I've painted endless number of flying things over the last few years, between the Fairy Chronicles (this is the cover from the second book in the series) and the Wind Dancers, which features flying horses. Wings, wings, wings.... Read the rest of this post
By: Tara Chang,
on 4/12/2010
By: Tara Chang,
on 3/3/2010
Original submitted concept. They wanted to see *more* of them so -
I did a larger, full scene - and did various croppings -
-aaaaand, here is the one they picked....
By: Tara Chang,
on 2/24/2010
In addition to these, there is one more illustration needed for one of the previous books still in production, and yes, it is indeed another puppy.Here is to one more week of painting, and then - a break??!
By: Tara Chang,
on 1/29/2010
I'm combining WIP Wednesday and Figure Friday this week since I've been working crazy-late hours trying to get the interiors to book #11 of the Wind Dancer series done and out (and after a series of working until 4am or 5am in the morning, I am happy to report it is!) So, here is the finish from the drawing posted last week.
Now on the book #12...
By: Tara Chang,
on 1/20/2010
For each of the books in the Wind Dancer series I've done around 25 interior spots (give or take). And depending on the complexity, they all pretty much go through the same process which I thought I would share with you today.
After getting a copy of the manuscript followed by the art-request list, I initially do a number of very very rough, scribbly thumbnails (left scribble). They are really rough - and nearly unrecognizable to others - but it seems to be a step that is necessary for me to go forward.
After the initial scribble, I do one or two drawings that refine it further (middle sketch above). If it's readable, and I think I am depicting the image being requested, I can submit it at that point to make sure we are on the same visual page. In this case, no. So another sketch is submitted (image on the right). Again, no.
So, yet another drawing (left) - this one accepted. After the submitted sketch is approved, I draw a 'clean', refined one (middle drawing). The final drawing is scanned, cleaned up as necessary and then print out small, multiple copies on bond paper so that I can do value and color studies (far right) and also on watercolor paper.
Here's me painting the final printout - referring to my color comp, as well as a Trina Schart Hyman forest, since I love her tree colors. (tweetdeck, hulu and facebook keeping me company at my desk...)
Repeat 20 some times per book...
Most spots do not need so many revisions, more complex pieces, like covers, may need more. But regardless of the intricacy, I go through the same process with every piece I do.
Back to it - 13 more pieces to paint for this book.
By: Tara Chang,
on 12/3/2009
I can deservez some now?
By: Tara Chang,
on 11/20/2009
(from The Wind Dancers, published by Feiwel & Friends) 
By: Tara Chang,
on 10/14/2009
These covers, which took *much* longer than I had anticipated, are finally 'in the mail'. (Which is also an amazingly time-consuming process: pressing, scanning, labeling, slip-covering, wrapping in plastic, reinforcing with cardboard, packaging in yet more board, labeling, and then taking it out to a FedEx shipper! *whew* It's always another half-a-day just to get mailed. Some days, digital art looks appealing...)
I have from now 'til the end of the year to hurry up and finish all the interiors! It's going to continue to be crazy-busy for the next few months....
Sorry. I miss you....
By: Tara Chang,
on 10/6/2009
Am trying to marathon my way through the last bit of these covers so that they will be ready to ship before we leave on our fall retreat this weekend...!!
Someday I will post again.
Someday I will read your blogs again.
Someday these covers will be done....
By: Tara Chang,
on 9/30/2009
The final drawing - on vellum, scanned and then printed out on 140# cold press Arches watercolor paper.
I started by laying in the miscellaneous ancillary color.
Part of the appeal of using morning glories is their luscious, vivid color...
So I painted in pretty intense pigment (which is quite a bit brighter than the photo suggests. Was too busy to scan). Too intense. Scary intense. Staining pigments used. Argh.
So - I tried scrubbing them back. As I said, staining pigments (Quinacradone Rose and Cyan) so not much came off. Tried light washes to even things out. Just. Not. Working. :-p
*sigh* So, I printed it out again and started over....
Tried a different pigment combination (Opera pink and French ultramarine) and used a much lighter touch...
Color/value balance still isn't working all the way but it is much easier to continue to layer and *add* than it is to scrub off... More layers to come...
These four covers are about 80% finished. I'm now trying to finish up the last 20% on all four concurrently. Hopefully by the end of this week! I have seriously underestimated how long these would take - but I did manage to cover *every*single*inch* of the paper with flowers that need to be painted on each of these covers.
By: Tara Chang,
on 9/25/2009
A couple of nights ago, I was tagged to chaperon the daughter and some friends at a Colbie Caillat concert at a downtown refurbished-warehouse venue. No chairs, packed with (much taller) people and meltingly hot - after an hour I gave up...
...and walked down the street to an air-conditioned, well-lit location. With chairs. And working surfaces. :-) I had several hours to kill - so worked on some inital roughs for the next book interior -
-as well as playing with some more of the thumbnails of the winter promo. There were some ideas that I wanted to explore further to see if there was enough potential to warrant refining... I felt like all those 'real' artists who work in cafes and coffee shops, but I was somewhere even better!
By: Tara Chang,
on 9/23/2009
Here is the final drawing, scanned, cleaned-up and printed out on cold press...
The first, preliminary masking fluid and initial color set down...
Here is a layer of color across the entire piece...
Secondary washes and initial modeling... Now on to the next one - I'm bringing them all to about this level of finish and then will tighten them all up together.
Makes me crave rose flavored yummies. One of my favorites to make is rose petal syrup. I grow highly fragrant, heirloom roses that are wonderfully flavorful. Steep in boiling sugar water, strain, lightly tint and pour into pretty bottles. Then use in tea, splashed over ice and seltzer, drizzled over vanilla ice cream.... You can do the same thing with lavender, mint, anise hyssop, lemon verbena, orange-geranium, cinnamon basil, chamomile, tangerine sage.... Color them all differently and you can have window sill of pastel rainbow syrups for your taste bud pleasure (which unfortunately, I did not take photos of - stole these from google images...)
By: Tara Chang,
on 9/10/2009
Initial washes (it is surprisingly difficult to find vibrant, transparent oranges. They seem flatten out the minute they dry)....
A layer of color all around....
More resolution.. although I'm still uncertain about *how* to resolve the dandelion seed heads... Who had the bright idea of including white-puffy-dandelion things that need to be painted in watercolor???!!! Oh yeah, that would be me...
By: Tara Chang,
on 9/2/2009
Initial thumbnail idea (which was subsequently revised) and the color comp -
Morning glories - which are fast growing, and scrumptuously and intensely colored - are not considered herbal/medicinal in this country. In China, the seeds have traditionally been used for their laxative quality, but be warned that in pets and young children they are "also considered poisonous and may cause digestive upset, stupor, hallucinations or even coma if enough are ingested". So, not recommended for anything but decorative applications.
They do make darn cute fairy hats though!
Here is the sketch for submission to publisher and Breyer...
...Aaaaand, the final drawing. I have a few tweaks to go back and resolve on all four covers, then will re-scan, print and start the marathon painting stage...
By: Tara Chang,
on 9/1/2009
I just wrote out everyone's name
- and shook you all up in my husband's gigantic Australian Akubra hat. Drew a name -
-and congrats to Gina! One of my 'neighbors'. :-) Thanks again everyone -
By: Tara Chang,
on 8/25/2009
Books number 5 and 6 in the Wind Dancer series are due to be released on September 1st. My covers of which you see above, and the interiors I co-illustrated with my good friend Jo Gershman.
I received a hefty box of them today. And from my abundance, I wish to share with you, gentle reader, a signed copy of each for the lucky commenter whose name I shall draw on the eve of Sunday, August 30th. Just in time to mail off to you by their official release day.
So if you would like to toss your name in the hat, just leave me a comment on this post by 7pm Pacific Time, 8/30/09.
Wishing winged horses your way.....
By: Tara Chang,
on 8/25/2009
In my initial thumbnail, I attempted to have a significantly different pose from the previous two. However, the publishers did not like this one, so re-draws were required. I had already worked out the color palette and elements to include....
So I went reference hunting - for both references for the elements I already knew that I needed, and much searching for rearing, 3/4, tucked-head horses... Since flying-horse-pose reference is not so easy to come by, it take compiling what you can come up with and for me at least, quite a bit of working and re-working until the anatomy feels somewhat believable...?
...And of course, here is the flower featured on this cover. Herb-lore for the day: An Anglo-Saxon herbal of the 11th century speaks of a conserve of rose petals "taken in the morning and fasting at night, it strengthenest the hearte and taketh away the shakings and tremblings thereof."
Here is the revised sketch, which was approved-
By: Tara Chang,
on 8/14/2009
Here's one of the initial thumbnails, utilizing a 'charming' girly pose and plant-life that is known for jewel-like dew drops, Lady's Mantle.
Lady's Mantle (Alchemilla - 'the little Alchemist'), is one of my favorite herbs - with all kinds of folk medicine and folk-lore associated with it. The scalloped, serrated-edged leaves are covered with soft hairs which hold water drops on the surface and around the edges. My favorite medieval recipe calls for the collection of this dew from its leaves which was said to have magical properties: "It is said to preserve youth if a woman collects dew, in May, alone, in full moonlight, naked, with bare feet."
Rough color comp to make sure I'm going in the right direction...
And here, finally after any number of dew-drops and sparkly jewels, here is the final drawing...
By: Tara Chang,
on 8/6/2009
A few days ago, I posted pictures of the covers for the last 8 Wind Dancer books. Since I am working on the next four covers right now, I thought I might show you a bit of the process. The first step is to come up with an approach that will unify this set of four covers, while still making them distinct from the previous sets. After a number of thumbnails exploring different options, we settled on close-up floral backgrounds.
- eventually we refined this to be more of a 'portrait' of the horse rather than a full-body view as the previous covers had been.
That decided, I did a round of rough mock-ups of all four covers, with varying poses and flora.
And then some color thumbs to sort out the various palettes and make sure they are appealing as a group.
Here's the next batch of refining the cover drawing for cover #9 - with a requested pose revision on the right.
The next round - fairly refined drawing to submit to Breyer for an anatomy check and approval.
And then a large, clean, refined drawing ready to scan, print and then paint. (Who knows where you can buy translucent drawing vellum by the roll? I'm currently enamored of doing this stage of drawing on that surface, but the vellum I can find by the pad is never quite large enough).
By: Tara Chang,
on 7/31/2009
After reaching temperatures of 111 degrees yesterday (insane! This is Seattle! The highest temperature recorded here *ever* previously was like 96), the intense heat and air stagnation have tangibly broken. It is still supposed to be warm for the foreseeable future, but in a much more reasonable, mid-80s sort of way (our norms for July run more in the mid-70s, so this is still hot for here). With the temperatures finally more bearable, I'm able to resume working rather than just sitting in front of a fan panting... :-)
If you have followed this blog at all, you will have noticed me mentioning the series I've been working on for the past couple of years, The Wind Dancers, written by Sibley Miller, co-illustrated by myself and Jo Gershman and published by Feiwel & Friends in association with Breyer. The first four came out late last year (for which we've done promotional videos, presentations, book signings and TV appearances at Breyerfest. I've also discussed the vagaries of color matching here). It's been quite a fun ride.
With the next pair to follow shortly after...
By: Tara Chang,
on 11/16/2008
Today was a book signing event at my close-by, independent book store. It was a fund-raiser for a small, private school in the area. They had asked me and a couple of other area authors to be on hand to sign and chat with the attendees.
Royce Buckingham was one of them. (I met him at the last event I did.) He is charming and very personable and has very interesting things to say about his experiences in entering the world of children's publishing. Fun to chat with.
I got to sit at a table covered with books. :-) They had 9 of the 12 published Fairy Chronicles and all 4 of the just-released Wind Dancer series. There were a number of fairy-loving girls in attendance so I got to chat and sign a nice number of them (and then they didn't let me leave until I had signed the remainder for the bookstore...)
One of the fairy-girls noticed me sketching in my sketchbook during a lull. She asked if I would draw *her*. I said, sure, as long as she could hold somewhat still for a few minutes.
It was harder than she had expected :-) but we managed a quickie drawing of her.
By: Tara Chang,
on 11/3/2008
The series that I have been working on this year (along with my friend Jo) will be released any minute now. We got to peruse advanced copies a couple of weeks ago at the Inside Story event, and they are beautifully printed. With sparkly covers.
Speaking of covers, it is always interesting to see how they shift from their original form to their printed version. Sometimes it is subtle, like in this example.
Sometimes less subtle. (I am not a big fan of turquoise and bright greens. Ah well...) You can see large versions of the final covers on the macmillon site (where magically, they are listed as 'bestsellers' - which is a trick given that they haven't actually been officially released yet).
Congratulations Ellen for winning! :)
Maybe next time for me. :)
Congratulations, Ellen.
I'm so happy! Thanks Tara for your generosity in having a giveaway. My daughter so wanted to read these books after I showed your art to her a little while ago. She's quite a connoisseur when it comes to chapter book illustrations. She said you draw the prettiest horses and the best puppies(and she should know, she reads EVERY single book about horses and puppies:)
Your daughter is both lovely and hilarious.
Congratulations Ellen! (what a cool daughter : )
congrats, Ellen!
Tara, your daughter is a hoot - and beautiful!