She’s drawing right now.
Year after year, kid after kid, those Draw Write Now books continue to inspire.
Archive for the ‘Art’ Category
Down here all the fish is happy
December 6, 2012 @ 6:41 pm | Filed under: Art, Assorted and Sundry
We forgot to read a book today! Rilla was busy drawing all through the early part of the morning, and then we worked in the garage for a while, digging out the Christmas things and filling some boxes for a garage sale our circle of friends is having this weekend—a fundraiser for a family who is adopting the dearest little newborn girl.
The big laugh of the morning came when we found, shoved behind other boxes, an unopened box from our move here six years ago—all taped up, marked in my friend Lisa’s handwriting “Ugly Bat Thing.” A skeletal metal bat someone gave Scott as a gift to celebrate his days editing, and then writing, Batman comics. Then proceeded a spirited debate over whether it is, in fact, ugly. (The six-year-old votes no, emphatically.)
Earlier, and I shared this on Facebook at the time but I have to archive the moment here, I was sitting in my rocking chair when Rilla came sprinting into the room to ask what color hair I would like if I didn’t have brown. Easy one: red. She darted away. Back again a moment later with this question: “If you were a mermaid, would you want to wear a shirt? Or be like a real mermaid. You know, bare.”
I asked if a seashell bikini were an option, but nope. Six-year-olds can be very strict. You want to be a real mermaid, you gotta go for broke. I, however, made the mom choice and requested a t-shirt.
She roadrunnered away. Back again a bit later: “What’s your favorite underwater animal?” Easy one. I didn’t read Ring of Endless Light eighteen times for nothing.
“Dolphin.”
Off again, zip-tang. A little later, I got to see (at last) what she was up to.
This portrait, I learned, was part of a set: here are the four girls. Rose hates swimming, so Rilla made her an elf.
The jellyfish kill me.
I’m hoping tomorrow brings a set of mermen portraits to complete the family collection.
Owl by Rilla
Rilla made a book of drawings this morning, several pages stapled together. “Chibi and Non-Chibi Drawings,” she wrote on the front, explaining that the chibi ones were traced from her favorite drawing book, and the non-chibi ones, like the little fellow above, were not traced, “just drawn regular.”
The little ruffly breast-feathers just melt me.
Wonder Box Special
November 29, 2012 @ 1:45 pm | Filed under: Art
I wrote about Wonder Box in my GeekMom review of subscription boxes for kids:
I discovered Wonder Box when I was looking for a birthday gift for my three-year-old godchild, the brilliant daughter of my fellow GeekMom, Kristen Rutherford. When it comes to presents, I’m usually sort of a one-note giver — books, books, and more books — but this time, I wanted to give something different, something Kristen and Vivi could do together. Something hands-on, creative, and fun. The second I saw Wonder Box, an assortment of crafts and activities aimed at kids ages 3-6, I knew I’d hit a bullseye. You can order Wonder Box as a one-time gift, or sign up for a monthly subscription.
More details in the post. They’re now offering a $5 discount on orders through Jan. 13—use code HOLIDAY5-03 at checkout.
The Six-Year-Old Reads Vampirina Ballerina
“Mommy, listen: ‘Always drink plenty of water and eat healthy meals.’” (Points to illustration.) “It’s BLOOD. Isn’t that funny??” (Uproarious laughter.)
Well played, Anne Marie Pace and LeUyen Pham.
Deciding what to draw.
She went with the bat. As usual!
***
Also: yesterday’s Thicklebit.
A Calm Forest
A COM FORST
by Rilla, age 6
An email I received today, via her favorite drawing app.
Wednesday Links
Tomorrow is new Thicklebit day! Sometimes this parenting gig is just…baffling.
A review of The Prairie Thief at Jen Robinson’s Book Page. “…a delight from start to finish.” *beams*
Day one of “A 365-day daily documentation of the mysterious creatures known as The Folk, by the equally mysterious artist, Jacob Oh.” Charming.
And this art, oh, I’m swooning. Kay Nielsen’s Stunning 1914 Scandinavian Fairy Tale Illustrations.
Comments are off
A look at the creative process: Ty Templeton’s Batman Adventures covers
I love this series of posts by comic-book writer and artist Ty Templeton. In the 90s, Scott was Ty’s editor on The Batman Adventures. Ty has been sharing a look at rejected cover sketches for various issues, with commentary about the changes that led to the final, approved covers.
Unseen Batman Gotham Adventures Artwork…Two-Face edition | Ty Templeton’s Art Land.
This particular issue was published after Scott had left to go freelance and the awesome Darren Vincenzo took over as editor of the book. I think it’s very helpful (especially for kids) to see how even a highly skilled professional like Ty goes through many drafts on the way to a final piece.
Incidentally, here’s what Ty had to say about Scott’s contribution to The Batman Adventures and its successor comic, The Gotham Adventures:
I’d argue that Scott is the single most important creator who worked on the book. Besides launching it as editor, and hiring most of the well known talent that participated, Scott’s editorial hand was very present in many of the best issues of the book ( He certainly helped me to be a better writer)…and let’s never forget that Scott scripted more issues of the assembled series than anyone other than your humble blogger. By my count, I wrote (or drew) about fifty-five issues, and Scott wrote about forty-five, including one of the best Catwoman stories ever published by DC. When you add up his two runs (editorial and scripting) he put his hand in about two thirds of the complete run, and is integral to the series’ success.
(Scott’s going to be ticked at me for posting that, but sometimes a wife’s gotta brag on her man.)
“At this stage, nothing is a mistake. It all gets me closer.”
May 4, 2011 @ 1:26 pm | Filed under: Art
Fascinating video by caricaturist John Kascht as he walks us through his process for a drawing of Conan O’Brien. It’s about half an hour long and I’ve been watching in ten-minute chunks. I still have another segment to go but there’s much to discuss in this already. One particularly interesting bit for me is when Kascht takes time to sculpt a bust of Conan on his way to capturing his face on paper. I always wind up following so many byways as I work on a story, often winding up with hundreds of pages that don’t make it into the final manuscript but were vital in helping shape the tale, so it was interesting and fun for me to see a visual artist taking rabbit trails of his own.
Via Drawn.