These are sample spreads from the book I have been working on. It is an adventure of a scarecrow who has always dreamed of flying. His wish comes true during a wind storm, but not without a few challenges.

My family and I went to Puerto Penasco, Mexico for spring break. But we did not stay in a luxury hotel on the beach or frolic in the sun. Instead, we worked with our church youth group to build four homes for folks who really needed them. This is a photo of the family and the crew in front of the new home we built. 

We did get a few hours to relax after the houses were completed. Here is a quick plein air watercolor I did at the beach.

I have decided to add entries regarding my children’s book illustration to my blog because it has been taking up more easel time lately. I am a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI). I got interested in this several years ago and illustrated five books for Shortland Publishing (bought out by McGraw-Hill and moved to New Zealand).

I am waiting to hear about the results of a contest for which I submitted the attached illustration. The prize is a trip to New York for the SCBWI Winter Conference. The entry had to be based on the 1st two paragraphs of the book Heide. Not a very manly subject, but what the hay.

Here is a painting I recently "finished". However, every time I walk by it I get the feeling it needs more work. It just looks unfinished to me but I can not quite put my finger on the solution. I am posting it here not so much for comments from others, but as a way to force me to think about exactly what I need to do to finish this painting.

Sit

I revised the drawing of the dog's face to get the angle of his head correct. I also had to adjust the placement of the paw that is on the ground.

This is the final photo of the painting. I decided to call it "Sit".

I am currently working an a small painting of a dog. It is from a photo I took the last time I was at the Immanel Mission in Arizona. He was a friendly little guy that followed me around the mission. It seems like every time I looked around, he was sitting there looking up at me.

I have always thought about documenting a painting in progress. The photos herein show the progression of an oil painting on masonite. It is 22 1/4" x 19 1/2".

I started with a line drawing in green on the white gessoed board. I typically do a neutral-color wash at the beginning of a painting, but I wanted to keep a clean white base for this subject.

After I roughed in the dog's shape I washed in a thin layer of green (Cad Yellow Lt and Cobalt Blue). I applied the brush strokes in a arc around the subject. I wanted to give the illusion of growing grass as well as accent the circular composition.

Once the background was roughed in, I began defining the light and dark shapes of the dog. I used Cobalt Blue mixed with a bit of Alizarin Crimson for the shadows and Cad. Yellow Lt. with Titanium White for the sunny sides.

I added more definition to the the foreground and softened the background. I also exaggerated the coolness of the background and warmth of the foreground to give more depth.

In the last photo shown I have added color and value variations to the dog's fur. I am currently finishing up with the rendering and details. I will post a photo of the finished piece soon.