Banana Summer

Since it’s summer, I’m sharing two classic activity sheets. I revisited these opossums for some promotional art last week. I used my own vacation sheet and asked myself where the opossum family was going, and what were they up to on a sunny summer day? Scroll to see the sheets, then my illustrated answer!

Each summer, the Illustration Institute brings amazing illustrators to Peaks Island, Maine for residencies, and in exchange, they share with the community through a talk or workshop. I was very excited to hear Peter Brown give a talk one evening, then take a workshop with X. Fang the next morning. I made a mini-trip of it with a good friend, spending the night on the island.

Peter talked about his inspiration for and the process of writing The Wild Robot. He also turned an audience question into a short reading of his picture book Mr. Tiger Goes Wild. It’s a book favorite of mine, and it was wonderful to watch Peter light up and switch into read-aloud mode. I also loved that so many kids in the audience asked questions. His books were all in heavy rotation for my kids when they were younger, and Wild Robot was one of the first books my son finished on his own. A special event, all around!

You have probably heard me gush about Broken by X. Fang. Her workshop was intended for kids, but a good group of adults (including myself) joined in the fun of turning cardboard and paint into giant wearable food, inspired by Dim Sum Palace. She gave a short but lovely talk at the start about her inspiration and process. Everyone had so much fun coming up with ideas, sharing scissors and advice, and being able to see each other’s BIG FOOD. I enjoyed bringing my giant food on the ferry home, walking around Portland with it, and popping it up on my studio shelves until the next time I need an oversized banana hat.

July 15th is the first birthday of my picture book THE KING OF BOOKS. As a nice surprise, I will be at the Chichester NH town hall for a CLiF library program. I’ll be reading KING and helping kids choose a book of their own to bring home. Recently, I also learned that KING is shelved in the Obama Presidential Center library. What a huge honor! I was already planning a visit to Chicago this fall, and hopefully I’ll be able to see it for myself!

The August edition of High Five magazine includes my That’s Silly illustration of a city splash pad. In real time, I’ve been working on a bunch of ocean-themed adult hidden picture assignments. And as a cold-weather contrast, I’m working on my next picture book SNOW DAY WITH DADDY.

Reading: I just picked up Don’t Call it Art by Austin Kleon from my local indie bookstore. I love all of Austin’s books on creativity, and this one looks to be as good IF NOT better than all the other. It’s been nice to read through at a slow summer pace.

Watching: Summer is always a lull with good programming, so I started rewatching Search Party on Netflix with my husband. It’s a quirky show, and I’m not sure I understand parts of it better the second time around, but I do love a lot of the humor and characters. We are on the Cole Escola season, and it’s great to soak up his unique genius for a bit.

Listening to: Sean Solomon’s The World is Not Good Enough. My daughter and I recently saw The Breeders in Maine (they were awesome!). Sean Solomon was the opening act. He sat on stage with his guitar, a mic, a VHS machine, an old TV, and a projector. An animation accompanies each song. His songs are earnest and raw. I’m a fan, particularly of Finish Line.

Note: You may have noticed a newsletter that went out last Thursday that was just a reminder for KidLitArtPostcard. Oops! I have two newsletters running off the same account, and I sent it to the wrong group by mistake. I have deleted it from the website version and I will try very hard NOT to do that again.