Designing Bookmarks

This is the bookmark I just finished designing for my newest picture book

Beware Beware of the Big Bad Bear.

We have our book launch at Octavia Books in New Orleans.  Saturday, October 13 at 1:30.

You can catch Dianne and I at the Baton Rouge Barnes and Noble...Citiplace

Friday, October 19 at 7pm. 

 We have lots of fun and ton of things for children to do.

I still have coloring sheets to create and puppets to create.  But all that is fun.  You will be able to download everything off my website www.maritagentry.com when I am through.  

Dogs

Why Dogs Are

Illustrations for a new project.  

This is not completely finished, but it is close.  I was a bit intimidated by the thought of painting clouds..with rainbows.  I wanted fun, something that would appeal to children, but still have a bit of artistry.  I think it is working.  In this project I want the emphasis to be on the light.  

I am going to do some more work on the rainbow, a little more work behind the dog, and maybe figure out if there is a shadow where it would fall or look like in the clouds.

Sharing what is going on in the studio today.  

Now...back to work.

Intention

Intention

Squirrel and Beau are frozen in motion as the intention of the Big Bad Bear is considered by all.  

 I thought this really fit the word for this weeks Illustration Friday entry. :)

As you can tell from my previous post the bear on the cover was taken from this page.  I like to use bits and pieces of the interior images on my cover.  My favorite is to do the cover last so I have every glitch worked out.  Unfortunately this time the cover was needed way before I finished the interior pages.  In fact I am still working on them.  Sigh...   (The sigh is not because I have work.  I love that, it is because I had to do the cover first.)  

Big Bad Bear

Working on another book.  This is the cover...the bear was purple and now he is blue. The name of the book is Beware Beware of the Big Bad Bear.

Finished color cover art.

Sketch with title text

I am struggling a bit with this book.  I am not a blue person, so the color composition on this book is a challenge to me.  I had initially created the bear purple, but the last few book covers have had a very strong purple, green and yellow color composition.  So went out on a limb and made bear blue....not sure yet.  

Dinosaur Mardi Gras

 

I am so excited!  This is the cover for Dinosaur Mardi Gras 

coming out Janurary 2012.  I LOVE how it turned out.  There 

is always that moment of nerves when you see how the publisher 

handled the font, the colors, etc.  This one is right on!!

Below if the complete cover jacket.  

You never get to see it all at once, 

but I think it looks great! 

This is such a fun book about the dinosaur Mardi Gras!  

It is a rhyming, chomping, stomping, good time

as the dinosaurs take over the parade.  Yea!

 

From the Sketchbook

 

New character in my sketchbook.  So I changed the focus of the blog to what is really going on "In the Studio".  Right now I am working on several projects at the same time.  This is a character for a story.  I decided to use a vaguely 1940's time frame.  I say this because he turned out really nice.  But....he was a little too perfect.  So I changed his shoes to be high top tennis shoes which would have really only been worn by a youngster in the 40's.  Now I like him even better.  Sigh...love it when a character cooperates.  Now Grandma is giving me trouble.  She is really bossy and she and I can't get her dressed just the way she wants.  Maybe when we get together I will let her make an appearance in my blog.

Winter

 Winter

The word winter brings a lot of memories and thoughts to mind.  

I grew up in the Missouri, so I enjoyed plenty of winter.

Snow men, snow fights, snow forts.  All great memories,

but I was a child.  I did not have to wash all the mittens, 

coats, wet socks that comes with winter and snow. Now I live in 

southern Louisiana, where there is colder weather, 
but not a true winter. 

I LOVE IT!

A couple of years ago a strange thing happened down here

we got 6 inches of snow in Baton Rouge, now that is strange.  

Thankfully it melted by the next day. (Phew)  

I had enough after about two hours.

BUT...the children around my neighborhood had the time of thier lives.

They had never experienced snow.  This illustration was inspired

by a friends photo of her little boy enjoying his first 

experience with snow.  There is a wonder to winter, 
especially if a person has never played in the snow...

I am just glad it doesn't come too often down here.

By the way Merry Christmas!

Phenomenon

Phenomenon

That a sleeping child (teen in this painting) looks so

innocent and lovely.  When five minutes after they wake you 

feel like they are an alien.  This illustration/painting was done 

from a picture of my daughter sleeping...the phenomenon of 

innocent beauty.  About 30 minuet before I took this picture 

the epitome of teen angst and rage. LOL

I can say that she is twenty now and a beautiful 

well adjusted lovely person...going to college, holding a job,

all the things you worry will not happen as you try to guide them 

through their teens

Burning

A candle burning on my cake makes me happy. 

It makes me another year older. Always a good thing.LOL

So I haven't blogged in a while.
I have been very busy and happy to be.  

But, even with the two deadlines coming
up I am going to try to stay a little 

more current on my blog.

Dessert

Dessert.

Lilly Mouse was excited about the sweet potato pie Ma Farmer had baked.

This was a gigantic dessert.  And like any good mouse she intended to eat the whole thing.

This is from The Gigantic Sweet Potato, which the publisher just received the other day.  I am waiting on my copies...can't wait to see it.

Immovable

Immovable

What I become when I see a smiling alligator 

and he is close enough to look me in the eye.

The alligator out of my first picture book "The Cajun Cornbread Boy"

Linked

For me, the only things of interest are those linked to the heart. -Audrey Hepburn-

This painting is done more like a illustration.  It hangs above my bed. 

It is done from the photo below it...(pretty obvious) our wedding.

The love of my life.( he truly is even if it is sappy ) 
Linked now for 23 years. LOL 
Don't worry if you have been married any 
amount of time you know that some days being linked is a trial.  
But over all he is a pretty great guy. (smile)

Dip

A dip in the pool is a great way to stay cool.

This is  a small illustration from a couple of years ago.  

It is my daughter in the pool.  I always thought her huge

goggles were funny.

Subterranean

Lily mouse found it was nice to have a 

subterranean house with mad max cat on the prowl.

Brave

You have to be a brave roach to ignore a hungry chicken.

The Library Poster without the words for 

"Madame Poulet and Monsiuer Roach".

The library poster says "Catch the Reading Bug"

Perspective

 

Ma Farmer changed her perspective on sweet potato 

nourishment after pulling this baby out of her garden.

An edited version of a page in

my new book "The Gigantic Sweet Potato"

coming this fall.

Propagate

Fanny knew without a doubt what her job was....propagate oak trees.

Everyone always thought she was forgetting where she buried her acorns.

Adrift

This disgruntled frog is adrift on a log in the foggy bog!

Muddy

Muddy.

When things get muddy little boys get happy.

We have had a lot of rain this winter down here in the far south.

The little boys in my neighborhood play football no matter what!

And have a blast!  They take off their shoes and socks and 

play in 50 degree weather barefooted in the mud.  

I enjoy watching them...laughing...running...fighting...  They are funny.

Clumsy

Are cats clumsy or curious?

Curiosity killed the cat...it may have just been plain clumsiness.