The Bill Martin Jr, Picture Book Award was established in 1996 by the Kansas Reading Association. Since March 2018, the award became a statewide award presented by Emporia State University. As a lifelong Kansan, I am especially delighted to announce that my book, After a While, Crocodile is being considered for this award.
White-breasted Nuthatch Design On Products /
One of my favorite backyard bird visitors this summer was the White-breasted Nuthatch. There were two nesting pairs that foraged in our Maple and helped themselves to sunflower seeds at the feeder. When the fledglings arrived, mom & dad nuthatch modeled seed collection and cracking. The youngsters were gregarious, noisy, awkward, and impatient—not unlike adolescents of the human variety!
That's My Jam /
jam (slang) - Refers to something you really enjoy.
Step out in a tee that features your favorite activity.
Check out the “That’s My Jam” collection in my TeePublic and Redbubble shops to find a shirt with YOUR JAM. I’m adding new jams as quickly as I can, so if you don’t find what you’re looking for, drop me a line and let me know!
Three Versions /
This image has occupied my imagination for some time. I’ve been exploring various ways to tease it into reality using different mediums.
Digital
Cut-paper collage
Acrylic on canvas
The composition is my representation of a certain quarterback with seemingly unlimited ways of delivering the football; side-arm, down field, cross-body, shovel style… even behind the back. His on-field creativity has contributed to his team’s success and led to the Kansas City Chiefs’ 3rd consecutive Super Bowl appearance!
Prints of the acrylic on canvas version are available for purchase from my shop.
It's me—Picture Book Illustrator /
Here’s a short video introduction to me and my work as a picture book illustrator.
After a While, Crocodile /
It’s a book! After a While, Crocodile was a long time in the making. It went through many renditions and passed long periods resting in a drawer before morphing into the book it is today.
Kittiwake /
Question: What is a KITTIWAKE (ki’-ti-wayk)?…
A) the wave created by a catamaran sailboat
B) when a cat rousts you from slumber by licking your nose
C) a seabird in the gull family
Answer: C) a seabird in the gull family
Illustration from, After a While Crocodile.
Meet the Kittiwake and other critters in my next picture book, After a While, Crocodile. Coming August 6th from Familius Books!!! It’s available to preorder now!
House Finches At the Feeder /
House Finches At the Feeder
• acrylic on canvas
• 26 in. x 28 in. framed
This painting is inspired by the view from our dining room table. The room has a large window that provides a view of the backyard. A mere body’s length beyond the glass, a bird feeder dangles from a shepherd’s crook bird feeder stand. The feeder is a tube filled with seeds, surrounded by wire mesh large enough to allow access for the birds, and small enough to prevent squirrels (as clever and tenacious as they are) from reaching the seeds. In early summer, mom & dad House Finch bring fledglings to the feeder. My intent with this painting was not to realistically recreate the scene, but rather capture the flurry of activity as three or four House Finch families jockey for position at feeding stations.
There is a certain geometry I found interesting in this pseudo-natural setting—the square grid of the wire mesh, the circular openings in the cylindrical glass, the vertical pattern of the fence surrounding the yard. I also chose to incorporate subtle architectural elements as a nod to this species’ name, and its propensity to hang around suburban homes. There is a contrast and interplay between this geometry and the natural shapes of a juniper tree, a rose bush, curvilinear landscape beds, and dappled patches of sun and shade created by the maple tree presiding over one end of the yard.
Lemon-yellow patches of sunlit grass interlace aqua-green shadows. Dusty red finches and fuchsia roses contrast with emerald-green metal trim on the feeder. I placed one of the circular feeding ports near the center of the composition. It serves as an anchor for the surrounding action.
It’s not important to me that the viewer recognize birds and other elements in the painting. In fact, the painting’s title is the main thing that tethers it to reality. Rather, I hope to communicate a sense of ebullience—what I feel on a summer afternoon watching the House Finches at the feeder.
This painting is available for purchase at SNW Gallery.