Brownstones to Red Dirt Postcard Art Benefit

Benefit Auction a Success!!

2010-03-20T11:18:00.000-07:00

A week has gone by since the auction and we are busying packing up all the incredible art to ship to the lucky winners and still tallying up the numbers and the GREAT news is...

Our collective efforts have raised over $26,000.00!!

Not only will the new school for the kids in Freetown, Sierra Leone be built but it is, in fact, already underway!
(I'll write more as soon as we have updates..)
Also we are well on our way towards our financial goal for creating the library for the kids at The Urban Assembly School for The Urban Environment in Bed-Stuy, New York.

Thank you to ALL the contributing artists and all those who participated in the auction. Your generosity is not only inspiring but will go towards helping these kids build better lives.

If you were unable to win your bid on a postcard and would still like to contribute financially you can visit the Brownstones To Red Dirt help page and find out more.

Still a chance!!...

2010-03-15T04:51:00.001-07:00

One last postcard is still available in the auction!!!

By an artist one can never get enough of..

master illustrator Peter de Sève!

You have until TODAY..

THIS AFTERNOON at 3:26PM EST

at the same eBay auction link above..

Good Luck!!

Peter de Sève

2010-03-12T10:49:00.000-08:00

As promised, the final postcard has been delivered!!!
and one that you have all been looking forward to...

This beautiful watercolor comes from the hand of legendary illustrator and incontrovertible character designer Peter de Sève. A native of Queens, New York, Peter began drawing at an early age developing a love of comics and illustrated books. A graduate of Parsons School of Design in New York City, Peter's illustration and character designs are known throughout the world with work spanning three decades and various media, including books, print and television advertising, animated feature films and magazines. Best recognized for his many many New Yorker covers and his character designs for the three blockbuster Ice Age movies (“Scrat” is now an international icon), Peter also has been published in nearly every other major American magazine including Time, Newsweek, Atlantic Monthly, Smithsonian, Premiere and Entertainment Weekly. And, as one of the leading character designers in the animated-film industry, Peter has also contributed to such films as The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Mulan, A Bug’s Life, Tarzan, Finding Nemo and Ratatouille. As an illustrator Peter's many distinctions include the prestigious Hamilton King Award from the Society of Illustrators, a Clio Award for a Nike television commercial entitled Destination Moon, a Spectrum Annual of Fantastic Art Gold Medal and a Soleil d’Or Award from the Festival BD Sollies Ville in France. With his artwork included in many anthologies including the Sketchtravel art book and Out of Picture, Peter as well is always a generous contributor to many charities and benefits including the Totoro Forest Project, Help The Hodges, Prevailing Human Spirit to name only a very few. Currently living in Brooklyn with his wife, Randall with whom he recently collaborated on his first children’s book, The Duchess of Whimsey and their two daughters, Paulina and Fia, Peter has also recently published a tremendously beautiful volume of his artwork titled Peter de Seve: A Sketchy Past.

To view more of Peter's delightful characters and masterful illustrations please visit his blog and website.

Brownstones To Red Dirt Postcard Art Benefit AUCTION IS LIVE!!!

2010-03-06T12:55:00.000-08:00

Follow this link to our eBay Auction..

Happy Bidding and Good Luck!!

Chris Wedge

2010-03-06T08:57:00.000-08:00

This wonderfully whimsical illustration comes to us from artist and multi-award winning Director Chris Wedge. New York born and raised, with a BFA in Film from SUNY Purchase and an MA in Computer Graphics and Art Eduction from Ohio State University, Chris Wedge IS Blue Sky Studios. Whether as a director or an executive producer, his fingerprints are on every project the studio has ever done - as they should be, Chris was one of Blue Sky's original co-founders in 1987. As Vice President of Creative Development, the studio soon became known as one of the top computer animation studios in the world, a few of their early visual effects contributions include first their work in Joe's Apartment, then Alien: Resurrection, as well as A Simple Wish and Star Trek: Insurrection. Blue Sky's breakthrough came when Chris wrote and directed the multi-award winning BUNNY for which he won an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film in 1998. He followed up the impressive short with his first animated feature film, both Oscar and Annie nominated and a huge box office hit, Ice Age in 2002. As director of the visually stunning, Annie nominated film Robots and executive producer of all of Blue Sky's subsequent films, Chris has also been the voice of Scrat throughout the entire Ice Age film series, performing all the hilarious character's "squeaks and squeals." Currently Chris is directing Blue Sky's future animated feature LEAFMEN, a property he is developing with William Joyce based on Joyce's illustrated book, The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs.

Nash Dunnigan

2010-03-05T16:12:00.001-08:00

This beautifully inspired painting comes from the talented illustrator Nash Dunnigan, who was especially moved by the friendship between the two young artists, Malik and Balla, and created this piece to show the significance of their bond. The pen-pals' ability to peer over their global fences and empathize with each other could serve as models for a global community preoccupied with war and distrust. Raised in the rural (and often colonial) countrysides of Virginia, Nash graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1991 with a BFA, after studying illustration and film making. He arrived in Manhattan in 1993 and worked in the New York TV animation circuit for years as a designer, storyboard artist, and art director until 2003 when he came to Blue Sky Studios. Since at Blue Sky, Nash has designed and workbooked for Robots, Ice Ages 2 and 3, No Time for Nuts, Horton Hears a Who!, and the upcoming movie Rio. Nash art directed the short, Surviving Sid, and is excited to currently art direct a feature in production that will be released in 2112. He has been part of many art collectives, including both sequential anthologies Out of Picture 1 and 2, the Totoro Forest Project, and was included in the Society of Illustrators Sequential Annual 49. Nash has also contributed to the much anticipated Sketchtravel art book, and has had his work exhibited in both Paris and New York.

For more of Nash's art please visit his blog.

Malik Adamson

2010-03-05T04:47:00.001-08:00

This poignant card comes from Malik Adamson, one of the featured children in the documentary BROWNSTONES TO RED DIRT. A Bed-Stuy artist, Malik has an affinity for anime and hopes to use his talents to either be a professional artist, a photographer or a game designer, he has as he says, "backup plans." A self-described "kook," and now in 8th grade, Malik's art reflects his personality: effervescent and sweet, it shows a young man who seeks to escape a mundane (and sometimes harsh) reality through exploring worlds only found in his imagination.

Kyle Macnaughton

2010-03-05T04:40:00.000-08:00

Artist Kyle Macnaughton's beautiful diptych titled Movement gracefully speaks to the theme of this event. The fish represents the "movement" - a collection of many people’s efforts toward a cause - and in it’s wake stirs the many individual letters between the children in the film. Raised in Toronto, Canada Kyle was well on his way to a career in film when in his second year at Sheridan College, while studying towards his degree in Classical Animation, he also worked at Walt Disney Studios as a Layout Designer. Currently working as a Visual Development Artist at Blue Sky Studios, Kyle contributes his unique vision and painterly style in the creation of innovative environments and characters for animated feature films such as Ice Age 2, Horton Hears a Who!, Rio, and other projects that are currently in development. Contributor of a visually stunning story to the collaborative publication, Out of Picture 2, Kyle has exhibited original artwork in group shows in Paris for OOP2, and San Francisco for the Totoro Forest Project. All this AND resident tennis expert in his department at Blue Sky!

Rachel Tiep-Daniels

2010-03-04T15:38:00.000-08:00

Representing growth, giving and prosperity this lovely, intricately illustrated triptych, titled Arbre tordu, is by artist Rachel Tiep-Daniels who was inspired by a beautiful twisted old tree in front of the structure where the children currently attend school in Sierra Leone. Born in Los Angeles and raised Sudbury, Massachusetts, Rachel studied at University of Miami's School of Architecture and The Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale graduating with a degree in Computer Animation. With over 10 years of experience in the animation film industry, working for both Blue Sky Studios and DreamWorks Animation as a Visual Development Designer and 3D Artist, Rachel's film credits include Ice Age, Kung Fu Panda, Shark Tale, Monsters vs Aliens, Shrek the Musical, Puss n' Boots, Guardians and the upcoming Rio. Outside of her film work, one of Rachel's biggest accomplishments, which gave her a clear perspective and purpose, was volunteering at an orphanage in Ghana West Africa spending time drawing and coloring with the children. Upon her return, combining her passion for animation and art with what she had learned, Rachel co-founded the Picture Book Project Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit organization which gives artists and educators a way to help and inspire children in need. As President of the PBP Foundation Rachel co-created the Picture Book Project, a soon to be published coloring book, inspired by the orphaned children of Ghana and Tijuana and illustrated by 70 artists in the animation industry to benefit children in need around the world. Rachel, always inspired by her surroundings, is an inspiration to us all.

For more of Rachel's artwork please visit her blog.

For more information about The Picture Book Project Foundation please visit their website.

Balla Musa Tarawalie

2010-03-03T20:19:00.000-08:00

Cindy Nofziger of Schools for Salone, Copper Pot Pictures' partner in the effort to build a school for the kids in Sierra Leone, recently returned from her annual trip to survey the non-profit organization's many projects. While in the country, Cindy had a chance to survey the proposed site for the new school and meet with some of the children who will benefit from this auction. We sent Cindy with a package of 36 blank postcards and boxes of colored pencils for the kids at the Children in Crisis Primary School... Balla completed 27 cards himself!!
Below are just a few..

These spirited and imaginative illustrations come from Sierra Leonean student Balla Musa Tarawalie who appears in the documentary BROWNSTONES TO RED DIRT. The 15 year old student's love of his country is captured in his vibrant images of his neighborhood. Balla wishes nothing more than to be a professional artist and his inclusion in this auction is a huge step in that direction! As a baby, Balla's parents were murdered by rebels during Sierra Leone's civil war. Adopted by Ma Musu Tarawalie, headmistress of the Children in Crisis Primary School, "Aunty Musu" encourages Balla to draw and has instilled a love of peace in his heart. Though his pain rips him apart and makes him yearn for revenge, Balla uses his art as a way to reconcile the hurt from his past with his desire for a brighter future.

Marty Fuller

2010-03-03T14:36:00.001-08:00

Inspired by the children's stories in the Brownstones To Red Dirt documentary, this beautifully transportive and profound painting titled Peace is by artist Marty Fuller. Hatched and raised in Toledo, Ohio, Marty graduated from Ohio State with a film degree in 1983. Following college Marty co-founded Character Builders, helping it grow from a small commercial house to an award-winning go-to facility for studio feature animation and shorts and then ventured on to Sony Pictures, Blue Sky Studios, Illumination Entertainment, and other creative places. His life as an animator, sequence director, writer and story artist has enabled Marty to play a part in the making of 20+ features, working happily with Daffy Duck and Bugs Bunny, numerous Disney heroes and sidekicks, Horton, Sid the Sloth, Scrat and many of the nutty geniuses who populate the animation industry. Recently Marty helped make the feature length documentary The Cartoonist, about the life and work of Bone creator Jeff Smith. Currently a story artist on the future animated film The Lorax, Marty and his wife Debby are also hoping to see some of their books for young readers in print someday.

Joan Cabot

2010-03-03T14:32:00.001-08:00

Inspired by the Brownstones To Red Dirt documentary’s Emanuel, an aspiring electrician who brings light where there was only darkness, artist Joan Cabot submits this postcard titled Beyond Their Circumstances. Joan was born on the island of Mallorca, Spain and studied art and illustration at the Escola Superior de Disseny de les Illes Balears. He then enrolled in a course at the computer graphics lab at the Universitat de les Illes Balears where he spent many years first as a student and later as an instructor in the postgraduate program. After working for small studios in Spain, he moved to London and freelanced for animated TV shows, commercials and film preproduction. Then he packed his bags and headed for New York where he joined Blue Sky Studios as Lighter and Previsualization Artist on Horton Hears a Who!, Ice Age 3, Rio and a film currently in production. Joan has co-created 5 animated short films that have been selected in film festivals worldwide, and currently has his work included in a Universitat de les Illes Balears CG Retrospective that has just finished it’s run at the Museum of Modern Art in Mallorca and will open as ANIMAR-TE: 20 years of Computer Animation at the University of the Balearic Islands in Spring 2010 at the American University Museum's Katzen Arts Center in Washington D.C.

For more of Joan's artwork please visit his blog.

Marin Petrov

2010-03-03T14:15:00.000-08:00

Combining a love for painting and a keeness for all thing technical artist Marin Petrov, along with his wife, learned a bit about gear mechanics in order to create this delightful interactive postcard titled The Messenger. Marin was born and raised in a small peaceful mountain town in Bulgaria, then moved to Sofia to attend university as a law student. In his last year at the Academy of Ministry of the Interior he could deny his penchant for the arts no longer and dropped out to pursue a career in computer animation. He found work with Worldwide-FX as a Character Animator and Rigger, and his film credits include the latest Rambo, The Gene Generation, Lonely Hearts, Undisputed, The Expendables and Righteous Kill. Quite recently Marin joined the Blue Sky Studios team as a Character TD and is working on a film currently in production.

To see Marin's postcard in action, check out his YouTube video!

To see more of Marin's artwork please visit his website.

Robert Kondo

2010-03-02T23:34:00.001-08:00

The wonderfully humorous and expressive characters in this postcard come from one of the leading environmental set designers in the animation field, artist Robert Kondo. Raised in Hacienda Heights, California, Robert graduated from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, where he studied illustration and design with Norm Schureman. Robert worked as a sketch artist at graphic design studio, Oblique Strategies, and Angel Studios, where he met Warren Nung and Steven Olds, respectively, and who he cites as important influences in his professional career. In 2002 Robert joined Pixar Animation Studios as Sets Art Director assisting production designer Harley Jessup in designing sets and environments for the film Ratatouille. With additional film credits which include Wall-E, Robert has most recently worked on the soon to be released Toy Story 3 as a Sets Art Director. Outside of his day job Robert has contributed to the sequential art anthologies Afterworks and Afterworks 2, as well as the Totoro Forest Project, the highly anticipated Sketchtravel art book and Spectrum 15, to name only a few. Currently living in Oakland, California, in his spare time Robert also teaches at the Concept Design Academy in Pasadena and frequently shows his art in galleries and group exhibitons.

For more of Robert's artwork please visit his blog.

Tami Stewart

2010-03-02T23:27:00.000-08:00

From the imagination of multi-talented artist Tami Stewart comes this intriguing illustration titled Reaching For You which continues her series of artwork depicting tiny monks who endeavor to accomplish large tasks. Born in Japan and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Tami never trained as an artist. After college, upon reading a magazine article about dioramas at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, it was the beginning of her love of natural history museums. She made a bee-line for the Academy in San Francisco, started as a volunteer, and 20 years later continues to fabricate exhibits. As a core member of a team at Academy Studios in Northern California, Tami has contributed to exhibits at the Chicago Field Museum, American Museum of Natural History. Royal Ontario Museum, and MIDE Mexico City, to name only a few, and her sculptures and detailed exhibitry, although mostly anonymously crafted, is viewed on a daily basis by the thousands worldwide. An illustrator and painter as well as a sculptor, and recently contracted to illustrate insects, Tami is currently splitting her time between her inspired natural history sculpting, her beautifully detailed nature field guide paintings and helping organize this postcard art benefit!

Jerod Chirico

2010-03-02T23:21:00.001-08:00

This colorful, exuberant painting is from artist Jerod Chirico. Raised in the small town of Conesus, New York, Jerod, along his three brothers, grew up playing lots of soccer, running around in the woods, and drawing while watching his father draw, who supported his family as a freelance artist and designer. Attending Edinboro University of Pennsylvania, where he learned traditional animation from Professor Michael Genz, Jerod put himself through school working as a caricature artist in amusement parks for Kaman's Art Shoppes. Upon graduating in 2002, Jerod landed his first industry job as an as an Animator at DNA Productions in Dallas, Texas working on the television series Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius. Moving back to New York to work for Blue Sky Studios as an Animator on Robots, Ice Age 2 and Horton Hears A Who!, Jerod then transferred to the Story Department to work as a Storyboard Artist on Ice Age 3. Recently storyboarding for the upcoming feature animation Rio, Jerod is currently working on a film in development.

Tony Maki

2010-03-02T11:30:00.001-08:00

Inspired by the plight of rhinos that are hunted for their horns, artist Tony Maki contributes this beautiful diptych titled Dove’s Perch. Born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, Tony attended the Academy of Art University graduating with a BA in Illustration and Traditional Animation in 2001. Through college Tony supported himself as a UPS driver, after which he worked briefly as a designer/animator of hand held games. Then with the support of mentors he developed a few TV shows and worked on a variety of short films. Relocating to the East Coast, for the past six years Tony has been a Story Artist with Blue Sky Studios, where his film credits include Robots, Ice Age 2 and 3, Horton Hears a Who!, and where he is currently at work on the soon to be released Rio. A contributor to the Totoro Forest Project, Tony is also a freelance illustrator and animator who specializes in character based development and creation.

To see more of Tony's art please visit his blog.

Amy Pertschuk

2010-03-02T11:27:00.000-08:00

Inspired by her recent trip to the Galapagos, this piece titled PHATARIA UNIFASCIALIS is by award winning designer and internet entrepreneur Amy Pertschuk. Born in Portland, Oregon and raised in Washington D.C. Amy grew up inspired by spending many hours in the national museums. Moving across country to California, she studied Design and Illustration at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco and Parsons School of Design in Paris. In the 1980’s, Amy worked as a scientific illustrator at the California Academy of Sciences and illustrated several cookbooks including The Great American Seafood Cookbook and Ginger East to West. In 1998, Amy co-founded eNature.com, the Web’s premier nature-discovery resource. Most recently co-founding the Children & Nature Network with author Richard Louv and others, Amy is serving as C&NN's managing director.

For more information on the children and nature movement and Amy's current work please visit childrenandnature.org

Matthew Sharack

2010-03-02T10:39:00.000-08:00

Reflecting his obsession with the Victorian era and a love for architecture, this vibrant, imaginative piece is the work of artist Matthew Sharack. Born in Savannah, Georgia and raised on Long Island, as a kid Matthew was perpetually with pencil in hand and remembers being inspired by Looney Tunes and Disney. He attended New York University and found himself in the film school, Tisch School of the Arts, studying film, television and animation. His first job was working for Nickelodeon on Dora the Explorer painting backgrounds for the research department. After that Matthew packed his bags and headed to California in pursuit of animation work and found a job in the mail room at DreamWorks Animation. Still unsure of his direction, he found an artist there to mentor him and that’s when things took off. Working towards becoming a visual development artist while holding down a job in production, Matthew has been a Story Production Assistant on Shrek the Third, a Story/Script Coordinator on Monsters vs Aliens and currently an Art Coordinator on a film due to release in 2011. Having exhibited his art in group shows in the past, Matthew soon be will be part of a group show at GhettoGloss Gallery in Los Angeles this coming April.

For more of Matthew's art please visit his blog.

Sabrina de los Rios

2010-03-01T19:41:00.001-08:00

This lovely painting titled Serendipity is by the talented Sabrina de los Rios. Half Peruvian and half Italian, Sabrina was born in Miami and raised in Vancouver, Canada. Sabrina's passion for film led her to Vancouver Film School where she discovered the world of animation. While working there she was able to study various film courses most of which were in Acting and also led to part-time work as an actor. After spending 11 years at VFS as Registrar for Animation programs and then Program Manager for 3D Animation, she fled to New York for an opportunity to work as a Recruiter for Blue Sky Studios. Brown Stones to Red Dirt inspired Sabrina to return to her creative side and sparked a desire to do more. “It's important to always try to do something that takes you out of your comfort zone. By doing so, you will grow and be free.”

Vicki Saulls

2010-03-01T19:30:00.001-08:00

This subtly drawn portrait of the lovely Augusta, one of the children from the Brownstones To Red Dirt documentary who unknowingly has inspired so very many, is by an artist not often known for her 2-dimensional work, sculptor Vicki Saulls. Born in Idaho and raised in Georgia and California, Vicki began sculpting at an early age. Graduating with a degree in Art from University of California at Santa Cruz she left off any artistic pursuits for a number of years till an extended adventure on the high seas helped her formulate her artistic direction. Returning to San Francisco, where she resided the 20 years following, Vicki embarked on a career as a museum modelmaker and sculptor for natural history museums, aquariums and parks, and where her mostly anonymous work can still be viewed today at such venues as Monterey Bay Aquarium, Yosemite National Park, Papalote Museo del Nino and the National Museum of Natural History in Taichung, Taiwan. From this she easily transitioned to freelance sculpting for similar institutions, as well as awarded commissions as a public artist with many sculptures permanently installed in such locations across San Francisco as Union Square and Golden Gate Park. Besides helping to organize this postcard art benefit, Vicki now works as a Senior Sculptor for Blue Sky Studios sculpting character maquettes for their many development projects & feature films.

To see a glimpse of Vicki's public art please visit her website.

Andrea Offermann

2010-03-01T19:12:00.000-08:00

This delightful and delicate submission is by the prolific illustrator Andrea Offermann. Born and raised in Cologne, Germany, in 2005 Andrea received her BFA in Illustration at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California where she discovered her love for printmaking, fine linework, as well as nature and it’s patterns. In 2006 she returned to Germany and has since focused on her illustration and fine art, with illustration clients including FILU, Specler and Teaching Tolerance Magazine as well as being featured a number of other publications. Andrea's artwork has been shown in many group exhibitions including the Systema Naturae shows, Illustration West 47 show and the Quinquennium Exhibition all at Gallery Nucleus in Los Angeles, From Scratch show at the Chicago Art Source gallery, SK8 or Die show at Young Blood Gallery in Atlanta, Georgia, and most recently a series of paintings at the David B Smith Gallery in Denver, Colorado and the Society of Illustrators Exhibit of Illustrators 52: Sequential and Uncommissioned in January of 2010. Andrea has contributed to Flight 4 and 6, illustrated the German children's book Keine Angst vor Schafen and just completed illustrating the young adult steampunk novel The Boneshaker by Kate Milford which is coming out this spring. Andrea's focus in creating images is a combination of science and history with research playing a major role as she strives to understand a subject’s complexities, mythologies and characteristics. Currently working on a 2D animation short that will be presented at the end of April of 2010, Andrea is also working towards her next show Systema Naturae: Air which will be in Los Angeles in July 2010 at Gallery Nucleus.

To see more of Andrea's art please visit her website and blog.

Greg Couch

2010-02-28T15:13:00.001-08:00

This charming, luminous painting is by award winning artist Greg Couch. Born in Bettendorf, Iowa, this was where Greg spent the first eighteen years of his life, which he says explains many things. He began his illustration career in 1983 and as a published author and illustrator Greg has worked on fourteen Children's books including I Know the Moon and Halloween both of which received Society of Illustrators Silver Medal Awards. His most recent picture book, Nothing But Trouble: The Story of Althea Gibson won a 2008 NAACP Image Award. Greg has contributed to the sequential art anthology Out Of Picture, the Totoro Forest Project and the highly regarded and much anticipated Sketchtravel art book project. As a Visual Development Artist Greg has worked on three feature films for Blue Sky Studios; Ice Age, Robots and Horton Hears a Who! and is currently helping to develop future films for them. No longer in Iowa, Greg now lives in Nyack, New York and where he can be found working on many different projects.

Katie Smith

2010-02-28T15:05:00.000-08:00

This endearing piece is the submission of artist Katie Smith, a lover of all things superhero. Born in Virginia, Katie and her family moved to Germany when she was a child. She learned early on in life that drawing cartoons to make people laugh could avert attention away from her being the “new kid”, which helped when she and her family later on moved back to Virginia. Katie studied Studio Art and Art History, along with marketing, at The College of William & Mary. She then worked at Anthropologie where she drew on the dressing room mirrors with dry-erase markers when feeling bored and restless. Fleeing retail, she found work as a production coordinator at Pixeldust Studios, then landed her dream job at Blue Sky Studios where she is currently a Design Production Assistant. A contributor of her art to many collective projects including Purcasso, Terrible Yellow Eyes and The Picture Book Project, Katie’s work can also be found hanging on walls in the homes of her family members. A slew of Rockwell prints in her grandparents’ basement inspired her as a child, and being surrounded by the talent of her colleagues inspires her today.

To see more of Katie’s artwork please visit her blog.

Motoko Wada

2010-02-27T09:27:00.000-08:00

Inspired by the children interviewed in Brownstones To Red Dirt and their belief in communication, the talented artist Motoko Wada submits this hopeful piece. Born and raised in Okayama Japan, Motoko’s childhood was filled with doodling and creating a fantasy world with her sister. At Kyoto University she studied philosophy and literature, and found that philosophy and art are similarly rooted inside her. After university Motoko freelanced as a muralist and illustrator in Tokyo, then went to work for Tanseisha Co. Ltd. where she planned and designed public spaces, museums and theme parks all over Japan including the National Science Museum, Osaka Museum of Wine and Asaka City Historical Museum among others. While at Tanseisha, Motoko became fascinated by the visual impact and possibility of computer graphics and taught herself enough to open a CG department within the company. Her passion for CG took off from there and she returned to school in the United States to earn an MFA at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, California. This was followed by work at Giant Killer Robots as a Technical Director on Fantastic Four and Son of the Mask. In 2005 Motoko migrated east to Blue Sky Studios where she began modeling characters and environments for such films as Ice Age 2 and 3, and Horton Hears a Who! Outside of her work at Blue Sky, Motoko can be found working on a personal project, an animated short film.

To see more of Motoko's artwork please visit her blog.

Diana Diriwaechter

2010-02-26T17:28:00.001-08:00

These two lovely mythical storybook characters escaped from the mind of the versatilely talented artist Diana Diriwaechter. Born and raised in the Swiss Alps Diana found her way to the United States, settling in the Hudson region of New York State. During the day she works at Blue Sky Studios as a Materials Technical Director where she has contributed to movies such as Ice Age 2 and 3, Robots and Horton Hears a Who! Although Diana is mainly known for her fine art photography for which she has been recognized with many different awards such as a 1st and 2nd Prize from the prestigious International Photography Awards (Luci Awards), 1st Prize for The PX3 Peoples Choice Awards and a Merit Award chosen by Susan Kismaric, curator for The Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Diana has also received numerous Honorable Mentions from establishments such as the Black and White Spider Awards, Women In Photography International and The World Wide Photography Gala Awards. Diana's work can be found in many publications such as SPECTRUM 16 and Photographer's Forum Magazine's The Best of Photography 2009. Exhibited by many galleries both nationally as well as internationally, Diana currently has artwork on display in both Italy and Spain, and her upcoming Solo show at the UAG Gallery in Albany will be on display in November of 2010.

To see more of Diana's art please visit her website and blog.

Jing Wei

2010-02-26T17:18:00.000-08:00

This playful image comes to us from the heart of Bed-Stuy where Brooklyn-based illustrator Jing Wei lives and works. Born in a sub-provincial city in China, Jing was raised in the suburbs of Northern California. Her affinity for making prints like the one scene here was developed during her time at the Rhode Island School of Design, then honed in her many freelance illustration opportunities that have included American Way, Boston Magazine and Adult Swim. She has exhibited her art on both coasts, including in the Society of Illustrators Los Angeles Illustration West 47 Competition and the Museum of American Illustration in New York. Currently, she is in the process of working on a children's book and art directing a feature length film.

Please visit Jing's blog and website to enjoy more of her work:

Sally Dannels

2010-02-25T15:29:00.001-08:00

This lovely, inspired bird portrait is the work of the talented yet elusive artist Sally Dannels. A significant portion of Sally’s professional life was spent working for Academy Studios, where she was core member of a team designing and building natural science exhibits around the world, some museums she has contributed to as sculptor and muralist are the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, the Washington State History Museum, EcoCentro Argentina, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the Holocaust Museum. Always loving to paint whether natural history, portraiture, landscape or decorative, for Sally these all serve as vehicles for the expression of paint in all it's different applications. She loves the ongoing process of mixing color, the paint flowing from the tip of the brush. She loves the challenge of each painting, how the painting dictates the final outcome, what colors to use, what the composition will be, what elements to use. “A painting has a life of it's own; sometimes I feel as though I am merely a conduit delivering the vision.” For many years now, Sally has been a Senior Artist at Evans and Brown in San Francisco, and her murals can be seen from Las Vegas to Dubai to Macao.

Francis Vallejo

2010-02-25T15:28:00.000-08:00

Illustrator and comic artist Francis Vallejo submits this mysterious portrait. Born in 1985 in Farmington, New Mexico, Francis moved to Detroit, Michigan when he was three. Growing up on the infamous "8 Mile Road" had a profound impact on his interests and outlook. In high school the only thing that excited him was drawing, so upon graduation he enrolled at Ringling College of Art and Design in Florida. Originally a computer animation major, after 3 years Francis then switched to illustration and got back to drawing while supplimenting his education with classes at the The Illustration Academy. As an illustrator some of Francis' clients have included Vibe, Moloko+ and 2dArtist; while his artwork has been included in the Totoro Forest Project, Spectrum 14, 15 and 16, Society of Illustrators 51 and Society of Illustrators Los Angles 47, as well as exhibited in galleries and shows across the United States. Only a year out of school, Francis is looking forward to life’s many adventures and soon announcing his many developing projects!

For more of Francis' artwork please visit his blog.

Colin Jack

2010-02-25T15:25:00.000-08:00

The imaginative illustrator Colin Jack submits this delightful painting. Originally from Vancouver, Colin graduated from the Capliano Commercial Animation program at Capliano University in 2002. Two years ago he packed up his family and relocated to Toronto where he is currently working for Elliot Animation as Designer and Poser on Total Drama. As well an illustrator of children’s picture books, Colin's first, 1 Zany Zoo, will be released this coming summer and his second is in progress and due out in 2011 with a new publishing house. Towards the end of this year Colin plans to self publish his own art book (fingers crossed!) and when not drawing he loves spending time with his wife and 3 year old son.

For more of Colin's art please visit his blog.

Dan Barker

2010-02-25T15:18:00.001-08:00

Inspired by the masks of African art, Dan Barker submits this lively drawing. Born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa, as a child Dan always imagined that the masks he grew up with could talk and have conversations. A self-taught artist he learned animation on his own through Animationmentor.com. In South Africa he managed local artists for BMG Records, and also worked for a number of post-production facilities as a generalist. He then emigrated to the United States and worked as an In-Game Cinematic Animator on Uncharted Drakes Fortune for Naughty Dog. Following that he landed at his current location, Blue Sky Studios, where he has done both animation and rigging on Horton Hears a Who! and on the upcoming animated film Rio.

Xiangyuan Jie

2010-02-24T13:53:00.000-08:00

This beautiful landscape painting is by the immeasurably skilled artist Xiangyuan Jie, also affectionately know as "Master Jie". A native of Hunan, China, Jie received his formal art education in China, Europe, and the United States. In 1982, graduating with a BFA in Theater Set Design from the Central Academy of Drama at Beijing, Jie taught art and design at Hunan University and then studied and lectured at the Ecole Cantonal d’ Art de Lausanne, Switzerland. Upon immigrating to the United States, Jie taught at Auburn University in Alabama as a visiting professor and, in 1995, he received his master’s degree in Industrial Design from Georgia Tech. Following, Jie worked at Disney and Blue Sky Studios as a Background Stylist and Visual Development Artist with screen credits including Mulan, Tarzan, Lilo & Stitch, Brother Bear and Ice Age: The Meltdown. Published in Artist’s Magazine, International Artist’s Magazine and Southwest Art Magazine, in 1999 Jie received Third Prize in Artist Magazine’s Portrait Competition and his artworks have been featured in national and regional juried art exhibitions throughout the United States. A member of the Portrait Society of America, Oil Painters of America and Plein Air Painters of the West, Jie received Second Place in 2003 and the Honor Award in 2002 and 2005 at the Portrait Society of America's International Competition. His landscape paintings were selected into the Top 100 in the 2002 and 2003 Art for the Parks competition, and received the Landscape Art Award, the Grand Teton Natural History Association Purchase Award and the Judge's Choice Award. Currently living and painting full time in Atlanta, Georgia, Jie enjoys painting people from life settings and en plein air landscape on locations wherever he goes on the road trips.

To view more of Master Jie's art please visit his website.

Nate Wragg

2010-02-24T13:46:00.000-08:00

Contributing a painting of his signature "snow beast" this sweet submission is from artist Nate Wragg. Born and raised in the small town of Davis, California, Nate drew all throughout his childhood and in high school when he was introduced to the world of animation he was smitten. He eventually moved to Southern California where he earned an animation degree from Cal Arts. Nate interned with the James Baxter Animation studio in Pasadena, and then was hired on at Pixar Animation Studios where he worked as an illustrator and production artist with credits including Ratatouille and Toy Story 3. An illustrator for the children's book Too Many Cooks, Nate also contributed an illustrated story to the sequential anthology Afterworks 2, as well as authoring/illustrating several other books. He has contributed his art to the Totoro Forest Project, the We Love You So blog, and Terrible Yellow Eyes and his artwork has been shown with galleries in New York and Los Angeles, most notably the New York Society of Illustrators 50th Annual Exhibition.

For more of Nate's art please check out his blog.

Homer Flynn

2010-02-24T13:41:00.001-08:00

Enigmatic “Mr. Pickle Searching for a Gnome” is the work of the enigmatic Homer Flynn. Born in Shreveport, Louisiana in 1945, Flynn spent the first 24 years of his life submerged in the repressed, but charming naivete of The South. Seduced by the fantasy of easy living and loud music, he was unwilling to commit to the life of a concrete truck dispatcher attached to an unloved girlfriend and fled to San Francisco in 1969. Guilty, but free, he drank deeply from the cup of youth culture, ingesting, imbibing and experiencing any and all. Over the next 40 years, he was married twice, was proud to be a partner in the propagation of two lovely daughters, Jana and Isabelle, and became involved with the murky aesthetics of San Francisco's music, performance and video group, The Residents. As their chief visual designer and co-owner of The Cryptic Corporation, The Residents' business and public relations interface, Flynn has been involved in nearly all of the group's improbable projects since the early 1970's. Currently, he lives in San Francisco with his charming wife, Leigh Barbier. Flynn also claims himself to be the inventor of the shower-bath.

To learn more about The Residents you can visit their blog.

Heather Shepherd

2010-02-24T13:37:00.000-08:00

Heather Shepherd's spirited illustration captures a moment between Gladis and Augusta, two Sierra Leonean girls who turn to dance to forget their troubles. Born and raised in Columbus, Ohio, with a passion for animals, art, and performing, Heather's path to animation was a windy one. Graduating from Ohio State University with a B.A. in Zoology/Anatomy and Theatre, her first job out of college was for an animator's dream employer, Disney. But Heather wasn't an animator, she was hired to do dolphin and marine mammal care and training at Disney's Living Seas. While there, she was allowed to take drawing classes at the animation studio and soon found herself working on Mulan as a traditional animator and went on to work on films such as Lilo and Stich, Tarzan, Brother Bear, Fantasia 2000 as well as various other short films. Heather then made the move to Los Angeles, working at both Dreamworks and Warner Brothers before hired on as a modeler and sculptor for Jim Henson Studios. Presently in New York she has worked for Blue Sky Studios since 2004 on Ice Age: The Meltdown and is currently working on Rio. Heather continues her passion for theater by directing and performing in various improv shows in Manhattan and will be directing a stage spectacular in the near future.

For more of Heather's artwork please visit her blog.

Matthew Wilson

2010-02-24T13:32:00.000-08:00

This lovely painting which is an homage to our native Hudson River School masters is by artist Matthew Wilson. His image of a young explorer, exploring his world is imagined like Huck Fin, a mischievous loner searching for tall tales and grand characters. Born in sunny LaJolla, California and raised in Buffalo, New York, the son of a research immunologist and neonatal nurse, Matt went to a small but extremely unique high school in Buffalo with the intentions of becoming an architect but shifted gears dramatically and decided to join the Army. Upon leaving the army Matt moved to Florida to study computer animation at Ringling School of Art and Design. While in school he spent a summer in New York City at Parson's studying figure painting and fell in love with it. Since then, his path has been two sided with digital art supporting a deep passion for classical dutch oil. At present Matt is a Lighting Artist at Blue Sky Studios and also the Lead "Sky-Guy" with quite a few film credits under his belt. When not at his day job Matt spends every second with the love of his life, Alexandra, and his beagle Daisey Mae.

For more of Matt's art please visit his website.

Alena and Ryan Tottle / Peter Kelley Studio

2010-02-23T10:20:00.000-08:00

Today we have a very special submission to our Postcard Art Benefit from the gifted dynamic sculpting duo, newlyweds Alena and Ryan Tottle. This exceptionally impressive sculpture entitled Pen Pals is based on the Brownstones To Red Dirt poster illustrated by the talented Willie Real. Though not a postcard, Alena and Ryan's sculpture beautifully captures the essence and spirit of the boys from Willie's original design. Not to be forgotten, the precise molding and casting of this piece was also donated by Peter Kelley of Peter Kelley Studios. We are all so very honored to be able to include this brilliant sculpture as part of the benefit and applaud the artistry and PHENOMENAL effort that went into it's creation.

Alena Tottle
Born in Mississippi, Alena moved across country to Colorado where in 2004 she graduated from Metropolitan State College of Denver with a bachelor's degree in Business Management. It wasn't until her senior year of college she realized her passion for clay. A self-taught sculptor, Alena spent her time learning as much as she could from sculpting forums and sculptors in the industry, including the deviant art community, which helped her land a sculpting job with Blue Sky Studios in New York at the end of 2005. Currently creating character maquettes for films in development, Alena's film credits include Horton Hears a Who!, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and the soon to be released Rio. She has freelanced with DC Comics and has contributed her sculptures to many other charity auctions and events such as the Totoro Forest Project and Beautiful Grim. Alena's sculpture has also appeared in the fantasy art annual Spectrum 14 and in the Society of Illustrators 3rd Bienniel Dimensional Exhibition in New York City.

To see more of Alena's art and sculpture please visit her blog.

Ryan Tottle
Ryan was born in South Wales, United Kingdom. After receiving a BA Honors of Animation from Glamorgan Centre for Art & Design in 2005, Ryan started working as a traditional sculptor throughout the UK and Europe. He has created prosthetic makeups for Various BBC Productions such as Dr Who and Torchwood and as well as on location in Madrid, Spain for the recently released film, La Herencia Valdemar. A guitarist and enthusiast of the visionary art movement, Ryan now lives in New York with his wife Alena where he is currently hard at work transitioning into the digital realm creating models and sculptures in Maya and Zbrush.

Peter Kelley
These beautiful maquettes were molded and cast at Kelley Studio in Mount Kisco, New York by toy-prototype sculptor Peter Kelley and his colleague, Shalon Palmer. Peter started his career in art at New York City's School of Visual Arts and now has more than a dozen years experience sculpting toy prototypes for major toy companies like Hasbro, Fisher Price, Mattel, to name only a few. Besides his expertise sculpting in traditional materials such as wax and clay, Peter specializes in high-quality digital sculpture utilizing all the current digital platforms to create exacting replications. As well, he enjoys casting the detailed, terrifically sculpted maquettes that come to him from the talented people at Blue Sky Studios.

For more from Peter please visit his website.

Wilson Swain

2010-02-22T10:59:00.000-08:00

This wonderful painting is the contribution of a tall man with a sharpened pencil and a permanent expression of mild surprise, illustrator Wilson Swain. Ever the imaginative artist, Wilson has been an illustrator at heart since he was a child growing up on the prairie of Illinois. Graduating from University of Indianapolis with a BFA in Graphic Design, Wilson moved to California and garnered an additional BFA in Illustration from Art Center College of Design. Still in Southern California, Wilson is a freelance illustrator with several books published including his most recent through Chronicle Books, the pop-up The Castaway Pirates by Ray Marshall and the musical A Nutty Nutcracker Christmas by G. Riley Mills and Ralph Covert. Wilson has shown in galleries across the country and always enjoys a good yarn-- especially when it involves animals in clothing... or yarn!

For more of Wilson’s art please visit his website.

Lorraine Rocha

2010-02-22T10:57:00.000-08:00

Thinking of all the fun things one can do with a pen pal, this lively painting is by artist Lorraine Rocha. Though she always loved to draw and paint, Lorraine originally studied for a completely different career graduating from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with a Bachelor's Degree in Architecture. After working in the field of architecture, and constantly drawing her co-workers while in meetings, Lorraine was convinced by her sister and brother-in-law (Annie and Colin Fix) to pursue her true calling and so enrolled in San Jose State University's Illustration and Animation Program. Upon graduating Lorraine worked in the art department at Industrial Light and Magic and contributed to movies such as Ironman and Miracle at St. Anna. Currently a freelance concept artist in Las Vegas, Lorraine most recently worked on 2K Games' Bioshock 2.

To see more of Lorraine's art please visit her blog.

Leigh Barbier

2010-02-22T10:49:00.000-08:00

With this intriguing diptych titled Twins we enter an imaginary world called Mushroomville created by the talented Leigh Barbier. Graduating from San Francisco State University with a BFA in Art, Leigh's professional life started as a modelmaker for natural history museums contributing to the exhibits at the California Academy of Sciences, Oakland Museum and Tilden Nature Center. Moving into the film industry, she began as a moldmaker on James and the Giant Peach, which led to opportunities as a model maker and sculptor at Industrial Light and Magic and Tippet Studios. Encouraged to try her hand at digital work, she transitioned her career to digital painting at ILM where some of her film credits include Avatar, Star Wars: Episode II and Episode III, Pirates of the Caribbean, Iron Man, Star Trek and Transformers. Leigh is credited for illustrating artwork for much of The Residents discography and she actively exhibits her drawings, paintings and sculpture in galleries and shows throughout the United States. In Leigh’s Mushroomville only women and girls reside, while men live in Sugarhill. Segregation is especially difficult for the Twins, so they try to do their chores close to the border of these two territories where they can visit and discuss their observations.

For more of Leigh’s art please check out her website.

George Cwirko-Godycki

2010-02-22T10:40:00.000-08:00

This colorful submission, from artist George Cwirko-Godycki, is reminiscent of the moment when the children wrote their first pen pal letters. With only their preconceived notions of zebras and giraffes roaming the plains, the kids in Brooklyn opened their lives to potential friends waiting an ocean away with a simple, "Dear Friend." A Bay Area native, George recently graduated from the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. More of George's illustrations can be seen in his self-published sketchbook which was released last summer. Currently residing in San Mateo, California George is working away on a new illustrated book.

Please visit George's blog to see more of his artwork.

Andrew Coats

2010-02-22T10:36:00.000-08:00

This postage stamp inspired illustration titled Leon is by artist Andrew Coats. Born in Peru to a Colombian mother and a Scottish father, Andrew was raised all over the world. He has lived in Portugal, Venezuela, London, and came to the United States at the age of 16. Having a love for film and art since a young boy, but unsure of how he was going to apply that to a job, Andrew opted for a liberal arts education at New York University. Once there he very quickly learned about the animation department of Tisch Film and Television at NYU, where he could combine his love for both. Upon graduating, Andrew started out as a Designer, Modeler, Rigger and Animator on the Disney TV show Little Einsteins, followed by work at Blue Sky Studios as an animator on Horton Hears A Who!, and Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. Currently at work on Blue Sky's next film Rio, Andrew is an Animation Character Lead on the main character Blu.

For more of Andrew's artwork please visit his blog.

Cory Godbey

2010-02-22T04:52:00.000-08:00

This sweet and playful submission comes from South Carolina artist Cory Godbey. Cory has illustrated picture books and book covers for Oxford University Press, Random House, and Thomas Nelson to name a few, and has worked on several animated shorts and commercials with clients including Prudential Insurance, Microsoft Zune, and Xbox. He has contributed to the acclaimed Flight graphic novel anthologies with his first story Walters appearing in Flight 6, and in 2008, Cory was accepted in the Society of Illustrators 50th Annual of American Illustration. In early 2009 Cory founded the popular Maurice Sendak tribute site Terrible Yellow Eyes where professional artists from all over the world contribute works inspired by Where the Wild Things Are. Currently an illustrator, animator, and writer for Portland Studios, Cory seeks to tell stories with his work and likes drawing monsters.

To see more of Corey's art please visit his blog and to see more of his Marurice Sendak tribute please visit Terrible Yellow Eyes.

Tony Jung

2010-02-21T12:24:00.001-08:00

From artist Tony Jung come this sweet and heartfelt painting. Born in Seoul, South Korea, Tony emigrated to the United States when he was 5 years old and grew up in New York City. After graduating from University of Michigan, he worked on Wall Street as a lead developer in financial derivative-based systems. Memories of drawing all his life and dreams of working in the film industry spurned Tony to start teaching himself 3D animation, and eventually he left Wall Street to chase the dream. He successfully landed a job at Blue Sky Studios, and as Modeler and Lighter his film credits include Ice Age 2 and 3, Horton Hears a Who!, and Surviving Sid. Tony has also freelanced for PSYOP, has done concept and character design for video games, and is currently Art Director and Lead Game Designer with his innovative start-up game company. If you look carefully, you can spot Tony on the subway in New York City with a sketchbook in hand, drawing away.

For more of Tony's art please visit his blog.

Ryan Wood

2010-02-21T12:18:00.001-08:00

From artist Ryan Wood comes this beautifully rendered portrait. As a teenage skateboarder Ryan was more interested in the art on the decks and stickers than the sport, and was later thrilled to discover that people actually got paid to draw. A combination of Looney Toons and his dad, the art teacher, inspired Ryan's path as an artist. After graduating with a BFA in Illustration from Utah State University, Ryan found work as an artist with a videogame company. From there he learned animation, 3D modelling and texture painting, and his game credits include the Tak and the Power of Juju series (THQ/Nickelodeon), Chicken Little, and Meet the Robinsons (Disney). Currently working on a new project with Avalanche Software where Ryan splits his time between concept art, texture painting and creating imaginative caricatures.

For more of Ryan's art and illustrations please visit his blog.

Lizette Vega Biancalana

2010-02-21T12:08:00.001-08:00

This lovely portrait is the work of artist Lizette Vega Biancalana. Originally from the San Francisco Bay Area, Lizette graduated from San Jose State University's Illustration and Animation program with a BFA in Art. After graduating she worked for Electronic Arts and did a stint with Hallmark Cards designing christmas ornaments. Currently in New York working as a Designer and Visual Development Artist with Blue Sky Studios, her film credits include Horton Hears a Who!, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and the soon to be released Rio. Lizette's illustrated story Crawdaddy-O is part of collaborative sequential anthology Out Of Picture Volume 2, and her artwork has also been included in the Out of Picture exhibit in Paris and the Totoro Forest Project art auction. Besides being an avid sketcher, Lizette and her husband are working on writing and illustrating children’s picture books.

To see more of Lizette's art please visit her blog.

Dan Santat

2010-02-21T12:02:00.001-08:00

This bold, mask inspired contribution comes from award winning children's book author and illustrator Dan Santat. Dan, who graduated with honors from the Art Center College of Design, is creator of the Disney animated series The Replacements. As a commercial illustrator his clients have included Macy's, Scholastic, Harpercollins, Wall Street Journal, and The Village Voice, among many others; and as a children's book writer and illustrator some of his book titles include The Guild of Geniuses, Chicken Dance, and the Otto Undercover series written by Rhea Perlman. Living in Southern California with his wife and two kids, Dan will soon be releasing his graphic novel, The Domesticated Four in spring of 2011.

To see more from Dan please visit his website.

Jacqueline Jones

2010-02-21T11:58:00.001-08:00

The artistic Jacqueline Jones works in production management at Blue Sky Studios, but she shows off her artistic chops here with this graffiti inspired image of a boy reaching up to paint Africa. Jacqueline's choice of spray paint as a medium was inspired by the graffiti that both plagues and highlights Bed-Stuy. A born and raised New Yorker, Jacqueline originally set out to be a costume designer, earning a degree in Fashion Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology before going on to receive a secondary degree in Art History and Costume Design from Purchase College State University of New York, otherwise know as SUNY. Prior to moving into animation, she worked in the wardrobe department on live action films such as The Night Listener and Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus. Though she continues to have a strong love for fashion, design and art, Jacqueline feels lucky to have the opportunity to pursue her passion for management in such a creative environment as Blue Sky Studios.

Shaun Cusick

2010-02-21T11:54:00.000-08:00

Alien Pen Pals was inspired by the sci-fi movie posters Shaun Cusick watched growing up on Long Island, New York where, between sci-fi flicks, he found time for drawing, camping and playing the tuba. With a BFA in Illustration and Graphic Design from Pratt Institute Shaun started his career as a graphic designer but changed direction to freelance sculpting and model making for television and f/x film projects. He returned to Pratt to learn computer animation, and it paid off. Employed at Blue Sky Studios almost since the beginning as a maquette sculptor and Senior Modeler, Shaun has worked on Alien Resurrection, Bunny, the Ice Age movies, Robots, Horton Hears a Who!, Gone Nutty, No Time For Nuts and Surviving Sid, and most recently as Lead Character Modeler on Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and the studio's next picture, Rio. Somehow, he still finds time to draw, sculpt, model aliens, monsters and tikis while simultaneously renovating the 1920s American Craftsman home he lives in with his wife, children and cats.

More of Shaun's artwork can be seen on his blog.

Colin Fix

2010-02-21T11:47:00.001-08:00

Colin Fix's illustration captures the boundless joy felt by the students when their letters finally finished the exhausting journey from Africa to America (and vice versa). After graduating from San Jose State University’s Illustration and Animation Program, Colin began his career as a traditional animator for The Learning Company and as an assistant concept artist for Industrial Light and Magic’s Art Department. Since then, his work has spanned videogames, film and even the card game Hecatomb with clients that include Wizards of the Coast, Electronic Arts, Planet Moon Studios, Shabba Games and Konami, to name a few. Colin's art has appeared in the fantasy art annuals Spectrum and Aphrodisia and, most recently, he's lent his talents to the smash hit 2K Games' Bioshock 2 and has worked on Beowolf and A Christmas Carol, legendary director Robert Zemeckis' most recent forays into animation.

For more of Colin's art and illustrations please visit his blog.

Moby Francke

2010-02-20T14:58:00.000-08:00

This lovely gem displays artist Moby Francke's mastery of simple stylized forms and colors. Originally from the small Caribbean island of St. Thomas, Moby trained at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco where he studied illustrative fine art. Upon graduating Moby worked at Lucas Arts as a conceptual designer, and taught figure painting at his alma mater. In 2002, Moby joined Valve Software, one of the leading video game studios, where he is currently an Art Director and Lead Visual Designer and was responsible for developing the unique art style of Team Fortress 2. The game proved highly influential in the industry and received critical acclaim for its art direction and visual design garnering a Visual Effects Society Award nomination in 2007 for Outstanding Visuals in a Video Game. Winner of several prestigious art awards, including two New York Society of Illustrators Competition Awards, Moby also contributed an artwork to the Totoro Forest Project in 2008. Presently Moby divides his time between Seattle and New York City, where he drew inspiration for this Brownstone to Red Dirt project as well as for his own personal work.

To see more of Moby's art please visit his website.

Oriol Hernandez Sanchez

2010-02-20T14:37:00.000-08:00

Capturing a Brooklyn scene this painting comes from the brilliantly talented Barcelonean artist Oriol Hernandez. Graduate of Escola Joso in Spain, Oriol began his career in animation, working on Filmax Animacion's films Nocturna and the whimsical award winning Donkey Xote, a comic retelling of Miguel de Cervantes classic tale. He also added his touch to Hampa Studio's, Margarita which won the 2010 Goya Award for Best Animated Short Film. Oriol's published and soon to be published works include his contribution to Javier Aznarez's acclaimed comic collaboration Pigeon Verts, illustrations of the french comic SuperH (or in french, SuperG) with Albert Drandov, illustrating the children's picture book A Mi No Me Gustan Libros written by Joan Portell Rifà and La Enciclopedia de los Monstruos, a series of children's stories written by different illustrators of which Oriol contributed his story El Zombie Vicente both to be published by Bromera editions. Currently at work illustrating a project with french author Zidrou entitled La Piel del Oso, Oriol is also busy developing designs, illustrations and stories for his own personal projects.

Please check out so much more of Oriol's art at his blog.

Grace S. Lee

2010-02-20T14:16:00.001-08:00

This charming painting was inspired by a letter illustrator Grace Lee had folded up on her desk ready to give to a friend. Born in Taiwan and raised in Los Angeles, Grace had an inclination to fold paper in front of her since she was a child when she would retreat from boring adult dinner conversation to fold chopstick wrappers into whatever she saw in her mind. By night's end, she'd have a belly full of food and a menagerie of chopstick-wrapper animals and flowers. A Graduate of Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, Grace works as a production designer at Crest Animation Studios, freelances as a children's book illustrator and has contributed her art to the Totoro Forest Project. Currently finishing her own children's book, Grace says she likes meeting people in her travels, baking cookies and still enjoys origami.

Please visit Grace's blog to and website view more of her art.

George Fuentes

2010-02-20T14:09:00.000-08:00

This simple sensitive image by Los Angeles artist George Fuentes reminds us that from the chaotic abstraction of the world, a simple gesture like saying hello can and does make a difference. In this case, children from opposite sides of the planet communicate through simple words and share ideas which mold new healthy minds for a great generation to come. George grew up fascinated with the activity of drawing and its ablility to communicate abstract thought. After receiving his BFA from Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles, he entered the commercial industry as a concept artist and quickly began to mold new ways of viewing our world through advertising. George's ideas have served clients such as Toyota, Xbox, Audi, Coca Cola and many more and he has worked alongside such studios as Psyop, National Television, Elastic Studios and Hornet. Currently George continues to freelance throughout Los Angeles and New York.

For more information on George's artwork please visit his website.

Ricardo Curtis

2010-02-20T14:00:00.000-08:00

Ricardo Curtis may just be the busiest man in animation. In addition to being the founder and president of House of Cool, he has over ten animated feature films to his credit, such as Monsters Inc. and The Incredibles (Pixar Animation Studios), The Iron Giant (Warner Bros. Feature Animation) and Horton Hears a Who! (Blue Sky Studios) as animator, supervising animator, story artist and head of story. He has also taught Animation at Sheridan College and has served as guest speaker at numerous schools and venues.

Ricardo's postcard isn't his only contribution to BROWNSTONES TO RED DIRT. As president of House of Cool, Ricardo and business partner Wesley Lui were essential in the making of the film, offering both creative and financial support through every stage of the documentary.

To learn more of about Ricardo check out House Of Cool's website and blog.

Harold Hasselback

2010-02-20T13:52:00.001-08:00

Enigmatic and surreal, this submission titled The Tooth Collector comes from artist and musician Harold Hasselback. Originally from Tampa, Florida, Harold attended Ringling School of Art and Design. He then went on to pursue music with his band Hankshaw, and from 1996-2004 the band recorded and released several records and toured the United States. An appreciative critic described a recent album as "... an upbeat amalgam of pop anthemics, electronic textures, Beatle-esque harmonies and warm liquid disco.” In 2005 Harold relocated to Atlanta, Georgia where he rediscovered his passion for art; and in 2007 has since returned home to Tampa where he is currently working on another release with Hankshaw and enjoying the process of drawing and painting.

To see more of Harold's art please check out his blog.

Bob Camp

2010-02-20T13:25:00.000-08:00

This poignant moment from the talented Bob Camp captures Malik, a student in Brooklyn known for his self-proclaimed kookiness and love of art. Bob is a cartoonist/illustrator, comic book artist, writer, story artist, designer, director and producer who is revered in animation circles for being one of the creators of The Ren and Stimpy Show. He has worked on many TV series as well as feature films for such studios as Warner Brothers, Blue Sky Studios/Fox and Nickelodeon. Nominated for two Emmys, a Cable Ace award, and an Annie for his work on Ren and Stimpy, Bob has also been an illustrator at Marvel Comics on many comic titles including GI Joe, Crazy Magazine, Marvel Age, Bizarre Adventures, Savage Tales, The Shadow, Conan the Barbarian and The 'Nam, as well as covers, comics and editorial illustrations for Family Weekly magazine and The National Lampoon. Presently developing concepts for film, TV and the internet, Bob can also be found at Blue Sky Studios as a story artist for a feature film currently in development.

You can view more of Bob's artwork on his blog.

And please go to these pages to learn more about his impressive history and filmography.

Gwynne Simmons

2010-02-20T13:20:00.000-08:00

This adorable piece is the work of artist Gwynne Simmons. Gwynne studied computer animation at Ringling School of Art and Design, then later discovered she was more interested in illustration and design. Currently Gwynne is an Animation Technical Assistant at Bluesky Studios where her film credits include Horton Hears a Who!, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, and the upcoming animated feature film Rio. Gwynne draws and paints whenever she can, finding inspiration from the talented people who surround her as well artists from around the world.

You can see more of Gwynne's artwork on her blog.

Rafael Zentil

2010-02-19T11:13:00.000-08:00

With this wonderfully vibrant painting titled Bed-Stuy Kickflip we are transported into the imagination of artist Rafael Zentil. A native of Southern California, Rafael was raised on a steady diet of skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding and playing guitar in punk rock bands. At the ripe age of eight, Rafael began taking oil painting classes, as a teen he made short films with super 8, video, and animation, and as a starving college student he worked as a portrait and caricature artist at Disneyland, making thousands of visitors from all over the world laugh and cry. He went on to receive a BFA from Cal State Fullerton University and started his first animation gig in 1999 as a character designer on the TV series Rugrats, where for fun, he used to "sneak in" his friends as background characters for many of the episodes. After transitioning into the story department, he storyboarded on an Emmy Award winning Rugrats episode for Outstanding Children's Animated Program. He also worked on Rocket Power, As Told By Ginger, and pilots for Klasky-Csupo. During this time, he also exhibited a series of paintings in Los Angeles art shows. In 2003, Rafael moved to New York to join Blue Sky Studios as a Story Artist. His contributions can be seen in Robots, Ice Age: The Meltdown, Horton Hears A Who!, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and the upcoming 2011 release, Rio. In addition to the features at Blue Sky, Rafael is also co-directing a new short film within the studio.

For more of Rafael's art and sense of humor please visit his website.

Brittnie Bruner

2010-02-19T11:07:00.000-08:00

The beautiful fluid movements of Augusta's dancing, as well as her love for patterning and monsters, inspired design and storyboard artist Brittnie Bruner to contribute two lively illustrations. Just this last year Brittnie graduated from San Jose State University with a concentration in Animation and Illustration. While attending school she received the great opportunity to go to Blue Sky Studios for a storyboard internship and completed an internship at PDI/DreamWorks as well. Currently back in California, Brittnie is working on various creative freelance projects and her own graphic novel while trying to break into the entertainment industry.

You can see more of Brittnie's artwork on her blog.

Stephen P. Neary

2010-02-19T11:02:00.001-08:00

This sweet painting, by the very funny multi-award winning artist and filmmaker Stephen P. Neary, is based on a still from his short short titled Let's Make Out. A graduate of New York University, Stephen is a Hoosier-born, New York-based animator and story artist. His student short, Chicken Cowboy, won Best Undergraduate Film, Best Director, and Best Screenplay at NYU's First Run Film Festival in 2009. It later won The Grand Jury Prize for Best Animation at AFI Dallas Film Festival and was screened at the Director's Guild of America, on top of screening and winning additional awards in numerous film festivals nationwide. Stephen has worked as a Story Artist at Blue Sky Studios since Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, where he is also developing his short film. Stephen spends his nights working on new shorts, doodling his thoughts, and feeding his turtle, Dr. Geranium.

You can view more of Stephen's work at his blog.

Karen Disher

2010-02-19T10:56:00.000-08:00

Capturing Malik's expressive energy, this spirited illustration is by artist Karen Disher. As a child in Alabama, Karen, who studied traditional 2D animation at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, never would have imagined that her love of drawing gross and obscene cartoons would one day help her land her dream job as a layout artist on MTV’s Beavis and Butt-Head. While at MTV, Karen became part of the original development team for the series Daria, designing the main characters and creating the overall look of the show. And, as Supervising Director for four seasons, she directed many episodes as well as both Daria movies. A story artist at Blue Sky since 2002, Karen is currently Head of Story on the upcoming Blue Sky feature Rio, and is also developing an original short film with the studio.

Tom Wichitsripornkul

2010-02-18T10:45:00.000-08:00

Inspired by Augusta's dancing from the Brownstones To Red Dirt documentary, this beautiful, expressive submission entitled Dance comes from artist Tom Wichitsripornkul. Born and raised in Bangkok, Thailand, Tom came to the United States in 1994 to study animation at William Patterson University in New Jersey. He worked for R/GreenBerg Associates in New York, then moved to Blue Sky Studios where, as a Materials Technical Director, Tom's film credits include Ice Age I and II, Robots and Horton Hears a Who! Meanwhile he studied painting at the National Academy School of Fine Arts in Manhattan. Since then Tom has relocated to the west coast to join the Pixar team in northern California where he contributed to the multi-award winning animated film Up and is currently working on Brave as a Shading Technical Director.

Sho Murase

2010-02-18T10:43:00.000-08:00

Titled Hope this lovely graphic piece is by Japanese-Korean artist Sho Murase. Sho grew up in Spain, studied graphic design, fine art, cinematography and psychology, then received a 2D Animation Degree from the Vancouver Film School. Working in the animation and advertising industries in both Europe and the United States, Sho's clients include Nike, Virgin, Mattel and Evian, as well as Sony, Electronics Arts and Virgin; and her animation work has been nominated in animation film festivals such as Annecy, Zagreb, Mendrisio and Chicago International Animation Festival. Sho's first color graphic novel SEI was published by Image Comics in 2003, since then she has created ME2 and illustrated over a dozen graphic novels including the adaptation series of Nancy Drew, currently in volume 20. She has exhibited in galleries around the world, including the German Film Museum in Frankfurt and the Louisiana Modern Art Museum in Denmark, and will soon be exhibiting in a two person show at the Bluxome Street Gallery in San Francisco, California in April 2010. Sho claims to be “the ultimate couch potato who sits around all day and night, takes long naps, watches reality TV, and does not work at all. Like NEVER.”

To see more of Sho's art please visit her website and blog.

Lee White

2010-02-18T10:41:00.000-08:00

This endearing, wishful watercolor is by Portland based illustrator Lee White. After graduating with honors in 2003 from the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, Lee signed with noted artist agent Shannon Associates in New York and has been busy illustrating for a wide variety of clients ever since. Some of his clients include Simon and Schuster, Disney, Penguin Publishing, National Geographic, Apple Computer, Scholastic, among others. Lee also enjoys teaching and is currently an instructor of advanced illustration and concept design at the Art Institute of Portland. Currently working on his tenth children's book, Lee is also in the process of writing his own stories.

To see more of Lee's art please visit his website.

Melanie Martini

2010-02-18T10:40:00.000-08:00

This whimsical piece by Melanie Martini captures the meaning of "long distance" pen pals. Melanie grew up drawing, and started as an illustration major at FIT before graduating with a BFA from the Art + Design school at SUNY Purchase College. She got her start in animation working as an inker and background painter on commercials and TV Funhouse at Tapehouse Toons. Melanie moved on to work on a pilot for Cartoon Network and credit designs for The Lizzie McGuire Movie before finding her current home at Blue Sky Studios, where she has been for the last seven years. Currently working as a set dresser, Melanie's film credits include Robots, Ice Age 2 and 3, Horton Hears a Who!, and the upcoming Rio.

To see more of Melanie's art visit her brand new blog.

Scott Gustfson

2010-02-18T10:37:00.000-08:00

This luminous painting titled Dear Friend is by illustrator Scott Gustafson. Scott’s earliest artistic ambition was to become an animator, but by the time he entered high school he became acquainted with great illustrators like Wyeth, Rockwell, Parrish and Rackham who continue to inspire him today; however, lingering dreams of making animated films led Scott to major in animation at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts. As a freelance illustrator Scott’s client list over the span of 25 years has included Celestial Seasonings, Playboy Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, The Bradford Exchange, Dreamworks and The Greenwich Workshop. His illustrated books include The Night Before Christmas, Peter Pan, Nutcracker, as well as two original titles, Animal Orchestra and Alphabet Soup. Scott's book, Classic Fairy Tales was awarded a Chesley Award for Best Interior Book Illustrations from the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists and his latest release, Favorite Nursery Rhymes from Mother Goose, features over 45 color illustrations and won a Silver Medal for Best Children’s Picture Book by the 2008 Independent Publisher Book Awards.

Visit Scott’s website to see more of his artwork.

Lincoln Agnew

2010-02-17T10:47:00.000-08:00

This inspired illustration is by artist Lincoln Agnew. Raised in a cozy Canadian home full of guinea pigs and ninja doodles, Lincoln decided to pursue a career in the arts after being awarded the 21 CRAYON SALUTE in Grade 3 for eating the most art supplies. Eventually Lincoln went on to earn degrees in both Illustration and Photography from the Alberta College of Art and Design. As a freelance designer, illustrator and photographer his work has been seen in various magazines, television shows and hundreds of stores worldwide. Most recently Lincoln was honored in New York with The Founders Award by the Society of Illustrators for his artwork on his first picture book, Harry and Horsie. Currently Lincoln is working on his second children's book with Katie Van Camp and the talented team at Balzer + Bray / HarperCollins.

To see more of Lincoln's artwork please visit his website.

Vadim Bazhanov

2010-02-17T10:45:00.001-08:00

This amusing diptych titled Deer In Their Natural Form is by the talented Vadim Bazhanov. Born in Kiev, Ukrane, Vadim came to Canada at the age of eight years old. A graduate of Sheridan College's Animation Program Vadim's short film titled Fresh Eggs screened at the Ottawa Animation Festival, and the 2009 Sprockets Animation Festival in Toronto. Upon graduating Vadim worked as a designer at House of Cool in Toronto for a brief time before offered a job as story artist at Blue Sky Studios where he is currently storyboarding on the upcoming animated feature Rio.

For more of Vadim's artwork please visit his blog.

Kevin Hawkes

2010-02-17T10:43:00.000-08:00

This whimsical painting comes to us from award winning illustrator and author Kevin Hawkes. Born in Texas, raised in an old house in the middle of the French countryside and many libraries around the globe, educated at Utah State University, Kevin is the illustrator of over 45 acclaimed picture books for children and young adults including multi-award winning and NY Times Bestsellers, Library Lion, Chicken Cheeks, and The Wicked Big Toddlah. Most recently in New York, Kevin was awarded The Silver Medal in the Society of Illustrators 2009 Juried Art Show for his artwork from Chicken Cheeks by Michael Ian Black. Kevin's vibrant colors, unusual perspectives, and dry sense of humor are all hallmarks of his illustrations and paintings. A frequent presenter at schools and conferences, he enjoys sharing his work with adults and children. Kevin now lives in Maine where he enjoys writing and illustrating picture books as well as gardening, hiking and exploring the coast.

To see more of Kevin's art and illustrations please visit his website.

Marceline Tanguay

2010-02-17T10:41:00.001-08:00

This humorous painting is by artist Marceline Tanguay. Growing up on the French island of Montreal, Marceline studied violin and ballet for many years before finding her passion in the visual arts. At Sheridan College she graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Animation and made the short film Taste of Glory, which was screened at the Ottawa Animation Festival in 2007. Beginning her professional career Marceline worked as a character design intern on the soon to be released Toy Story 3 at Pixar Animation Studios, before she later moved to New York City to join the art department at Blue Sky Studios on their upcoming film, Rio. Still at Blue Sky, Marceline is currently designing for their next feature films and shorts.

To see more of Marceline's illustrations and paintings please visit her blog.

Dave Strick

2010-02-17T10:40:00.001-08:00

Titled Wonder, this pensive painting is the contribution of Dave Strick. Raised in Brookline, Massachusets, Dave graduated from Connecticut College with a BFA in Painting and won Best Student Animation at the Zoom In Awards, for his college thesis. After college he spent time at Croog Studios as an intern, then at the Architectural Body Research Foundation in New York as a Visualization Artist before landing at Blue Sky Studios where he is today. As a Modeler Dave's film credits include Ice Age 2 and 3, Horton Hears a Who! and Rio, and he is presently on a project currently in development. Outside of work he enjoys travel, painting, digital sculpting and creating animated shorts.

Check out more of Dave work at his blog.

Sylvain Marc

2010-02-16T12:04:00.001-08:00

This delightful, comic inspired illustration is by French artist Sylvain Marc. Born in 1982 near Paris, Sylvain received an illustration diploma at L'École Supérieure Estienne in Paris and studied animation at École des Gobelins. During his course, Sylvain co-directed Cocotte Minute, one of the opening short films of Annecy 2006 and Fertilizer Soup, a limited animation short commissioned by French television channel, Canal J. Both films were selected and awarded in festivals around the world, including Annecy, Ottawa and Siggraph. After getting his diploma, Sylvain was recruited by Framestore CFC in London to work as 3D character animator on commercials, music videos and the feature film The Tale of Despereaux. Sylvain then joined London based Cartoon Network Europe's development studio where he has worked on the development of several new TV shows concepts, from story to design and animation, and is is currently developing his own project for the channel. On the side, Sylvain works as a free lance illustrator and comic artist in the United Kingdom and France.

To see more of Sylvain's artwork please visit his blog.

Tommy Duy Nguyen

2010-02-16T12:00:00.000-08:00

This amusing painting is from artist Tommy Duy Nguyen. Raised mostly in Houston, as a child Tommy saturated his brain with cartoons and comics, watching old Tom and Jerry, Droopy, and Warner Bros. cartoons and reading comic books galore, as well as tons of books on animals where he developed a particular love for turtles. Though he is a freelance illustrator for local artists and writers, Tommy mostly spends time on his art for himself, drinking lots of coffee, drawing in his sketchbook, designing characters and plots for the children's stories he has in mind and hopes to one day publish. As well, Tommy has the hope to someday work or collaborate with the dynamic duo, artists Vince and Peter Nguyen!

To see more of Tommy's art please visit his http://shoot-dang.blogspot.com/.

Marco Bucci

2010-02-16T11:57:00.000-08:00

This nature inspired painting is by Canadian artist Marco Bucci. Marco received a BFA in Film Studies from Ryerson University. After a stint as a Color Key Artist for CORE Digital Pictures and freelancing as a matte painter and concept artist at various other animation studios in Toronto, such as Digital Pictures and Nelvana Ltd., Marco landed at Pipeline Studios where he currently is an Art Director and Lead Matte Painter. Outside of his day job Marco is a dedicated fine artist. He is a commissioned portrait artist and is close to publishing a book consisting of a collection of his personal illustrations. Marco considers himself a lifetime student of painting, and when he’s not at work he can usually be found outdoors doing nature studies, or in the studio painting from a live model.

For more of Marco's art please go to his website.

Limbert Fabian

2010-02-16T11:51:00.000-08:00

This submission entitled Shine comes from illustrator/designer and motion director Limber Fabian. Born and raised in New York City, Limbert studied at Ringling School of Art and Design with the intention of becoming an animator, though found illustration and the ability to utilize different mediums seemed to offer him the best opportunity to find a voice. After an exciting career start as a freelance illustrater for the likes of Playboy, The Village Voice and Scholastic Books, Limbert continued to dabble with the moving picture and eventually found a home at Reel FX Creative Studios where he was able to blossom as a director and is currently Creative Director and as well Head of Design at their satellite studio, Radium. Limbert's work has been published in American Illustration, Society of Illustrators and Communication Arts, has had three one-man shows, and his commercials have aired on TV. Having pondered the core idea of this project, Limbert concluded that these young kids are all bright young minds sometimes buried under adversity -- truly diamonds in the rough, and all they need is for someone to let them shine.

To see more of Limbert’s work please go to his website.

Annie Fix

2010-02-16T11:46:00.000-08:00

This joyful mixed media piece by illustrator Annie Fix incorporates her passion for sewing and design. With a life-long calling to be an artist, Annie started very young finding drawings her older sister, Lorraine Rocha, had done and tried to learn by copying them. Though discouraged to pursue art by her parents, Annie eventually graduated from San Jose State University with a BFA in Illustration and Animation; whereupon she interned at Slave Labor Graphics, was an Art Assistant in Industrial Light and Magic's art department, and then moved on to freelance as a Concept Artist for the likes of Ubisoft, Stormfront Studios, and presently for 2K Games. Having just recently finished working on characters for Bioshock 2 and Annie is now onto the next 2K project. A very full-time mother to a busy 3-year-old boy, 8-month-old girl, and 8-year-old stepson, Annie also somehow finds time to develop her own art AND contribute to benefits and art auctions such as ours!

To see more of Annie's art and related projects please visit her blog.

Michael Knapp

2010-02-15T11:59:00.000-08:00

From Michael Knapp comes a delightful tryptich titled Trans-Dimensional Kleenex Communicators. A Pittsburgh native and graduate of Ringling School of Art and Design, Michael’s career path as an artist has been a windy one with experience ranging from mural painting to designing for newspapers, from after-effects animations for the History Channel to commericial storyboarding. Though initially Michael's focus was on illustration, he eventually took on some concept design assignments and discovered that creating artwork for animated films is his true love. Michael started as a designer with Blue Sky Studios in 2000, with movie credits including Robots, Ice Age 2, and Horton Hears a Who!. His first credit as art director was for the Academy Award nominated short No Time For Nuts and he then went on to art direct Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, and is currently doing visual development on one of Blue Sky's upcoming feature films. Michael's artwork can be found in The Art of Robots, Spectrum 12 and 13, the Totoro Forest Project, as well as the Society of Illustrators Annuals 48 and 49. His illustrated stories Newsbreak and Under Pressure: A Breakerboy Chronicle are featured in the comic anthologies Out of Picture Volumes 1 and 2. Michael has contributed his art to both Sketchtravel and the Picture Book Project, and has also exhibited in New York and Paris.

For more of Michael Knapp's art please visit his website.

Steve Martino

2010-02-15T11:58:00.001-08:00

This beautifully expressive illustration by artist and feature film director Steve Martino, captures the simple joy felt by the children in Sierra Leone when receiving a letter from their pen pals. Steve got his start in animation completing his Masters degree at Ohio State’s Computer Graphics Research Group and honing his skills as a designer and animator at Cranston/Csuri Productions. His work at this time included some of the earliest computer animation seen around the world, for events like CBS' Super Bowl. As founding partner of Click 3X-LA and Creative Director at both 7th Level Inc. and MetroLight Studios, Steve then went on to design and direct animation and visual effects for television, interactive media and features. Highlights of this period, prior to his work in animated feature films, include a Prime Time Emmy Award for his direction of ABC’s World of Discovery main title and his collaboration with Terry Gilliam and Eric Idle on a series of Monty Python interactive projects. In 2002 Steve came to Blue Sky Studios as Art Director on Robots and has contributed his design support to Ice Age: The Meltdown and the animated short Gone Nutty. More recently Steve partnered with Jimmy Hayward to direct Horton Hears a Who! and is currently co-directing one of Blue Sky's upcoming feature films.

Thomas Leavitt

2010-02-15T11:57:00.001-08:00

This serene illustration is by artist Thomas Leavitt. Raised in the heat of the suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona and vowing to never take another art class after his first high school experience, Thomas spent his school time devoted to choir, drama, and band. He continued drawing and computer art on his own and with help from his choir teacher, was the first recipient of the Imation Computer Arts Scholarship in 1998. Thomas went on to study animation at Brigham Young University in 2003 where in his junior and senior year he directed two student films; Turtles, which went on to win a Student Academy Award and a Student Emmy in 2006, and then the short film Las Pinatas, which won a Student Emmy and played in the Annecy Film Festival in 2007. Upon graduating, Thomas was hired as a Design and Pre-visualization Artist at Blue Sky Studios where has worked on Horton Hears a Who! and Ice Age 3 and is currently designing for Rio.

To see more of Thomas' art and the digital image he created from which his illustration was based please visit his blog.

Sam Bradley

2010-02-15T11:39:00.000-08:00

This sweet, hopeful painting is an offering by Canadian artist Sam Bradley. Though Sam was born in Brantford, Ontario and currently resides in Toronto, he says one day he "will live in New York and will eventually die at sea". A graduate of Sheridan College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Animation, Sam's work has included location design and background paintings for the music video Two Hours Traffic for Shark Teeth Films. Currently with Elliott Animation Sam is working as Supervising Location Designer on the Total Drama series which airs regularly on the Teletoon and Cartoon Network. With a talent for a wide range of art, from illustration to production design to fine art, and versatile in many mediums, Sam has recently exhibited his oil paintings and is a contributor to the soon to be released sequential art publication The Anthology Project. A big fan of anagrams, cityscapes, tootsiepops, and one peculiar mango, Sam spends his days making pictures and stories, and his nights dreaming of electric sheep.

Check out more from Sam at his website.

Jeff Biancalana

2010-02-15T10:19:00.001-08:00

This exuberant illustration is by Bay Area artist Jeff Biancalana. After studying illustration and animation at San Jose State University, Jeff worked as an assistant animator at Curious Pictures and Wild Brain in San Francisco. Moving on to Mondo Media, he worked as an animator, story artist, director and voice actor for internet shows like The God and Devil Show and Happy Tree Friends. After several years, Jeff returned to SJSU where he had the opportunity to teach and obtain his Masters degree in Art. In 2005, Jeff joined Blue Sky Studios as a story artist on the animated films Horton Hears a Who!, Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and Rio. Moving back to the west coast, he took a short break from animation and lent his skills as a story artist to the live action film, Jonah Hex, which is based on the DC comic of the same name. Jeff has since returned to the world of animation and now works for PDI/DreamWorks in Redwood City, California as a story artist where he has worked on Mega Mind and Madagascar 3. In his spare time, Jeff illustrates stories with his wife and studies Chinese martial arts.

To see more of Jeff's art please visit his website.

Veronique Joffre

2010-02-14T07:27:00.000-08:00

This lovely, heartfelt vignette is the contribution of young french artist Veronique Joffre. Veronique graduated from Ecole Estienne in Paris and Ecole des Arts Décoratifs in Strasbourg, and started her career as an illustrator just three years ago. Currently working on commisioned illustrations for french children’s book publishers, some of her published works include La chèvre de monsieur Seguin (Lito), Comptines et berceuses (collectif, Milan) and et Contes du Monde (collectif, Amaterra). But Veronique's true dream is to write her own stories to accompany her pictures. Besides a recent commission from the Puppet Museum of Lyon, Veronique’s artwork has been included in the Totoro Forest Project, Gallery Nucleus, and L’affiche Moderne as well as the highly regarded Sketchtravel project. With her collages Veronique doesn’t like to know where she’s going at first, prefering to be surprised by chance, letting shapes and colors create her stories almost on their own.

For more of her thoughts and images please visit Veronique's blog.

Tim Bowers

2010-02-14T06:56:00.000-08:00

This charming painting is a portal into the world of award winning children’s book illustrator Tim Bowers. From his childhood interest in art, an active imagination and an interest in storytelling Tim's career in illustration was born. Graduating with a BFA from Columbus College of Art and Design in Ohio, Tim began his career in advertising and editorial illustration, spending five years working in various humor groups, and as a core member of Shoebox Greetings at Hallmark. For the past 25 years, Tim has been creating artwork primarily for the children's book market and the social expression industry, with his characters appearing on hundreds of greeting cards and illustrations in numerous picture books. Tim and his family live in Granville, Ohio where he continues to illustrate children’s books, and each year he travels to schools and libraries to share his artwork with students.

To see more of Tim's art and children's book titles please visit his website.

J. Courtney Granner

2010-02-14T05:56:00.001-08:00

This very endearing illustration is the work of skilled illustrator J. Courtney Granner, admired Professor of Animation and Illustration at San Jose State University. After receiving his BFA from Western Kentucky University, Courtney studied two years at The Art Institute of Boston and received his MFA from Syracuse University in New York. As an award winning illustrator his long list of clients includes The New York Times, The Washington Post, Reader’s Digest, and The New Yorker, to name only a few. His illustrations have garnered recognition from the Communications Arts Illustration Annual, the Print Regional Design Annual, the New York Society of Illustrators, the Los Angeles Society of Illustrators, and the San Francisco Society of Illustrators. Represented in shows around the country, Courtney's art has been included in exhibitions at the Museum of American Illustration in New York, The Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge Massachusetts, and the Delaware Museum of Art.

To see more of Professor Granner's art please go to his webpage.

Kristin Labriola

2010-02-14T05:46:00.000-08:00

This sweet, winsome painting is by artist Kristin Labriola. Kristin received her BFA in Fine Art and English Literature at Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York. With hopes of a career in movie making, Kristin went off to work as a set decorator and scenic artist on independent films in New York City. Her love of animated films took over in 2007 when she began working as a production assistant in development at Blue Sky Studios where she quickly realized her true passion lives in the world of story telling. Kristin currently works as a director’s assistant as well as assistant to the head of development in an effort to carve out her own career path in feature film development. Kristin’s other goals include creating her own stationary line and writing and illustrating her own children’s books.

Peter Gibbons

2010-02-13T15:24:00.000-08:00

Stepping out of his 3-dimensional comfort zone, artist Peter Gibbons brings a graphic contribution, evoking the potential simiplicity of communication through the written word. Raised on the the island of Oahu, Peter received his BFA from University of California Santa Cruz which included a semester abroad in Europe. After spending some years as an organic farmer, Peter began a career in the museum industry where he remains a core member of a team of fabricators at Academy Studios in Northern California. As team leader of both international and domestic projects, Peter handles everything from scale models and armature construction to sculpting and finish work. His credits include whales, mammoths and dinosaurs in the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, International Wetlands Park in Hong Kong and Audubon Nature Institute in New Orleans, among many, many others.

Scott J Wakefield

2010-02-13T11:12:00.000-08:00

This lively narrative painting is by artist Scott J. Wakefield. Since graduating from Art Center College of Design in 2003, Scott has worked as a freelance illustrator serving national children’s magazines and major publishers such as Spider Magazine, Highlights, Scholastic, and McGraw Hill. Versatile with nearly any medium, Scott’s body of work includes images done in both traditional and digital media. Having recently completed his MFA in Illustration from Utah State University, Scott is also an instructor of illustration at the Art Institute of Salt Lake City in Utah. Enjoying the creative process of picture book illustration and with it the ability to engage and inspire his viewers, Scott illustrated and recently self-published his first children's picture book titled Woodchuck Chuck, a story about what little woodchucks do when they can't chuck wood.

To see more of Scott's art and illustrations please visit his website.

Margaret Meyer

2010-02-13T10:17:00.000-08:00

With this charming painting titled The Letter, we enter artist Margaret Meyer's engaging world. The roaming, carnival-like nature of stop-motion has served Margaret well. A chance meeting with Art Clokey, enabled by her animator sister, led Margaret to her first job making puppets for the famed Gumby creator on a Davy and Goliath special at his studio in Morro Bay, California. Later she traveled south to Los Angeles to build and design characters for the breakout and award winning Cartoon Network shows Robot Chicken and Moral Orel. New opportunities then presented themselves in Portland, Oregon, where Margaret moved to spend several years building and designing costumes for Henry Selick's critically and commercially acclaimed Coraline. Currently making Portland her home, Margaret exhibits and sells her paintings and sculptures, until the next circus tent of animation is lofted.

To see more of Margaret's art please visit her blog.

Alice Carter

2010-02-13T08:37:00.000-08:00

This vibrant painting is a lovely contribution by multi-award winning artist Alice Carter. A professor in the School of Art and Design at San Jose State University in California, Alice, also affectionately known as 'Bunny', is also an accomplished and admired illustrator and published author. As an illustrator Alice has exhibited in the New York Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts Art Annual, Print Regional Design Annual and The Japan Creators Annual, her clients have included LucasFilm Ltd., Rolling Stone magazine, and The New York Times and she has won Best of Show Honors from the AR Show USA: 100 Best Annual Reports, the Hatch Awards of the Boston Ad Club, Simpson Printed Paper, and the Western Art Directors West Coast Show. As a fine artist Alice has exhibited at numerous galleries and museums including the New York Society of Illustrators, the Museum of American Illustration, and The Norman Rockwell Museum, to name just a few. As an educator Professor Carter was selected in 1997 as Outstanding Professor at San Jose State University, and in 2000 was awarded a Fulbright fellowship which took her to Cairo as lecturer at Helwan University. Her recent publications include, The Art of National Geographic: One Hundred Years of Illustration, The Red Rose Girls: An Uncommon Story of Art and Love, The Essential Thomas Eakins, and Cecilia Beaux: A Modern Painter in The Gilded Age. In conjunction with her publications, Professor Carter has curated exhibitions at the Woodmere Art Museum, The Norman Rockwell Museum (where she was elected a trustee in 2004) and The Society of Illustrators’ Museum of American Illustration.

To see more of Alice's artwork including publications please visit her website.

Robert MacKenzie

2010-02-13T07:10:00.000-08:00

Medium: Acrylic

This captivating painting is by artist Robert MacKenzie. Robert grew up in San Mateo, California and graduated from San Jose State University with a degree in Illustration and Animation where he was also on the faculty at the School of Art and Design. As a Concept, Visual Development and Color Key Artist Robert has worked at such film studios as Lucasfilm, PDI/Dreamworks and, for many years now, Blue Sky Studios contributing his visual ideas and color sense to many a feature film, from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to Horton Hear's a Who!, to name only a few. Outside of working on films, Robert is a children's book illustrator, Jack and the Beanstalk and Fly, Cher Ami, Fly, and gallery artist showing his artwork nationwide as well as abroad. Robert's artwork has appeared in Communication Arts, Spectrum, the Society of Illustrator Annuals, and as well as contributed to many other group projects such as the Totoro Forest Project, the Out of Picture anthologies and Sketchtravel.

To see more of Robert's monster series visit his blog where you can also peak into his inspiring sketchbook.

Wendy Park

2010-02-13T05:34:00.000-08:00

This mysterious and subtle piece is by artist Wendy Park. Concept artist and matte painter, Wendy is a recent graduate of Otis College of Art and Design where she earned a BFA in Digital Media, during which she was a design intern at Blue Sky Studios. Since graduating Wendy has been a Background Artist for Three Legged Legs and a Visual Development Artist for both King and Country and Walt Disney Animation Studios. More recently Wendy has been found working in visual development for The Cartoon Network on an upcoming movie.

To see more of Wendy’s art please go to her website.

Brian Menz

2010-02-13T05:30:00.000-08:00

This is humorous illustration is by character animator Brian Menz. As a boy, Brian spent much of his childhood dreaming of a career in 2D animation, making flip books and collaborating with his twin brother using his parent's video camera and drawings of stick figures to create short animated films. Graduating from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Applied Media Arts, Brian interned at Animatus Studios and focused on traditional hand drawn animation before breaking into the world of 3D animation through the television series The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron. From there Brian delved into stop motion on the production of Coraline at Liaka but has since migrated back to 3D animation working for Disney on Bolt, and Blue Sky Studios on Ice Age 3 where he is currently at work on the upcoming film Rio. One day Brian hopes to write and direct his own animated film.

Mick Wiggins

2010-02-12T06:22:00.000-08:00

This boldly geometric piece is by award winning professional illustrator Mick Wiggins. As a freelancer for the past 30 years who specializes in book and editorial illustration, Mick beautifully illustrated the complete John Steinbeck series, recently reissued from Penguin Classics US. Mick started out painting with oils, but eventually shifted to a digital format in the 80’s. As the technology evolved, so did his style. He starts with a pencil sketch, scans it, then builds the image in Photoshop, although he continues to use the mouse which may account for the woodblock feel to his work. Originally from Berkeley, California Mick now resides in Little Rock, Arkansas where, besides his book cover illustrations, he is developing three picture story ideas and working on his transportive "found" sound projects.

To see and hear more of Mick’s work, go to his website.

Catia Chen

2010-02-12T06:17:00.000-08:00

This sweet, atmospheric piece titled I Miss You Too, showing a little girl running through the darkness with a love letter in hand, comes from artist Catia Chien. Painting for small picture books and big city galleries in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, Catia illustrated Frank Beddor's Princess Alyss of Wonderland and Dashka Slater’s The Sea Serpent and Me for which she also won the 2008 Society of Illustrators L.A. Gold Medal for Children's Book Work, and as well, was shortlisted for the Cybils Award for fiction picture book. In addition to painting Catia draws comics, and has contributed to the comic anthologies Flight Volume I and II, Put the Book Back on the Shelf, and You Ain't No Dancer. Catia is currently finishing writing and illustrating a tween picture book, editing a comic book anthology inspired by music, and looking forward to working with Chirping Tree, an artists’ collaborative.

Please see more of Catia’s artwork at her website.

David O'Keefe

2010-02-11T19:53:00.001-08:00

This illustration titled The Beatles is by pop culture artist David O’Keefe. A self-taught artist, David has been drawing celebrities since he was a kid. Way back when he was just like any other ten year old boy obsessed with football and art, his dad would take him to celebrity golf tournaments and have him caricature famous athletes and celebrities. Fast forward to 2010, and O’Keefe is still focused on celebrity caricature. David's sculpted illustrations have appeared on the covers of Mad Magazine, Sports Illustrated and The Village Voice and he has won numerous awards from organizations such as The Society of Illustrators (New York and Los Angeles), American Illustration, Communication Arts and Dimensional Illustrators, to name just a few. His company, David O’Keefe Studios currently operates a solo Pop Culture Icons gallery on St. Armands Circle in Sarasota Florida.

To see more of David’s art and sculpture please visit his website and blog.

Katy Hargrove

2010-02-11T10:35:00.001-08:00

This vibrant, spirited painting is by artist Katy Hargrove. Inspired by the natural world and animators' ability to bring characters to life, Katie received an Associate Degree in Computer Animation from the Art Institute of Phoenix. Currently living in Seattle Katy works as a creature modeler at Arena.Net where most of the projects she has worked on are part of the Guild Wars Video game series. Before that she worked as a character designer and concept artist at Seven Studios and Pandemic Studios where some of the projects she worked on included Charlies' Angels, The Fantastic Four, and Star Wars: The Clone Wars. Katy has won First Place Awards for both the Monster Manual Madness Contest (sponsored by Tony Diterlizzi) and the Intergraph's Power to The Creator Animation Contest. Outside of her busy work day Katy spends her time drawing, painting, sculpting and.. tinkering.

To see more of Katy's art please visit her website.

Tom Humber

2010-02-11T10:30:00.000-08:00

This playful submission is from the hand of the talented artist Tom Humber. Originally from Ontario, Canada, Tom moved to the United States to pursue his career in the animation industry. For many years he worked mainly at Disney Studios as a visual development, layout and concept artist where he contributed his inspired talent to movies such as Brother Bear, Lilo & Stich, Mulan, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Pocahontas and The Lion King. Layout Supervisor for Disney's award winning animated short film John Henry, Tom is now part of the Blue Sky Studios design team and has helped shape the look of both Ice Age: The Meltdown as well as Horton Hears A Who!.

To view more of Tom's art and a few more robot ideas please visit his blog.

Vivian Nguyen

2010-02-11T10:18:00.001-08:00

This sweet comic strip is by illustrator Vivian Nguyen. Vivian was born and raised in Arizona and from an early age knew she wanted to pursue an artistic career. In 2002 she received a BFA in Illustration from Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. Vivian has illustrated for Pasadena Weekly, US Air Force Art Program and TrinityCare Hospice, and posts an ongoing web comic titled Little Do They Know. Currently working for Spin Master Toys in Los Angeles, she handles design and project development. Vivian has applied the penpals theme to her comic strip, and is quite enthusiastic about participating in this project.

More of Vivian's art and comic strip can be viewed at her blog.

Chris Wahl

2010-02-10T21:28:00.001-08:00

This beautiful portrait is a contribution by award winning illustrator and commercial artist Chris Wahl. A self-taught artist born in Australia, Chris grew up with a passion for drawing and caricature where soon after high school he began working at Walt Disney Television Animation. During his time there Chris published his own comicbook PLATINUM under his own insignia, X-Press Comics which went on to win awards including the prestigious Stanley Award in 1994. As a freelance artist living in Sydney, Chris' many clients over the years include Lucasfilm, Pepsi and Greenpeace as well as MAD Magazine where he has contributed loads of interior work and many, many, many covers. Chris' drawing is a portrait inspired by a photo of Gladis, as she discussed her love for dancing, taken by Brownstones to Red Dirt associate producer Clay Frost. (Though Gladis wishes to be an accountant when she grows up, the kids in Salone know her as phenomenal dancer, one they all turn to for an impromptu lesson.) A generous teacher with his illustration tips combining both traditional and digital mediums, Chris always enjoys exploring different styles in his illustration work.

Check out more of Chris’s art and illustration styles on his artblog.