Ashaway School Library: October 2018

It was a chilly, rainy Saturday, but there was lots of warmth and love inside Lincoln School yesterday! This annual gathering of authors and illustrators is an event that I look forward to all year long, and the deary weather in no way put a damper on the fun and excitement of the day's events!

I met Rosemary Wells!

My morning began with a presentation by the remarkably talented Rosemary Wells. The deep love that she holds for her work was readily apparent, and she offered a glimpse into her studio and habits. She begins each day with some painting "practice" by coloring in a line drawing of her characters. This steadies her hand and gets her into the right frame of mind. She played a sample of the Navajo flute music that she listens to and emphasized that all screens should be off! No TV, no iPad. She encouraged everyone to be "paying attention in a quiet environment and focusing on your work". (She repeated this idea multiple times, and it was clear that she was speaking to the adults just as much as to the children!)

She also focused on the importance of taking good care of your supplies and materials. She is meticulous, and I'll admit I was a bit jealous of how organized and neat her studio is. Hers is not a work space filled with jumbles of supplies! She retold a story of being in Japan and learning that, when given their first brush (actually, their only brush), the children spend the week painting with just water. This allows the focus to be on how to properly handle and care for this prized possession. A comparison was made between this attitude toward objects versus the more American view of items being disposable. Rosemary, it was clear, is a firm believer in assuring the longevity of her own brushes, and she explained that she treats them with Pantene hair conditioner once a week!

Rosemary included some fascinating information about her techniques when creating her illustrations. I've admired her work for years but never specifically noticed the interesting textures that exist in select areas. She revealed that she has custom rubber stamps created from images that she makes herself using a copy machine. She showed a handful of lentils that are spread across the glass and made into a black and white photocopy, and the resulting design was really unique! She's done this with a wide variety of objects including pine needles, brown rice, bird gravel, tapioca beads, and Cheerios!

Can you tell what type of cereal she used to create this stamp??

Just as fascinating, I learned how she applies the stamp to her painted piece in only the specific area she wants it to go. After the illustration is colored in, she covers it with a clear plastic called "frisket". It's sticky on one side so it doesn't slide around. Rosemary cuts away the frisket with an Exacto knife to exposed the area she wants to stamp, and the remaining frisket remains to mask the rest of the work. After stamping she peels away the plastic. She showed video of the process and it was really fun to watch!

Removing the frisket. The stamp that adds texture to the yellow dress was created using Cheerios!

She also uses frisket to create interesting backgrounds!

You can bet that I'll be looking at my Rosemary Wells collection with a much more attuned eye from now on! I wonder what other objects I'll be able to recognize in her textures?

I met Kazu Kibuishi!

I also had the pleasure of sitting in on a presentation by Kazu Kibuishi! He started off by showing a book trailer for the just-released eighth book in the Amulet series, Supernova. (It looks amazing!) He talked about his childhood, how he got into making graphic novels, and shared the process he follows for creating his books. He even did a live demonstration of how he "paints" his illustrations using a computer!

First he "sketches" an outline of the story

Next he creates "thumbnails" which he also calls "rehearsals"

Then he does "penciling" to make the final outlines. It looks like ink when it's done because he darkens the lines on a photocopier!

These were just a few highlights of my day. I enjoyed meeting other authors, too, and got some of our library's books signed as well!

It was an amazing day, and as always I send out enormous thanks to the remarkable Meagan Lenihan and all the folks who worked so hard to make the day happen!!!