In the Studio

Europe

2011-11-01T15:29:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,

It has been August since I posted so I thought I better give everyone an idea as to why.

I have been traveling alot... and in October had the opportunity to go to Europe with my husband and daughter. What a wonderful trip. We really enjoyed ourselves despite the trials of public transportation. ha ha.

We landed in Paris and spent a couple of days there, then by night train (something to really think about) we went to Rome. I liked Rome, it was a bustling city, warmer and brighter. We saw so many things, but one of my favorite was St. Peter's Basilica.

After a couple of days in Rome we took a train(by day this time...much better) to Florence. Ahhh! I fell in love with Florence. It was smaller and just so much fun. After a few days of shopping, eating Italian food, and watching people we headed back to Paris on one of those dreaded night trains.

We spent the last day in Paris...which happened to be my birthday...then came home.

So the unforgettable things about Europe is the art and architecture. So amazing!

In Italy I found great shoes( I already have a thing for shoes).

I enjoyed the food, but I live in the deep south and I don't think anywhere in the world can create food like ours. Southern and Cajun people just know how to do things with spices that others do not. Overall it was a great experience. I loved watching other people go about their lives, seeing the similarities and differences.

Yes, This is the Mona Lisa...I am not a huge fan of the painting, but if you go to the Louvre, you have to see the most famous painting in the world.

A beautiful sculpture in the Louvre.

(My favorite museum was the D'Orsay, but no picture taking. So I have none to show. I do have to say that Van Gogh uses the most beautiful blue I have ever seen, and blue is not one of my favorite colors.)

St Peters Basilica...so amazing

A hall in the Vatican Museum that leads to the Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel...very cool.

Street artist in Florence. They had several groups, really lovely.

So that is a tiny tiny portion of the pictures I took. I think I took over 1000. LOL

I will be getting back into my routine and posting the things I am doing, teaching, and working on.

Dinosaur Mardi Gras

2011-08-03T11:24:00.000-07:00

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

2011-07-21T08:35:00.000-07:00

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.

Art Camp

2011-06-22T18:34:00.000-07:00

This painting is by a five year old.

I love the expressive paintings of children.

This painting is by a six year old.

These painting were completed by the students at the Walker Museum art camp.

They are really awesome! This is the alligator from my book

A is for Alligator Draw and Tell Stories from A to Z.

The students draw with me and then I demonstrate how I would paint the painting. After that I let the students go at it. My goal as a teacher in a summer camp is for the student to explore how it feels to paint, the colors they like, and even when how it feels when things get out of control. I am there just to be damage control. When a student doesn't like how something is going, I step in and offer solutions for them to try. This is a fun, no stress painting class.

A is for Alligator

2011-06-08T07:47:00.000-07:00

Click to Purchase

This is my newest book. I co-authored this book with Dianne de Las Casas. This is a book for teachers, parents, and even children. It is a "how to draw book". So, what makes it cool? In each exercise I start with a letter of the alphabet and create a animal out of each letter. The part I worked the hardest on is making sure the letters disapear when the drawing is complete. It is fun to have other students, parents, or friends try to guess what the letter was( the animal name matches, so that not to hard) and where it is in the drawing.

There is a story to go with each drawing. (Teachers this is really fun for your students.) As you tell the story you draw the next step. Dianne is responsible for this part and it is quite impressive. Why? Usually an illustrator gets the manuscript(or the words) for a story and draws the picture. In this book Dianne and I picked out the animals, then I created all the steps, and then she wrote the stories from the steps. It was the opposite, she had to write her stories to go along with the steps. They are very fun stories. In my mind that is really cool!

I created a book mark to showcases one of the stories. It is above. Because of space issues on the book mark I had to shorten the story just a bit. But hopefully you will get a good idea of how cool and fun this book is.

Shadows

2011-06-05T18:47:00.000-07:00

Hello all. I have been in the shadows of too much going on. But no excuses, it has been a very long time since I last posted. I created this blog for Illustration Friday and to create sort of a portfolio for illustrations. Since then I have created a website for the illustration part of my life. www.maritagentry.com That being said, I am going to change the focus of the blog. It will more of a reflection of the title, IN THE STUDIO.

I am a fine artist, teacher, and an illustrator. I group all those job titles under one heading of Artist. So the blog will be a weekly(hopefully), if not more frequent reflection on what I am doing In the Studio; painting, illustrating, creating lessons plans, student's work, ideas running rampant in my mind, bad ideas, sitting and staring into space, you get the picture. I enjoy all the aspects of my artist life and hope to share them with you. I am still posting this picture today to match the Illustration Friday word for this week.

Shadows

Dewey the dragon lurked in the shadow of the shelves waiting for Max to visit the library.

The illustration is the title page to There's a Dragon in the Library written by Dianne de Las Casas. It is my most recent book. It was released earlier this spring.
     I love this page. This page grew from a childhood memory of the library in Springfield MO. I was an avid reader and by the time I was eight or nine years old the books in the children section no longer held my interest. So, I began to sneak away after my mom would deposit me in the children section and see what other books were in other parts of the library. If ever I had seen a dragon looking back at me all my fears would have come true. I might have melted on the spot without him even blasting me with his temper.
    In There's a Dragon in the Library, Max (the little boy in the book) discovers the dragon, but also discover the dragon has a penchant for eating books. It is a fun tale that brings back many memories of trips to the library. What was lurking beyond the next set of shelves? Was it a dragon eating all my favorite stories, the librarian that knew I was in the wrong section, or just a really great story that would hold my interest for the afternoon?

Chicken

2011-01-16T15:53:00.000-08:00

Dandy Dude...I guess he really is a rooster.LOL

Drippin-with-Diamonds

Chicken

Don't be a chicken, wear bright clothes and

try to fly even though everyone says a chicken can't fly.

The bottom two painting are from a chicken series

I did several years ago. They are long gone and

all sold, but I keep all my images forever on my handy

dandy computer. So the author of

Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach saw them

and wanted Madame Poulet done in a similar style.

The top picture is Madame Poulet leaning out her

window first thing in the morning before the city awakes.

I like how sassy she looks. She belies the label...Chicken!!!

Winter

2010-12-24T21:15:00.000-08:00

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

2010-12-13T13:17:00.000-08:00

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

Prehistoric

2010-12-07T07:30:00.000-08:00

Prehistoric party animal...

ha ha ha...I am actually working on a book

full of dinosuars right now. This is the page

I just finished.

Savour

2010-11-30T07:00:00.000-08:00

In this crazy media induced world it is important to take time

savour the beauty of God's landscapes.

This is done from a photograph of West Virgina...in June.

The title is The View Beyond.

I know that as you crest that hill-mountain...

the view is astounding. But instead of painting the view I

I liked the idea of painting the mystery of it.

I believe we all could savour nature more.

Burning

2010-11-15T20:45:00.000-08:00

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

2010-09-08T17:26:00.000-07:00

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

2010-09-01T18:31:00.000-07:00

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"

Atmosphere

2010-08-21T15:50:00.000-07:00

Atmosphere
What most artist and illustrators are trying to achieve in
their work. This is a 15 minute sketch done in NYC last weekend.
I thought the sketch caught the quiet feeling of the street my hotel was on.
This view is from the little park at the end of the street.

So as you notice it has been a while since I have posted. I am
thankfully very busy and have two books due by the end of
December with a couple of dummies due and a couple of books
coming out! Phew! But I am trying to make time just for fun,
so here I am again. (smile)

Linked

2010-04-12T19:59:00.000-07:00

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

2010-04-07T06:36:00.000-07:00

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.

Rescue

2010-04-06T18:46:00.000-07:00

Rescue....

I know it is a week late

...vacations, deadlines, classroom visits,

but when in need always a friend to the rescue.

Expire

2010-03-25T19:59:00.000-07:00

I have a very bad habit of keeping my library books
till the due date expires. I have terrible fees all the time.
But my librarians still love me because they like my illustration.

They just look a little pinched when I turn in my expired library books.

I tried a new pen...don't know if I like it,

but here it is. I know I need to develop a black and white

portfolio, but I love color....may try this with color.

Subterranean

2010-03-15T19:48:00.000-07:00

Lily mouse found it was nice to have a

subterranean house with mad max cat on the prowl.

Brave

2010-03-06T12:43:00.000-08:00

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

2010-03-05T21:19:00.000-08:00

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

2010-02-25T20:46:00.000-08:00

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

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

Adrift

2010-02-19T19:29:00.000-08:00

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

Muddy

2010-02-08T17:53:00.000-08:00

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.

Focused

2010-02-04T17:31:00.000-08:00

Focused. Article than nap.

Clumsy

2010-01-27T18:37:00.000-08:00

Are cats clumsy or curious?

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

Wilderness

2010-01-22T19:50:00.000-08:00

I like to vacation in a cabin on the edge of the wilderness. Notice I said edge...(smile)

Confined

2010-01-22T19:47:00.000-08:00

I hate being confined to small spaces.

I actually am claustrophobic. Just ask my family. Even when I can't get a sweatshirt or sweater off over my head. It is not pretty. My mom has stories of me completely freaking out over having to get in an elevator. Thankfully I can manage that now, LOL, but I have to think about other things....not how the elevator works.

Renewal

2010-01-22T19:39:00.000-08:00

Napping is great renewal for the body, mind, and soul, especially with friends.

So the renewal of my goals are....do IF every week for all of 2010.

I am trying to keep each illustration in a 7x7 format, and hopefully with the same characters.

We will see how this stretches my time(when under deadline) and imgination.

So this is being posted three weeks late. LOL These goals of mine.

What fun!!!

Music - Music Makers

2009-11-20T11:31:00.000-08:00

Music Makers

I am kinda of cheating this week. All these are paintings. I have a a big deadline on a book, but could not resist adding my views on music. A language everyone understands. The first two paintings are of my husband, a musician. The first title...Banjo Blues. The second painting...Guitar Man a portrait of my favorite person in my favorite color. The third painting...Gedd. Just a friend that enjoys playing music also. I could do a whole gallery of music makers. I have painted them for years and will continue. They are always around the house.(smile)

Skinny

2009-11-02T19:53:00.000-08:00

A skinny cat always likes the idea of a fat mouse.

Fast

2009-10-28T20:04:00.000-07:00

Max was fast loosing his patience with the messy dragon!

Pattern

2009-09-28T18:39:00.000-07:00

A patterned poulet.

This is one of the very first paintings I did as a character study for Madame Poulet and Monsieur Roach, by Dianne de Las Casas, published by Pelican Publishing. This is a New Orleans folk tale about a hard working chicken and a roach that likes to party. Very fun book. I ended up changing the landscape to New Orleans so the barn got axed for a row house.

Infinite

2009-09-18T22:05:00.000-07:00

The lines never stop....the are infinite in my head.

Going... going... drawing... drawing. AUUUGHHH!

The plague of an artist. Smile!

Welcome

2009-09-11T15:47:00.000-07:00

WELCOME honey child....

A true southern welcome.

This is Ma Farmer from my third childrens book..."The Gigantic Sweet Potato" coming in the fall of 2010.

She is a mixture of several people I know. I just sent off the sketches to the publisher, and I thought she would make a great subject for today word.

Strong

2009-09-09T11:06:00.001-07:00

A Strong bond is not a tight grip.

Went back to my transparent watercolors. Just love what they do for me.
This is inspired by watching my daughter start college. I am realizing that any bond we have now is really free will on both our parts. We still have a great relationship, but it is hard letting go for both of us. We each want different things to stay same, but also like our different freedoms.

IF: Caution

2009-08-21T15:43:00.000-07:00

The cat and the dog used no caution as they howled at the circling bee.

I used a slightly different medium this week. I am not sure how I like it, but thought I would post it anyway. I usually work in transparent watercolor, this illustration is liquid acrylics like I use on my my canvas paintings. Hmmmmm, not sure.

Modify

2009-07-31T16:17:00.000-07:00

With a little imagination you can modify a cottage into a castle.

Hey all, haven't posted in a while, busy traveling this summer. Glad to be back.

Crave

2009-06-06T14:10:00.000-07:00

A crave for cookies leads to making cookies.

Adapt

2009-05-30T13:46:00.001-07:00

Gertie the garden gecko was always so impressed with her own ability to adapt to new situations.

This illustration just makes me happy.

There are many geckos or lizards in my garden, they are very adaptable, and spend a very harried lifetime keeping hidden from my three cats, Daisy, Sneaker, and Tarbaby.
There is also Gertie the garden gecko whom lives in my studio and at different times scares the life out of me as she dashes from one post to another. I have taken her back to the garden several times, but alas just the other day she scampered out from one set of shelves to behind my drawing table. Smile....so here she is.

Contagious

2009-05-17T12:50:00.000-07:00

Contagious...
"Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves."
(my favorite quote...it is painted on my laundry room wall just above the washer for me to see each day)
A mothers love....this illustration was done a while back with my mom in mind. She brought much love to our family, she gifted each child with creativity...and taught us to look for the beautiful things in life. I loved the word contagious....it reminded me of 'love" and the chicken pox. Ha ha. I thought about doing a drawing of my daughter when she was about 4 with chicken pox. she was still beautiful, even though she was covered with bright red spots. (smile)
Hmmmm! A mothers love.

P.S. I love all the comments!!!

Parade

2009-05-08T10:58:00.000-07:00

Dinosaur Mardi Gra Parade
Don't rain on the King of the Rex Parade. T-rex is King , but all the
dino's are in the mood for a little southern party parade.
This is an illustration for a book written by Dianne de Las Casas...titled "Dinosaur Mardi Gra"
it is actually two page spread, with fold in flaps. It was hard to get every character presented in this one painting. In the book there will be a page dedicated to each dinosaur.

Hierarchy

2009-05-01T17:53:00.000-07:00

Flower Garden Hierarchy
Seed...one flower...many flowers...equal flower garden.
The gardener is the top of the Hierarchy.
So... what is cool about this picture. It is one part of four. It is 4'x8' itself.
This is a collaboration mural between myself and the third grade class at Freshwater Elementary in Denham Springs, Louisiana. The order...1st, I work in the classroom with the students drawing. This mural we studied O Keefe. Each student creates four drawing...flower...bug...fairy...garden landscape. I teach basic art elements and drawing techniques as we draw these pictures.
2nd, I take all the drawings home to my studio and pick one drawing from each student. This class had a total of about 80 students...(4 separate classes)
3rd, I design the mural and create a scaled color rendering of the mural
4th, grid the rendering, and reproduce it on the mural
5th, students each paint with me 30 minutes on their particular part
6th, I finish any parts that are not finished and usually do the background. I add something of my own to each mural. This one it is the background landscape. The flowers, bugs, butterfly's, etc. were all drawn by the students. The other three parts are below.

Pretty amazing when you think about it...I am really careful to reproduce their drawings exactly like they do...color and all...We finished this mural today...Loved that it fit with IF.(smile) This mural is the 9th or 10th one I have done in a school. The total size 4'tall...32' long. This mural will hang outdoors in a garden that the students planted. It is very established and lovely.

Impossibility

2009-04-21T17:06:00.001-07:00

IF-Impossibility
At the moment pulling up the gigantic sweet potato seemed an impossibility.

Lucky this worked so well as I am pushing a deadline for a couple of projects.(smile)

This is a double page spread out of the next book from Dianne and I. I am currently working on Madame Poule and Monsieur Roach, a New Orleans folk tale. Yesterday I had that great feeling of reaching into the P.O. Box and getting that big yellow envelope that says contract! Yea!!
So...coming some time next year will be "The Gigantic Sweet Potato"

Fleeting

2009-04-11T06:22:00.001-07:00

The Goat and the horse had a fleeting moment of terror as the bumblebee gave them a buzz.

I love the goat in the picture. I had two goats when I was a child, and will always enjoy there playful personalities. My maiden name is Doolittle, so dad had sort of a Dr. Doolittle farm. We mainly had animals as pets, and we had a whole list of different kinds.

Didn't get last week by IF done because of a not so fleeting deadline with the next book. Am back on schedule and feeling much better about things.

Poise

2009-04-02T15:50:00.000-07:00

Poise
Her first formal gown gave Avril added poise.
I think a girl always feels a bit more poised in a beautiful outfit, no matter how tight or high the shoes are. Smile

Subtract

2009-03-20T21:29:00.001-07:00

Two friends subtract four front teeth equal fun.

2009-03-18T21:13:00.000-07:00

CAUGHT!!
The legendary Easter bunny painting the Easter eggs.
Now....I have always wondered where the idea of an Easter Bunny came from and why he delivers the eggs and not some chicken? Hmmm. So... I thought it kind of interesting to put the picture kind of framed, is the bunny part of the picture or is he. Is a legend true or just a story told over and over, or something really really famous and we aren't sure what is true and what isn't. That means we don't really know if the Easter bunny is true or not. You just think you buy your plastic eggs from Wal-mart. Smile

P.S. I love the look on the bunny's face. He is not sure if he likes his job, or hates being caught. Not sure there. I know.... this happens when you paint to much. Enjoy!

2009-03-10T19:20:00.000-07:00

Intricate
Intricate dance, Intricate designs. This piece is one of a series on chickens titled "Dancing Duel".
Watercolor and pen on bristol board. The fun thing is I created these highly designed chickens a couple of years ago, and the book that I am currently illustrating "Madame Poule' and Monsieur Roach" has a chicken as the main character. Yes...she has a very similar design to some of these paintings. (smile) Makes me happy.