Adelaida: A Cuban Cinderella, now available

Adelaida: A Cuban Cinderella, is now available at the Barnes and Noble website. This a version of Cinderella with a twist, and was a lot of fun to work on!

Moonbeam Children's Book Awards results are in!

Moonbeam Children's Book Awards 2008 results are in! And Corazón de Piedra (Heart of Stone in Spanish) won a medal!

Spanish Language Book

Gold (2): Ensonacion y el Jardin de Suenos/Dreamygirl’s Field of Wishes, by Jorge Betancourt Polanco (Stephens Press) and El tirburón que me enseñó ingles/The shark that taught me English, by Michelle Markel; illustrated by Bo Young Kim (Lectura Books)

Silver: Piedrin y Goliat: El Verdadero Heroe/Stony and Goliath: The True Hero, by David P. Alcorta; illustrated by Jill M. Schmidt (Book Publishers Network)

Bronze: Corazón de Piedra, by Ana Monnar; illustrated by Nancy Michaud (Readers are Leaders)

What an honor to have taken part in the making of an award-winning book!

Flower Dunny

My boyfriend, Marcin is practically obsessed with Dunnys: vinyl toys made by Kidrobot and designed by hip artists. Lots of Dunny aficionados like to customize Dunnys by painting them. This is my third, and most successful attempt.

Art Show at The Investors Center

I recently had an opening for a solo show I had at The Investors Center in Avon CT.

I'm in the background talking to Jim Wagner, another artist who has had a show at The Investors Center.

Mural at Beechwood

Me standing in front of the finished mural

I just completed my first solo mural project at Beechwood Rehab & Nursing Center in New London, CT. The Therapeutic Recreation Director there, Michelle Behr saw the mural Allison Valentine and I did last year and decided to offer a project to us. I ended up taking up the project solo, and after about a month of emails and sketches, I came to Beechwood and started the installation.

A close-up shot

It took about a month of painting, but the final product is pretty nice. The room is small, and the mural spans the length of it. It makes you feel surrounded. The residents at Beechwood were very pleased (they would often visit me while I was working and root me on).

Michelle decorated the room to match the mural, and created a little sanctuary for the residents at Beechwood. She really did a great job bringing the whole project together, and I'm so glad that she decided to have me work on it.

Lebanon Library Show Pictures

Marcin is making me laugh, but I don't remember what was so funny....

Equinox and the Arts XIII went very well. The opening was very enjoyable, and the show is still up until the end of the month.

To view the show, come to the library during normal library hours. They are posted on the library's website.

Jonathan Trumbull Library
580 Exeter Road
Lebanon, Connecticut 06249
http://www.lebanonctlibrary.org/

More Rabbits

"The End of our Bunny Friend" Acrylic on Bristol Board, 2007.

This is another bunny painting I made almost a year ago. It is interesting to compare it with the bunny painting I finished yesterday. Which painting is more interesting? The superhappy springtime bunnies, or the dead one?

I don't know, I just thought I'd post it.

Happy Spring!

"Vive Printemps"

Acrylic on Bristol Board, 2008.

Happy Spring!

While I love the winter, I am very ready for spring.

Yesterday was the first day of spring and it did not disappoint me. I was lucky enough to have the day off, and I took a (very) short walk. It was windy, but the sun was warm and the clouds were tall and puffy. I couldn't quite smell the grass growing yet, but I knew it was only a matter of time.

I finished this painting yesterday. I chose rabbits because they are a sure sign of spring. In the spirit of celebrating rabbits, I looked around youtube to find some cute rabbit videos. Here is my favorite video:

Two Chickens Break up a Rabbit Fight

Enjoy!

Equinox and the Arts XIII

"Salamander Love" Acrylic on Oak Plank, 2006

I will have "Salamander Love" on display at Equinox and the Arts XIII at the Jonathan Trumbull Library in Lebanon, CT.

The show will run from March 29th - April 25th, with a reception for artists and friends of the library on March 28th. Sorry that it's private, but I'll post pictures if I take any good ones.

To view the show, come to the library during normal library hours. They are posted on the library's website.

Jonathan Trumbull Library

580 Exeter Road

Lebanon, Connecticut 06249

http://www.lebanonctlibrary.org/

Uconn Alumni Show Picture

The alumni show was great. It was nice to see some of my former classmates, as well as a few new faces from the Uconn Illustration Department.

YAY!

Fun with clay

A bunny and a kitty, yet to be titled

My boyfriend, Marcin, and I made clay figures today. These are the ones I made. My concept was "skeletons dressed up in cute costumes". I was a lot of fun.

Corazón de Piedra (Heart of Stone in Spanish)

Cover art for Corazón de Piedra (Heart of Stone in Spanish)

My first book Heart of Stone, written by Ana Monnar, is now available in Spanish!

Corazón de Piedra, translated by Myriam del Castillo, is now available on the Barnes and Noble Website.

Check it out!

Uconn Alumni Show

Undead Fishes

Acrylic on Bristol Board

I will have artwork at yet another show in this month:

Afterlife: The first annual UConn Illustration Alumni Show 2008.

January 23-February 9, 2008.

Student Union Gallery

University of Connecticut

Storrs, CT 06269

The Closing reception will be on Thursday, February 7th, 6:00PM - 8:00PM.

Poster by Liz Gibbings

My submission, "Undead Fishes" is my interpretation of the afterlife.

My beta, Imposter Foster (the red fish), was found dead twice. The first time I found him dead, he was laying on the floor. He had jumped out of his bowl and was sticky dry, stuck to the floor. I peeled him off the floor, put him back in his bowl, and begged him to live. He twitched, swam sideways awkwardly, and eventually, he revived himself.

The second time I found him dead was when my apartment lost heat overnight. I wasn't home at that night. When I arrived at my apartment, Imposter Foster, and his two new friends, Greta (the silver fish) and Hazel (the dead fish that once was a suckerfish) were floating in the water, with the "death haze" that fish get when they die. I placed their jar in front of the space heater, and hoped. After a few minutes, Imposter Foster began to gasp. I was running late for work, so I left them. I knew Imposter Foster had a chance to live, but I doubted the other fish would make it.

When I came home, Hazel was still dead, but the other two fish were ALIVE!

That is it, my story of "Undead Fishes".

Enjoy!

Show at Cragin Memorial Library

I will have work up in the meeting room at Cragin Memorial Library in Colchester, CT for the month of January. The address is:

8 Linwood Avenue

Route 16
Colchester, CT 06415


Come check it out if you have a chance!