Here’s a great new post by one of my new friends (we just met in January!) and fellow illustrator Debbi Ridpath Ohi. She’s a one-woman writing, illustrating and blogging FORCE and now she’s using her SPARE TIME to get involved with some of the Red Cross effort to benefit the victims of Japan. Check this out:

So this new story I’m working on is about a little girl, an artsy little misfit in her community, who provides the only color in the book… until the end, when the others realize her potential and they join her in her technicolor world.

So the AIGA is planning to have a special event with Pentagram’s Michael Gericke called “Distilling Design.” The day after that, they’re opening up a special event to only 10 people to have a “morning after” breakfast with Mr. Gericke. I was asked to do an illustration to promote it, and I just loved the sexual overtones of an intimate morning-after breakfast. It was too much.

Earlier this week I was interviewed on WUWM’s morning radio talk show “Lake Effect.” It was a great experience as the host, Stephanie Lecci, asked a good number of interesting and pertinent questions about the nature of interactive books and reading. I also was given the opportunity to brag about my wonderful team, notably: Steve Dixon, Chris Roosen, and Andy Skinner. Props to the team!

Here’s the link to the podcast. This may only be live for a limited period of time; if you are reading this and it has been archived, please search WUWM Lake Effect podcasts (via iTunes or otherwise) for the February 2nd, 2011 show.

Enjoy!

Please be sure to grab a copy of today’s Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel to read my review of Dean Jensen’s show, Wisconsin Moderns. If you want to save time and paper, you may read it here online.

More importantly, get out to the gallery and see the show!

George Bernard Shaw once said, “If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it dance.”

Ever wonder about an illustrator’s methods? Feel my agonizing struggle (which paint to use? why is this stuff so damn shiny? how’m I supposed to scan this properly?) by visiting the Demibooks blog to see a step-by-step progression on one of the paintings.

Be sure to check out the Demibooks blog to enjoy reports of our progress on Astrojammies!

OK, I am so excited about the paper making studio that Dara Larson and Tori Tasch have set up and launched at RedLine (the multiple-artist studio where I am a resident). It’s totally amazing and it’s designed for holding recycling awareness programs for kids and community members to make beauty entirely out of post-consumer waste. Photos coming soon.