Fred Final

Here is the final for Fred. I ended up using acrylic and colored pencil. As I said before, the lines are quite angular but I believe they will be diffused and softened to accommodate the script. Trying to get 2 pages finished each week. No more personal projects for awhile, but it will feel so good to have this job finished.

"My cat tree....mine", purred Fred.

Fred the Cat

Here is one of the full-page spreads from the children's book I'm illustrating.

First rough thumbnail

Felt like the cat and cat tree should be bigger in the foreground.

Somewhere in the approving process, it was decided that we need to turn the pages landscape direction instead of profile. Has taken some time to re-do.

Final sketch.

Putting down some pattern and value and light color in Photoshop. Keeping this page more monochromatic with some touches of color. 

Still felt the cat needed more contrast in size. Also added one extra toy.  

We'll probably be fading the background after I paint this to accommodate for script. There is alot in this book. But for now, will print this out on my over-sized printer on watercolor paper and get to work.

Cat Sketches

I have my first children's book commission. The author is a wonderful 72 year old lifetime educator. She's self-publishing which is an avenue many authors are taking these days. The title is A Grand Cat and it's based on the true story of Fred the cat. Right now I'm developing the storyboard and book dummy. I'm also playing around with the style and look of the illustrations. The author has given me a free rein in both. Right now, I'm simply studying cats and their expressions and anatomy. After I feel confident with that I will put the photo references away and develop a cat based on memory and characterization. That's the plan.

Yet Another Fred

One more of Fred to try out a mouse color. The mouse is roughed in to see if the colors work. I've had some feedback from concerned children that the mouse might be real so I went with the polka dots as well as a strong color to dispell any worries. Anyone who knows me, knows I would never put a dead mouse in any picture. (I even take spiders outside rather than kill them). Hopefully, I will receive approval for the picture soon and I can finish up in time for printing. Remember this is a photo; not a scan. Colors are slightly off due to lighting.

[EDIT: Author requested that I go back to the grey tones on the cat tree and I changed the mouse colors again. Sorry Erinne. Had to go with my instincts on this one].

Update on Fred

I decided to warm up the cat tree with some yellows and browns and it brightened up the picture. Added his collar and more detail throughout. Still working on fur and eyes. Now...the mouse. What color should YOU be??

New Book Cover

I have another book cover commission. This one is about Fred, A Grand Cat. I'm using pastel on an Ampersand panel. I first applied a coat of acryla gouache to define the background and the dark values on the cat. Next I began the application of the pastel, beginning with the harder, Nupastels and then followed with softer pastels. It may be messier than colored pencils but it's sure alot faster. I plan to finish the cat tree and mouse and then work on the background and fill in more detail on Fred on the morrow.