same strike may force residents to seek new homes and livelihoods elsewhere. Follow the story of Jack Hicks as he struggles to hold onto everything he loves most.
     I create my coloring pages for teachers, librarians, booksellers, and parents to enjoy for free with their children, but you can also purchase rights to an image for commercial use, please contact me. If you have questions about usage, please visit my Angel Policy page.