Animals

Drawing Horses

/ still a dreamer / 6 Comments

What to do when you’ve been too long away from one’s children’s book illustrations? Get back in! And sometimes how I get back in is to wade in – so to speak – with a totally different subject matter than that of my current children’s book.

I’ve just been thinking of horses for a number of reasons, so started to look through some reference material, deciding on a color photo of 2 mares and their foals. Simple pen and ink, something that I always enjoy working in and is a very relaxing medium for me.

The result – tada!

Feline Floor Ballet

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Some say it’s a lost art … floor ballet. Not true. But its practitioners – unfortunately for its admirers – tend to work in isolation rather than coming together in troupes, such as in formal ballet as we know it.

I am proud to say that I have one of those practitioners right here in my very own home, pictured performing the famed masterpiece, “Danse du Soleil.” Claude wasn’t always this talented. He spent much of his young dance career in awkward leaps, caricaturistic posturing, and mad dashes. It has only been in the last few years that he has been practicing and devoting himself to floor ballet. At first it seemed like he was mastering the art of relaxation.

I was wrong. Dance is his life. It seems, as he has matured, that floor ballet has become his everything. While it’s true that he has brought the art to sofa and bed, it is the floor ballet which is his heart and soul. The sun is his greatest inspiration, but he happily jetés on the floor under so many circumstances, he has simply become an inspiration.

Although the attached photographs are lacking in detail due to the brilliant sunlight, you can see the progression of movement, the grace, the utter joy. I am so proud to have a dancer in the family.

And here I thought I had nothing to write about today.

In Thanks to Those Who’ve Served

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Thanks to the brave men and women who have served this country in defense of our freedom, and those who continue to do so. We honor and remember you this Memorial Day.

Thanks also to the war dogs who have served this country since WWI, saving countless lives of our soldiers abroad, and still do today.

French Bulldog Art …. Applied

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It was most recently my pleasure to do a small portrait for a woman in Walla Walla, WA who inquired about my doing a drawing of one of her French Bulldogs for a new business card. Between running my own Graphic Design business and applying myself to my writing and illustrating of children’s books, I didn’t know if I wanted to do a portrait. It’s something I have put aside in the interest of focusing on my future in children’s books. But I felt called to do this and felt I was getting a nod from the Universe. It somehow seemed significant that Toni Myers lives out by two of my current favorite authors, Sherman Alexie and Patricia Briggs. Plus I knew it would keep me refining my French Bulldog art and drawing skills.

Toni sent me a baby picture of one of her French Bulldogs, Truman. Toni and her family have show Frenchies and a small, conscientious breeding program, We Be French Bulldogs. She asked if I might incorporate her favorite flower, a purple pansy, in the image. I accepted the work, and we had a great working experience. I loved doing the work – both the portrait and the business card incorporating it  – and she and her family loved the results. What’s more, I had the opportunity to work with a truly delightful woman who now will be a part of more of my own French Bulldog work in children’s books.

Such an arrangement had never crossed my mind; in fact, I wasn’t quite sure why this iniitally seemed such a good thing. But I do believe in synchronicity —  things align in time and space for a reason. Surely this was one of those events, and it put smiles on two faces clear across the country.

You can order Frenchie cards and other items here!

Note: All illustrations, drawings and photographs are © Jeanne Balsam and may not be reproduced in any format without written permission. Thank you!

No One Does It Like A Cat

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If you have a prescribed spot of sun and a cat, chances are the latter will find the former and fit right in it. It is the cat’s artistry to seek Ra and pour oneself into his shape.

Witness Mewsette below – the perfect cat in a light box.