The Year in Pictures

Last year was the Year of the Dinosaur. When 2009 began, I was working on a dream job: a 12-book series about dinosaurs. I created 72 illustrations for the project and had a blast, despite an aching back, sore wrist, and tired eyes.

I was fortunate to have steady work throughout the year. As you can see from the thumbs above, the subjects ranged from robots to Greasers to Frankenstein's monster–and a joint of ham. The variety kept me on my toes and certainly kept things interesting. Looking over these images, I realize I've made progress this year with:

• Working with tight deadlines
• Developing a suitable BW technique
• Conveying a wider range of emotions
• Refining my digital painting (only 2 illustrations above are traditional media)

And I feel like I'm getting closer to developing my own "style" of illustration. As I learned to work more quickly and efficiently, I found my work becoming more spontaneous and less labored. I'm learning I can trust my instincts.

I'm kicking off the new year with a book about elves and a short comic-book story about zombies.

Happy New Year, everyone!