Rebecca Green's Blog

"There is a privacy about it which no other season gives you... In spring, summer and fall people sort of have an open season on each other; only in the winter, in the country, can you have longer, quiet stretches when you can savor belonging to yourself."
- Ruth Stout

On the very morning I am writing this and sending it into the world, I awoke to snow. Every branch and blade of grass coated with a thick white blanket. It doesn’t matter how many winters I’ve seen - there is always magic in that first big snow. I am a four season person through and through having lived most of my life in Michigan. The seasons guide the flow of my life and my work. While we’ve lived in warm, places - Phoenix, Tennessee, Japan, I always knew we’d settle somewhere with a proper winter. It seems we have. Apparently this area gets three different types of snow storms - nor'easters, lake effect storms and Alberta clippers, which is a lot of snow. This year I plan to get out, try my legs once more at cross country skiing, snowshoeing, and hiking, but I also plan to spend a lot of time nestling in.

We don’t technically have the best place to nestle - a quarter of our home is still gutted and everything we own is still in boxes. Perhaps though, because I’m seeking comfort so badly, the tiny areas of it are easy for me to sink into. Our bed, with it’s rug ‘neath it and the duvet on it, a little bench beside it crowded with books. That’s enough. The candle lit when the sun goes down, a definite source of comfort. Our little makeshift coffee station in our hallway. That helps. And a shower, a hot shower. That’s all you need!

And nestling in, wintering, hibernating, is not only about physical comforts, but emotional and creative ones too. I recently read Katherine May’s book, Wintering, which was recommended to me many times. It’s a lovely book, which does traces the darker seasons of the calendar, but is more so an understanding of retreat in those darker times of life, when you must recoup, rest, and heal. One thing that resonated was her recounting of the pattern of wintering, how she could feel it coming on, and rather than blasting through the signs of weariness into total burnout, she could then and there decide to nurture herself through it.

I am usually pretty good about taking care of myself and my mental health through shifting workloads, and only once have experienced an internal crisis after of powering through pain. My Aunt, whom I love very much (and the only extended family I’ve ever been close with) died from cancer in 2017 and instead of stopping to grieve, I worked harder. It was a tough lesson, lots of therapy, lots of reconstructing. And now, I can see myself again trying that very tactic to somehow deny a very big and painful loss. I did take time to grieve last fall when we lost our little one and have done many things to aid in healing since. But it was also a major year for work, moving, selling a house, buying one too, and trying to settle into a normal routine.

I’ve been feeling my own signs of wintering for a while, or rather, I don’t feel them which is concerning because I’m a big feeler. Things that used to fill me with tenderness, rage, utter joy, seem to have a dullness to them. The sharpness of it all is gone. Creatively, this is terrifying if I’m honest. The deepest source, where all my work sprang from…it’s there but also hard to access. I also am struggling with the energy to give and giving is a big part of who I am. Most of my adult life I’ve had the heart of a host, and second best, a gracious guest. Now, I feel more like a witness who does not want to host a party or go to one, but instead to stand outside the window and just…witness. All of this for me is a clue that I need to take care of myself.

I need to nestle in for the winter.

While I’m cozying in, I thought I’d share some wintery comforts with you, things that are helping me get through these long months ahead. Whether it’s winter where you are too, or you’re just needing some extra warmth, I hope these little treasures help fill you up. Some are gems everyone loves and some are my closet loves that make me feel old and nerdy, and some are weird and you might hate them, but whatever. Let the nestling begin!

A Collection of Winter Treasures…

BOOKS & MAGAZINES
I’ve been reading a ton lately and have no plans to stop. Here are some I’ve read recently and loved or are on my nightstand waiting to be picked up:

Wintering by Katherine May (Enchantment is also on my list) Lives up to its hype.
Intermezzo by Sally Rooney. I loved this so much and serendipitously takes place in the dark months.
At Home - Bill Bryson Modern comforts are SO modern and not to be taken for granted.
Mary Oliver Winter Hours Digging into this one.
The Winter Book by Tove Jansson I LOVE this one.
The Terror by Dan Simmons - Matt’s recommendation if your idea of relaxation is ..well, terror.
Chickpea Magazine - all the winter ones!
And…I adore my little collection of vintage Martha Stewart Holiday magazines my mom scores from her used bookshop. <3

*I’ll also be digging into winter picture books and you can join me in The Dessert Club this month for a book tour. One of my faves *(above) is The Last Snow of Winter by Tony Johnston and Friso Henstra

MOVIES & MUSIC
It is not Christmas without Rankin Bass Snowy Claymations, but I’ve recently put a few new ones into the mix that I’m sure will become tradition..

MOONSTRUCK with Cher and Nicolas Cage - almost Christmassy, it’s actually my annual November film.
THE CHRISTMAS THAT ALMOST WASN’T but the Mystery Science Theatre Version!! Either you will hate this or you will thank me later. ;)
THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER Oh Jimmy Stewart
WINTERSONG by Sarah McLachlan, for over a decade this has comforted me in Winter.
MY DEAR ACQUAINTANCE from Regina Spektor - this one always hits my heart.

& MORE
We may have a kitchen by the end of the week and the first things on my list are this Veggie Sausage White Bean Skillet with Kale and Sundried Tomatoes from The First Mess (I am pretty much obsessed with anything white bean and kale) and this Chai Spiced Hot Chocolate from Minimalist Baker. I have missed cooking so much, and having had a proper kitchen for half a year so I know this will help me feel more like myself. We’ll also be digging into puzzles (I collect Charles Wysocki ones from antiques stores) and decorating our tree which we put in our bedroom. It’s so cozy!!

And one more thing - a gift. Bc you know I like to share. :)
A little gift from me to you since you’re still reading! A little video from Patreon which is free for December if you’re not part of The Dessert Club. You can watch this little cutie coming in from the snow in acrylic gouache. It was one of my first painting videos on Patreon.
If you are in The Dessert Club, thank you! You can watch this month’s cozy painting video here!

Hopefully this time of year finds you snuggling in, making the most of the little joys, and finding ways to connect with others and with yourself too. Sending all my best and brightest to you and a big heap of gratitude for reading. It means the world.

XO,
Becca

This week I bought a tin of pumpkin tea and a cider scented candle, both of which I thought would make Autumn proud. She's at our doorstep, hiding red bouquets in the trees like easter eggs, blowing cold air into dewy mornings, and filling the hills with dense fog. Year after year around this time, a youthful, almost annoying glee sparks deep within me. It's this time of year that my innermost 'me' comes to life, crawling out from the proverbial summer grave. This year feels a little different though. For the first time in my life, I am quite bitter about her arrival. Autumn - October in particular - my favorite month, means one whole year without our daughter Sohvi.

I haven’t shared our loss in depth, but if you've been a reader for some time, you'll know that we lost our daughter shortly after birth on October 16th of last year. Everything up until that moment was perfect - every ultrasound and heartbeat test. I saw her full round cheeks squished up on the screen mere days before she was born. I had little Halloween outfits for her, autumnal quilts, plans for her future October birthdays…the list is long. But life is wild and it doesn't always do what it we want it to, as hard as the heart tries to make it so.

Since last Autumn, it hasn't been easy to fold this grief - this life alteration, into my public work. But I am an artist and writer. I filter my experiences into tangible things to share and connect (and how lucky I am to do this.) I’m truthfully still digesting everything before I can fully share our story. In my studio, work has been a respite. I have poured my heart into my book series and taught a retreat that I knew would bring me joy.

Now that Autumn is nearing however, it’s testing my creative resolve. A time which usually carries so much inspiration now feels heavy with loss and mocking. What helps of course is to accept the sadness, which in all truthfulness, I'm happy to wear. It makes me feel close to my daughter, myself, to my husband, and to everything that unfolded. I'm not afraid of grief, nor was I at any point comforted by the sentiment that grief would ease up. Every emotion does. What has surprised me though about leaning into Fall is how much resistance I feel towards it. But tragedy knows no season and I can love the little treasures of this time of year, bittersweet as they might be.

If you make art, you know you must sometimes seek inspiration, for it does not always chase you down. I was determined to find a spark of creative joy towards this season, for my own sake, for art’s sake, for Sohvi’s - and after a few false starts, I did just that in the form of little painted treasures. What makes Autumn so particularly lovely is how short it is, how a flash of red is here and then gone before the long winter settles in. Witnessing the end of a life too, gives us this lightness - a reminder that it is all over, especially for some, too quickly. Nick Cave speaks of this so poetically after losing not one, but two sons.

"This feeling… of alertness to the inner-spirit of things — this humming — comes from a hard-earned understanding of the impermanence of things and, indeed, our own impermanence. This lesson ultimately animates and illuminates our lives. We become witnesses to the thrilling emergency of the present — a series of exquisite and burning moments, each extinguished as the next arises. These magical moments are the bright jewels of loss to which we cling". - Nick Cave

Bright jewels of loss. It's so bittersweet, I can hardly let it sink in without feeling everything. But also I’m ok feeling everything. The crushing weight of longing, the jealousy and unfairness of it all, the gratitude for everything I did get to experience, the acceptance and brilliance of each passing day.

Cheers to this new season - to the end of Summer - to the magic of Autumn. It will be gone before we know it, so I’m here and ready to nestle in, get close up with the golden leaves, feel the crisp air against my skin and who knows, I might just find loads of inspiration once again.

xo,
Becca

In my 38 years, I’ve moved twenty-one times. Twenty-one new window views, twenty one new floors to pad across, and twenty-one new front doors.

What then, is twenty-two?
This month, we’re selling our house, potentially buying a new one (but an old one - you know me!) packing up our things, putting the dog in the car and heading to Syracuse, NY. A new adventure awaits. I’ve scooped up an adorable studio in an warehouse full of artists (thanks to my pal Ginnie Hsu) and I’m eager to explore the hiking trails and eat all the food! Also it sort of blows my mind that I’ll be able to shop for art supplies at an actual store where I can feel the paper and see the colors in person. Dreams do come true!

To all the restaurants in Central New York…I’m coming for you.

Throughout all my past moves, I haven’t pushed pause on my work and I’d doubt if my clients even noticed a change. I’ve finished picture book work in the middle of an empty room, a cardboard box for a studio table. A Little Princess was painted in a car garage, Loujain Dreams of Sunflowers at a dining room table. Really, where ever there was a flat surface and adequate light, I made it work. But now I’m getting old and wise (and tired!) and I’d rather let this move be a little more chill.

My mom’s favorite photo of me. Very flattering.

I’m going to be taking things slow, at least as much as I can. While I’m still working on my book series, sharing regularly on Patreon, and leading an Art Retreat in Spain this Summer, I’m going to ease up on writing a monthly long form post here on the blog. For the last four years, I’ve been writing posts on everything from the creative cycle, to building a portfolio, to my love of line. It’s strengthened my writing skills and helped me articulate ideas on the creative process. Mostly though, it’s been an incredible way to share and connect with you. Moving forward, I’ll be sharing quarterly blog posts, in line with the seasons because I love all things seasonal. I’ll still be sending monthly newsletters but they’ll be a little simpler with updates on my work and things I’m inspired by.

If you’re in The Dessert Club Patreon, you’ll still find the same amount of videos, posts, audio chats, and the like. If you aren’t part of The Dessert Club but would like to support my work and get regular posts, you can do so here. It costs less than a latte. :)

One more thing before I go…
From the bottom of my heart, thank you. Thank you for being here, for reading the newsletters and blog posts each month, for commenting and sharing your inspirations and thoughts and wisdom. Thanks to everyone who has reached out to tell me they wait for the first of every month so they can read the blog. To everyone who so caringly wrote to me - some of you even sending packages and postcards to my postal box - kind words for the loss of our Sohvi. This community means so much to me. Even though I shared my online social struggles in the last post, the connections made here and on IG (and everywhere online) are real and valuable and treasured.

Thanks for giving me the space to breathe a bit. I’ll be back here in the Fall with updates and such, and in the meantime, you can find new work and the new haunts in my monthly bulletin newsletter and on Patreon.

Much to love to you for a brilliant and joyous and wild Summer. I’ll see you on the other side.
xo,
Becca

It’s called Instagram…have you heard of it?”

Early in December 2011, a group of friends were visiting my shared warehouse studio in Grand Rapids. I’d just graduated college a year prior and was busy trying to make it as an illustrator. In the hallway of the warehouse, we doodled dust drawings on the interior windows and someone wrote the word ‘PANCAKES.’ Amanda, a friend of mine, took a photo of the window and said she was posting it to Instagram, had we all heard of it? It was this new app where you put retro filters on photos and shared them with friends. I had (and still do have) a distaste for apps and keep them to a minimum. While the picture of the dusty window was cute, the app itself seemed like a waste of my time…and besides I wasn’t a photographer.

Fast forward 12 years later and I’m now reminded daily that only 10% of my ‘followers’ actually see my posts because I’m not active enough. Just last week Instagram gave me a fake clipart trophy for having reached some arbitrary threshold. And obviously, we are no longer sharing retro filtered photos - we’re shopping and selling and DMing and comparing and performing and reeling (literally). Even though Instagram has been monumental for my career, I’ve always thought that when I reached a certain age I’d be ok letting it go, and part of me feels I’ve reached this age. Problem is, it’s really hard to let it go, as much as I detest it.
I’m not sure if it’s a personal shift - grief has a way of providing clarity. It’s partly that but I also think it’s a larger societal shift. Recently Brené Brown has been tackling large issues like Social Media on her podcasts, in regards to the fact that it is beyond ‘human scale.’ She writes, “I know social media can feel like addiction. Even when it's hurting us, we don't stop.” In a recent interview, her guest Esther Perel shares ideas of the new AI - Artificial Intimacy. “We have 1000 friends on social but we don’t have a single person who can feed our cats for us.”
I’m also reading Jonathon Haidt’s new book, The Anxious Generation, ‘How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness.’ I want to underline and share every other sentence, especially when it highlights the detriments of social media. Because I’m not a social scientist though, I’ll leave the data to researchers and hope you’ll dig into those (which I’ll link below) The best I can do is share how Instagram has been woven into my career, tell you why I love it, why it feels soul crushing, and how I’m exploring moving forward.

Despite my initial snub at Instagram, I made an account within a month of that December evening in 2011. I shared my life, sketches, and work which at that time consisted largely of gallery work. I’d been applying to agencies with no luck and commercial work was hard to find. Then, out of nowhere, I was contacted by FLOW Magazine, all the way from The Netherlands. All of my work to that point had been local to Michigan and Phoenix, where we’d moved. It blew my mind that my work could cross the ocean…
I was international! I know that that wouldn’t have happened without Instagram.
Social Media has been a catalyst for my career and for building communities afar and in real life. We’ve lived in Phoenix, Denver, Nashville, and Osaka, and every time we’ve moved I’ve found new friends through this little online world. Instagram has helped me connect to publishers, librarians, books buyers, and of course other illustrators - some of whom support me via Patreon or my newsletter. I’m eternally grateful and I love my career, and I know a huge part of that is also because of Instagram.
There are other obvious benefits of social media - mass waves of social justice have taken off partly because of it - we can share injustices widely, which activate real world change. We can also connect to others in similar life situations, easing the pain of suffering alone. It connects us as people - with all the good and bad that that brings. It has completely transformed our world in a little over a decade, which is really quite mind blowing.

While sharing my frustrations, I acknowledge that I’m coming from a place of privilege, in that I probably would be ok if I didn’t have social media now that my career is established. I can imagine how frustrating it is to be a new illustrator and to feel at a loss for how to gain traction on any of the platforms. I know though (thanks to my therapist) that I can have empathy for this situation without feeling ashamed for taking advantage of a tool that was presented to me at the right time. Also you’ll see I’m sharing struggles with social media but I only mention Instagram because I don’t have tiktok, X, or anything else.

“MESSAGE YOUR NIECE”
I once went to coffee with two writers in NY, one I knew and one I’d just met. The latter was extremely well known on IG with over a million followers. She shared a story about her mother telling her to ‘message your niece and wish her a happy birthday.’ This writer was completely stressed out. I CANNOT DM ONE MORE PERSON ON INSTAGRAM… to which her mother reminded her that her niece was not an instagram follower, she was family and there was a big difference.
Seven years later, this still sticks with me, especially when I’m feeling overwhelmed by the social connection of IG. One of the hardest things I’ve had to navigate over the last ten years is the irony of my loneliness despite the fact that I have more online connections than I could possibly ask for. This is partly my fault - we’ve moved five times in the last decade which makes deep and lasting friendships hard. This, paired with what is a super isolating job (no one ever tells ya that!) has made my reliance on social media that much more damaging.
I’m grateful for the community I’ve found on IG, it’s the reason I haven’t left. “It’s where the people are!” I have to remember though, that while there are amazing humans on the other side of most screens, I can’t realistically have meaningful or deep friendships through this app, nor can I feel guilty for all the loose threads I leave hanging. It keeps me up at night…racing thoughts of DMs I’ve never answered, kind comments I’ve left unliked. How am I lonely yet I can’t even bring myself to respond to a single DM? Again thanks to my invaluable therapist, who observed that when we operate from a place of lack, even if we’re lonely, it’s hard to give. And though social media feels like it should give us all the benefits of actual connection, it doesn’t.
In his book, Jonathon Haidt shares the writing of Freddie deBoer, “Digital substitutions for real world social engagement reduce the drive to be social but don’t satisfy social needs.” I almost feel like it’s the allusion of connection, along with dopamine of course that keep us coming back but we may still feel empty after scrolling because it’s not real embodied connection.

DISTRACTED
I pick up my phone to check the weather and 15 minutes later, I’m getting a timer alert on IG. Somehow I never made it to the weather app. And yes, I ignore that timer. One more minute. 15 more minutes. Ignore limit for the day. Social Media is such a time suck. Deep satisfying work takes direct and sustained attention and what social media does best is fragment our attention and steal our time. It’s bad enough to get lost scrolling but it’s even worse to post, because I can become all-consumed with the potential of response, feedback, dopamine, community, validation. Lately I’ve been avoiding IG, setting work timers, listening to instrumentals and just working. It’s wild how much I can accomplish. The temptation to share is strong in the midst of drawing or painting - I’ve always done work-in-progress posts - but lately one of the things I dread from posting is the follow up. If I have lots of commotion, I feel compelled to respond and keep checking. If there are crickets, I feel insecure, and may even delete a post to avoid the shame of having it sink. This is all of course by design - like a slot machine, I keep coming back with the potential of winning.

THE EGO
“Human beings are prone to become absorbed in themselves, unable to be interested in what they see and hear or in anything outside of their own skins. This is a great misfortune to themselves, since it entails at best boredom, and at worst, melancholia.” -Bertrand Russell

Some level of self-involvement is a given for artists, especially with the very real excavation it takes to explore our inmate visual sensitivities. In order to make authentic work, we have to know ourselves well, and also understand why we make art in the first place. I make art to celebrate my fleeting life and the lives of others, the small moments and ordinary treasures of this earth and our days. I paint to capture the textures, colors, and lines that expand my heart, and like many of you, I am communal in this expression. I share to connect. If I didn’t have a connection with others surrounding my work, I don’t think I’d be very prolific.
Social media, however, has a way of skewing this relation to ‘self’ and instead creates a very egocentric framework. Again, in The Anxious Generation, Haidt talks about spiritual transcendence and connection (can be godless, religious, or quasi-religious), and how traditional practices of human beings create reverent times, spaces, movements, and relations to others. Social Media instead happens all the time, everywhere, in a fixed position, with the focus on the self. “Self transcendence is among the central features of the spiritual experience and it turns out that the loss of self has a neural signature. There is a set of linked structures is the brain that are more active when we are processing from an egocentric point of view — thinking about what I want, what I need to do next, of what other people think of me.” This is the default mode network, or DMN. He continues, “When the DMN is quieter, we are better able to connect deeply to something beyond ourselves. What does social media do to the DMN? A social ‘platform’ is almost by definition, a place that is all about you. You stand on the platform and post content to to influence how others perceive you. It is almost perfectly designed to crank up the DMN to maximum and pin it there. That’s not healthy for any of us, and it’s even worse for adolescents.”

IDEAS ARE FRAGILE
Have you ever made something you felt profoundly moved by? Prodded by perhaps your ego, or the communal need to share, you post it and all that ensues are crickets. You keep checking back but no one really cares about the thing you’ve just shared and so you go on to scroll through other people’s profound offerings and suddenly the very thing that made you open up social media in the first place now seems grey and dingy. In mere minutes, it can go from being a spark of genius to something you’re embarrassed of. This happens to me and I’m sure to many of us. But ideas are fragile. Little bits of joyful creation - those are fragile. When everything we make is automatically up against the best of the best in our industry, it can kill fledgling ideas. I know really successful people who feel defeated by Instagram all the time, who constantly compare themselves.
Comparison isn’t just awful for ideas, it’s of course awful for our mental health. Envy takes us out of our own lives and pins our hearts on realities other than our own. I notice a marked difference in the satisfaction of my day to day when I’m off of social media. Suddenly I can be grateful, even for things that are challenging or need to be changed. I can better work towards the life I want vs resenting others for having it (and everything else.)

I’M TIRED
There are a couple of things that give me pause about continuing to use IG as a tool for my business. One is follower growth. It almost fills me with dread to see new followers. I’m the party host who is drunk, tired, missing a sock, and realizing that she alone has to clean up this mess. I don’t want people walking in, I want them all to go home! Not really, but sometimes I do feel that way. Last month a large creative magazine asked if I wanted to host a giveaway with them and almost immediately after replying with an enthusiastic yes! I messaged them back to tell them I couldn’t do it. The only payment was more followers and honestly the thought of that tightened my neck with stress. I feel I have nothing left to offer, especially to people who don’t already know me or my work. (If you’re new here, don’t worry, you can still come to the party, but just know the booze is gone and the host is tired.)

REELS…I JUST CAN’T
I’m going to be that old person who can’t keep up with the changing times but I really dislike reels. I dislike watching them I dislike making them. How many times have I read/seen/heard a fellow creative say, Well I just spent hours on this stupid reel, only to scrap it, only for it to get shown to no one, only to lose followers. Hours of work. HOURS. We only get so many of them folks. I’m afraid that if I invest hours to doing reels for people to chew up and spit out within seconds, not only will that drastically reduce my actual time to create, but furthermore, reels won’t be the end of it. Reels are but a rung on the ladder to who knows where. Next thing you know, there will be another layer to the video…a VR experience perhaps, where followers virtually sit beside you in your studio watching you paint. They steal your snacks and give you suggestions on your color palette and tell you about their aunt who is also an artist. (😂 Kidding - I actually find it super endearing when people share their artists relation stories and I also am not an alarmist about reels. Am I just lazy? Maybe.)

I have a four book series coming out next year, we’re moving again this Summer and I plan to really play up my wholesale/shop in the next couple of years. It’d be unwise for me to scrap the account I’ve built up over the years so I’m looking for ways to use it that won’t dampen my mental health. For starters, I understand how important it is to have an illustration/creative community in real life, or at least via zoom with a few select individuals. Peer to peer relations are so important and mine have all but faded. Second, I plan to continue my long stretches of work time without actively posting.
Some have suggested to me to post through a desktop instead of a phone and I think that’d be a great solution for many. At this time, they keep you on the phone by not allowing reels/stories to be posted through a computer (though someone could correct me). I’ve been considering going through a scheduling app - seeing IG like a media/marketing avenue, and without the social aspect. I can check in on accounts I love and perhaps interact but if I post from afar, I feel it’ll be out of sight and I’ll be less likely to be consumed by incessant checking.
Just this past Monday when I posted something on Instagram about this very blogpost, so many of you shared the same frustration. The new Meta AI search bar (I can’t even), struggles with the algorithm…we’re all feeling it but in a way some of us feel stuck. Strangely, having those little interactions reminded me of why I love it. Again…it’s where the people are!

+++++++++++

Do you use social media for work? Your personal life? How do you navigate it, and do you feel you have a healthy relationship to it? I’d be interested to read through your experience, and I’m sure others would too. In the meantime, I’m navigating a new way of approaching my work relationship with IG and will definitely keep you posted on the direction I find. Maybe there’s a way to realistically approach the whole thing and I want to be open to new avenues.

Further reading/listening…
The Anxious Generation by Jonathon Haidt
Stolen Focus by Johann Hari
Brené Brown with Dr. William Brady on Social Media, Moral Outrage and Polarization
Don’t Fall for It - Creative Peptalk Podcast 448
Why I don’t Post Anymore, Damon Dominique


Ok loves - thank you for being here - it means so much to connect with you each month, on topics big and small.
xo, Becca

In January, my friend Katie and I signed up for a 6 week clay class. I’d been wanting to sign up but always put it off until alas the class was sold out. This time we jumped on it because this winter was awful. Not cold. But dark. New Years was the worst, shuffling into 2024 without our girl, and my January birthday…that was a hard day too. I found out I was pregnant on my 37th birthday last year and this year I felt a decade older in a postpartum body and without a baby. Needless to say I had to get out of the house during those bleak evenings.

Every Wednesday night since, I’ve been in the ceramics studio (I’ve now signed up for another round of classes.) I’ve had a bit of experience with ceramics in the past and knew I’d love it but oh. I. Am. Smitten. It’s such a joy to be working with my hands but in a different capacity. And there are rules. I like the rules. With painting there are rules but I don’t know, trying to break them all the time is exhausting and as a 2-d artist, you have to set many of the limits yourself.

The first couple of things I made on the wheel fell apart but something clicked on the fourth or fifth go. The teacher was great - he taught me to keep my hands steady and s l o w. If I moved them too fast from fright or overconfidence, the whole thing became wobbly. I started to feel more comfortable with the clay - and I realized just as in painting or drawing, we each find our own way to use materials. Nice to have instruction but also be intuitive with how our own process develops.

I’m definitely humbled by the process and of course have so much more respect for people who work with clay. But I’m in the beginner’s sweet spot where there isn’t pressure to make anything amazing, and mastering this process feels a long way off. Of course my mind jumps to…I’ll make this, and then I can do that, and then I’ll sell them and have lovely ceramic drops, and maybe wholesale, and on and on. So many ideas! But it feels nice to go slow too, to take my time learning, understanding the rules of the clay, of the glazes. So much of it feels like it’s in other people’s hands too - I know nothing about firing and that’s such a big part of it. For now, I’m reveling in the beginner-ness of it all.

I feel like so many artists I know are leaning into ceramics and it’s been so fun to see that illustration work translate. It’s probably not shocking that my translation is just animals wearing pom pom shoes and candle holders. My heart wants what it wants. I have ten thousand ideas of how to bring it all to life but again, there’s a part of the process that demands patience.

This little rabbit was one of the first pieces I did and even though it’s rough, I think I’m liking it. Can’t get too attached though…the glaze I put on it last night looks straight out of a horror movie and besides, it could all just explode in the kiln anyway. I know what that’s like…things we love can be here one second and then poof, the next, they’re gone. (This is where if we were sharing a beer, I’d cheers you and smile with a tear in my eye.)

Another thing I love is interacting with other people in the class. We don’t get into deep conversations but just the small talk and chit chat around ceramics is lovely. Most days I only talk to Mori or Matt, and if I’m lucky, drinks or dinner with a friend. The people I meet through working out and the clay class are meaningful to me because they remind me I’m part of a community. Living in a rural area with no other illustrators is so hard but these little interactions get me through for now. (In regards to the benefit of these outer social rings, I loved this hidden brain podcast on the benefits of tiny interactions)

I’ll share a few more experiments with you - this one above is a little spoon rest bear for cooking. I was sure it’d fail so I didn’t bother making it smooth. Turns out, the underglazes mixed well and it’s so cute! Below is a (glazed but unfired) bat candle holder I made in honor of Sohvi since her birthday was in October. The holder part is a flurry of oak leaves. I plan to put a little match in the bat wings but idk…I might make it again. We’ll see how the glaze works out! Just behind it you can see my thin walled bowl! The teacher was proud. So cute. :)

Even though starting something new can be intimidating, I find that it’s usually when the stakes are high that it feels stressful. Maybe it’s a final illustration or a first page in a sketchbook. I shared some thoughts on it in The Dessert Club last week - just how beginning is always terrifying. But there is another sort of ‘beginner mode’ that’s brilliantly freeing. When there isn’t an expectation for everything to be incredible at once, you can cozy up to the learning and give it room to breathe. The possibilities in this new venture, for me, are endless so long as the process cooperates. And if it doesn’t and everything blows up in the kiln, I had fun and I did get some small talk out of it. 💛

I’ll share the updated pieces when they’re fired and will keep you posted on my slow but steady progress with clay. I do have high hopes. But ah! No. No expectations. Always the dilemma!

Do you have favorite ceramicists? I’d love to hear about them below.

Alas I can’t just flirt with clay all day…I have to WORK! And for me, work mostly means painting. I did a very Springy illustration featuring bluebells, violas, and daffodils (as costumes on dancing animals obvi) and you can watch the painting unfold over in The Dessert Club Patreon. 🧁 Not only do I share with you the sketch, painting, and inking, I also share the preliminary sketchbook flowers, and loads of unused drawings because honestly the project changed and was quite a nightmare. In the end though by some miracle, we have a fresh bright painting.

Hope you have the loveliest start to April. I’ll check back in tomorrow with an April newsletter plus two new prints in my shop! Today was bonkers - this whole week has been! I feel sluggish in this new life trying to keep up with the momentum of my old self but one little step at a time.

More soon, xo
Becca

Painting is a gift. And not in the sense that it’s a divinely ordained talent that only few have, or that it’s an offering to the world (though I do think that one’s true). Painting is a gift like waking up is a gift. Life is full of these bounties in plain sight - morning coffee, running water, warm socks, laughing until we ache.

When we came home from the hospital in October empty handed after carrying a baby inside me for nine months, I remember remarking to Matt..what a gift it is just to bring a baby home. Just to simply bring her home. I’d had ideas which now seem like grandeur of sleepless nights, strollers on snowy trails, tiny hands, a new era of learning. But now I know even carrying her was a gift, one that not everyone gets to experience. We don’t have to go through a major loss to know what it feels like to suddenly go without - we see the simple pleasures staring us in the face anytime tragedy happens to us, to others.

Walking through loss is like stepping into a new life where everything is different and upside down. Early on, I didn’t care about anything. Food, work, living. It all seemed utterly useless. And though it’s still fresh, as I work through my grief, I’m able to find, even revel in, joy. Seeing a play on a Sunday afternoon, sitting warm by a fire, kissing, dancing, standing in awe at a full moon. These are gifts of the universe I don’t have to appreciate but life has meaning when I do.

Painting for a living is…a dream really, let’s be honest. Yes it also comes with major hurdles, tantrums, plateaus, and endless creative challenges. I’ve not worked on a single book where there weren’t emotional meltdowns. I used to think that stress was necessary to make good work and now I’m loosening my grip on the reigns a bit. Yes, it’s still a long haul investment of devotion and concentration but at the end of the day…it’s art. I’d love to feel joyous when it’s going well, and likewise, just as fine when it’s falling apart.

This is not toxic positivity or a sermon - I’m very much a realist, an atheist, a hard worker. I acknowledge art as extremely powerful and healing. I’m just saying it’s important for me to keep gratitude in check. Yes life is hard. But I look around me at loss, devastating wars, a changing landscape and I am grateful that I can sit in a warm room and paint. That’s enough most days. Even when a painting fails, it’s really… not that big of a deal.

I’m hoping wherever you are in the world or in your creative practice, you can soak up those small things in life that really are… oh I don’t know, life itself.

For more on gratitude…

I’ve alway loved this Freakonomics podcast on gratitude - maybe you’ll like it too.

This Masterplan for a More Joyful World by Brad Montague serendipitously arrived just in time for today’s post.

Seeing the real awfulness of the world and giving it hell like Junior Mint. Marla Frazee shared this article - what a great read.

And this - like everything from Orfayo - is too pure for the internet. (I love the opening…careful!)

Sending you all my best for a beautiful and bountiful March.
With love (and thanks),
Becca

_________________

As many of you know, I do in-depth blog posts and newsletter bulletins every month. Actually, March 1st marks FOUR years of monthly goodness! If you’ve been here reading them, thank you. Seriously, I love having such a kind audience. Though the content shifts slightly from year to year, the underlying message is that I love art - I love making it, sharing it, and having it be a part of my life. If you’re here, it’s because you feel the same and I’m grateful for that. ❤️

I don’t want to build the house, I only want to choose the doorknobs in the house.

I don’t know how to layout a room but I can pick out vintage pillows or prints! Laying out a picture book spread stresses me out - I detest figuring out composition…but the details within the illustration…those glorious pom poms on the shoes…those teeny buttons on the collar of a bear’s shirt…that’s all I care about thank you!

This wouldn’t be my year if I didn’t have an entire blog post dedicated to details so for this lovely little November installment of my Yearlong Celebration of Things I Love About Art - we’re zooming way in and reveling in the tiniest of features.

My current work has gotten much simpler but here are some older pieces which you can dig into…so much detail!

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One thing I think I’m getting better as is knowing when to add detail and when to leave it out. Working on Henri and Miko has forced me to simplify in so many ways because the stories are told is graphic panels. More detail means a slower pace of storytelling and also less efficiency for me in getting it all done. But the books are still incredibly detailed - I’m just focusing my energy on world building in the right spots. Here are a couple peeks from the sketch phase of the books…(omg I can’t wait for these to come out and for you to see them - literally YEARS in the making!)

“Drawing a good picture is like telling a really good lie -
the key is in the incidental detail.”

- Shaun Tan

SOPHIE BLACKALL

I’ve been patiently waiting to put Sophie Blackall on this list, though I knew it must be for the right thing! One of the things that stands out to me about her work is the incredible level of craft, detail and care. I had the immense joy of attending Milkwood last Summer and we got to see the originals for Farmhouse and my mind was blown! So many insanely intricate details. (She even lifted the covers off the characters in bed and underneath they were illustrated with full pajamas and toes!) She’s illustrated over 50 book, won a multitude of awards (including two Caldecotts!) and still has the capacity to seemingly put care into everything she puts out into the world. (For a treat, watch some BTS from Farmhouse!)

Interior from Farmhouse, ©Sophie Blackall

Sophie showing us her originals at Milkwood (and us all losing our minds!)

Interior from If You Come To Earth, © Sophie Blackall

Interior from Hello Lighthouse, ©Sophie Blackall

JÚLIA SARDÀ

I’ve been a huge fan of Barcelona based Júlia Sardà’s work since the beginning of my career and it’s been a true joy watching her work (which from the onset was incredible) just get better and better…and better! Her commitment to propelling her work is palpable, and she’s created an entire world rich with perspectives, textures, and intriguing details. You’ve seen her illustrations in books like Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein, The Liszts, and my personal favorite - her debut authored and illustrated book, The Queen in the Cave. Generic interiors are way too common in picture books (mine included) but she builds interesting worlds you could (and would want to) get lost in.

Interior from The Queen In The Cave ©JuliaSarda

Interior from Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein, illustration ©JuliaSarda

From Moving the Millers' Minnie Moore Mine Mansion: A True Story, ©Julia Sarda

MITSUMASA ANNO

I first found Japanese artist Mitsumasa Anno’s (1926-2020) work at my friend Ginnie Hsu’s house (another lover of details!) in the book Anno’s Flea Market. He is most known for his highly detailed picture books which contain few words, rendered in pen & ink and watercolor. After studying art in highschool and being drafted into the Japanese Army, he taught high school math for ten years before diving into a career of picture books. He published over three dozen books and won a number of awards, including the Hans Christian Andersen Award.

St. Paul’s Cathedral from Anno’s Britain ©Mitsumasa Anno

Spread from Anno’s Journey, © Mitsumasa Anno

Spread from Anno’s Journey ©Mitsumasa Anno

B.B. Cronin

When I decided to do a post on detail, I knew I had to include the super fun seek & find books from BB Cronin. This Irish illustrator, who now lives in NY is the creator of the series which includes The Lost House, The Lost Picnic, The Lost Christmas, and The Lost Cousins. The first book has everything hidden under a single color illustration so it’s extra tricky to find objects! The rest of the books are so vivid and bright. The stories follow Grandad who with the help of his grandkids, Tate and Esme, must find loads of things from socks to teeth to their lost long cousins! I have to get all of these for mysel…err…my daughter! (Nice to now have an excuse to go wild on all the books I’ve been wanting.)

Interior from The Lost House ©B.B.Cronin

Interior from The Lost House ©B.B.Cronin

There are so many lovely books and illustrations overflowing with details and I’d love to hear your recommendations. What am I missing?! Leave them in the comments below :)

If you want to dig in a little more, you can watch the colored pencil and watercolor piece of my annual self portrait come together this month on The Dessert Club Patreon. We start with the colored pencil drawing (though I did post progress pics!) and do some color temp testing before a timelapse of the watercolor painting and final colored pencil details.

Ok friends, thanks for reading! I hope you have the coziest month filled with family (chosen or given) the toastiest feasts and all the warmth and magic you can handle.

xo,
Becca

Happy October my little spiders!

It’s the best month of the year! When I embarked on my Yearlong Celebration of Things I Love About Art back in January, I had no detailed plan. As usual, I was impulsive - I just dove in and I’m glad I did - it’s been a fun year researching and sharing. By May or June, I decided to plan out the remainder of the year - what months should celebrate what? For some reason I felt beholden to technical categories, as though I had to put a teacher hat on. I felt a bit boxed in but then realized…“This should be what I, Rebecca Green, love about art…otherwise why I am writing it?!” I have to constantly remind myself of my own freedom to decide (which is not uncommon amongst artists.) Like WAIT….what do I actually like? I decided to explore tactile things, stop motions sets, and this month, something I love almost more than anything…AUTUMN. As a child, I loved coloring in Halloween coloring books, reading Clifford’s Halloween, and 30 some years later I still swoon seeing spooky illustrations in picture books. For example, have you seen anything more charming than say, these witches from Adrienne Adams?

From A Woggle of Witches by Adrienne Adams, 1971

Yea me neither.

In true spiderwebbed fashioned of this most spectacular month, we’re celebrating all things frightful, all things spooky, all things OCTOBER!

“Each year, the Great Pumpkin rises out of the pumpkin patch
that he thinks is the most sincere.”

- Charles M. Schulz, "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"

ADRIENNE ADAMS

Adrienne Adams (1906-2002) was an American illustrator of over 30 picture books to which I never had the delight of learning about (thanks art school!) until I kept coming across her festive illustrations on pinterest over the last year. Born in Arkansas, she grew up in Oklahoma and studied at Stephens College, The University of Missouri, and the American School of Design. In 1934 she married a fellow picture book writer and illustrated his book, Bag of Smoke. From 1952, she became a full time children’s book illustrator, writing and illustrating six of her own (and winning numerous awards including two Caldecott Honors!) Her work was created in tempura, gouache, watercolor, and crayon. Here are some of my favorites for October, but she illustrated so many - I encourage you to dig through more!

From A Halloween Party by Adrienne Adams, 1974

From A Halloween Party by Adrienne Adams, 1974

From A Woggle of Witches by Adrienne Adams, 1971

DIRK ZIMMER

Dirk Zimmer (1948-2008) was a German children’s book author and illustrator. He illustrated one of my very favorite picture books, Boney Legs by Joanna Cole. I fell in love with this book as a second grader and was reunited with it after years of searching for it as an adult. There are so many lovely little details in it and for some reason, I carried the images in my head long after reading it for school. Zimmer was a painter and filmmaker in Germany before moving to New York City in 1977 when he began additionally working in picture books. In his career before his sudden death, he illustrated over 25 kids books.

From The Trick-or-Treat Trap by Dirk Zimmer, 1982

From Bony-Legs, illustrated by Dirk Zimmer, 1983

From In A Dark Dark Room, illustrated by Dirk Zimmer, 1984

ISABELLA MAZZANTI

Isabella Mazzanti, who also goes by Isa Bancewicz, is a Polish Italian artist who alongside illustrating graphic novels, also co-founded the Idea Academy in Rome. I was lucky enough to spend a day with her eating pastries in the park in Osaka when she was visiting Japan and she’s just as lovely as her work. It’s perfect for this spooky time of year, in particular, the graphic novel Carmilla. (Though she also recently illustrated Hitomi by HS Tak, check that out too!) The images below are graphite and so stunning! Follow her on IG for a better look of all her drawings…

The Coffin from Carmilla, illustrated by Isabella Mazzanti

From Carmilla, illustrated by Isabella Mazzanti

Illustrations from Isabella Mazzanti

Other spooky gems…

‘Halloween’ by Grandma Moses, 1955

Sleepy Hollow concept art by Mary Blair

Alice and Martin Provensen

The Soup Bone by Tony Johnston & Margot Tomes

Rhode Montijo

via @mypapercrane IG

Lovely one of a kind ceramics from mypapercrane - Heidi Kenny

OK! I know you have some spooky recs! Lay em’ on us in the comment section :) You all sent some really fabulous recommendations for stop motion animations last month - thank you so much for that!

If you want more beastly feastin’ for your eyes, you can watch October’s painting, MAPLE MOONSHINE, come to life over on The Dessert Club Patreon. I share the lightbox transfer, the acrylic gouache process, some thoughts on color, and you can see the tricky addition of the trees in the background as the painting wraps up to a finish.

And just in case you missed it and you want a little more Autumn (who are you if you don’t?) you can see this Apple Cider Press painting process in watercolor and ink that I shared last month.

Ok loves!
Hope you have the spookiest and most magically cheerful month! 🕸🕸🕸

I’ll be away through the rest of the year as we’re expecting a little butternut squash like…in a WEEK.
Blog, Bulletin, and Patreon posts will still continue to arrive but it’ll be the ghost version of me (aka the version of me who somehow managed to fit three month’s of posts into pre-production!) Until I see you again in real (internet) life, I’m sending all my coziest thoughts your way.

xo,
Becca

Okay it’s time…it’s autumn.

For the first time in 37 years I’m a little sad to see summer slip away. (I can’t even believe it’s me typing that.) Maybe it’s because the winters feel extraordinarily long living here. Maybe it’s because I’ll have soon have a newborn and I’m not quite ready (is anyone ever?) Or maybe everything and everyone changes and I’ve actually come to really love summer…

But…*wipes a tear away… I can’t be that mad because it’ll soon be autumn and it truly is my favorite. This is the time we cozy into apple crumbles and sweaters and (slightly) scary movies and crisp windy days. With that indulgence of magic in mind, I bring you September’s installment of my Year Long Celebration of Things I Love About Art - something also close to my heart…tiny magical worlds. Last month we talked about tactile work but stop motion sets and puppets are of another realm entirely and one I never tire of. Over the years, I’ve done 3d work, though never enough and really only dabbled in stop motion. The itch is always there.

Here are a couple from over the years…

Hortsense and the Leaf Bug 2014, mixed media

Found objects, mixed media for Hortense and the Leaf Bug, 2014

Emogene Blue for the INBOX Exhibition, 2015

What people like about stop-motion animation is that it's real. It's like a magic trick, taking real things, real sets, and making them come to life with movement.

—Joe Clokey

Of course when I think of stop motion sets and animations, some well known ones come to mind. Aardman’s Wallace and Gromit or Tim Burton’s Nightmare before Christmas (which I have been in love with since the age of seven.) There’s of course Laika - they make brilliant animations like Kubo and the Two Strings and Coraline. (I’ve visited to see their stuff in person and at exhibitions, completely mind blowing!) But as I can’t share every single one I know of, I picked five!

PINOCCHIO

Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio came out last year and I’ve already watched it three times and have plans to do so again…like maybe tonight! My mind was BLOWN away by the puppetry, the sets - omg the interior of the church alone, and Geppetto’s workshop…sigh. The timing and emotion of the puppets…the soundtrack..everything! It’s true mastery. The only thing better is watching how the movie was made (it took 15 years!!)

Look at this image below…it takes such skill to make a place look that lived in.

Guillermo del Toro on the set of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, 2022. Image courtesy Jason Schmidt/Netflix

"Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio"Netflix

Image credit: Michel Amado Carpio / Netflix 2022

If you’re in Portland, OR there’s a couple more weeks left to see the film’s exhibition at the Portland Art Museum. Let me live vicariously through you??

ROBIN ROBIN

We’ve lost track of how many times we’ve seen this movie, which came out in 2021. We’re obsessed and we tell everyone to watch it. A totally different feel than Pinocchio, this Aardman’s film was spearheaded by Daniel Ojari and Mikey Please. The puppets and set were needle-felted, creating a soft organic texture to everything on screen. The timing in this one is so on point as well…the tiniest mouse turd can be missed if you’re not looking. I especially love that the concept work was done by Matthew Forsythe and it feels like stepping into his world. Also, Briony May Smith did illustrations as well and the book Robin Robin is such a visual treat too. Also obviously the BTS is so interesting! We are so excited to have this be a Christmas tradition for our daughter in the years to come (and I feel like you can’t really say that of many new Christmas movies…)

Robin Robin on Netflix

Robin Robin on Netflix

Exterior burrow for Robin Robin

JIŘÍ TRNKA

Jiří Trnka was a Czech puppeteer and illustrator, creating over thirty animations and 130 illustrated publications, mostly for children. For his films, he was the writer, director, puppet fabricator, animator, set builder, everything, which is completely wild and inspiring. I have only seen bits and pieces of the animations but I’m in love with the style of the worlds he builds. I have a ton to learn about him still but I couldn’t not put him on the list bc I’m super inspired by his stills. This is a super interesting read about his life and work if you’re interested! You can find some of his illustrations here as well…

A still from Jiří Trnka

A still from Jiří Trnka

A still from Jiří Trnka

TULIP by Andrea Love & Phoebe Wahl

There’s a good chance you’ve seen Andrea Love’s Cooking with Wool videos where she animates felted culinary ventures. Here’s a lovely breakfast one (which perfectly captures every single morning of my pregnancy!). They’re mind blowing along with the rest of her work. I finally watched TULIP (2021) from her and Phoebe Wahl, who you of course know from picture books and more and knew it needed to be on the list. It’s such a lovely little film and the craft is incredible. (Also equally cool is this Behind the Scenes of the music video they collaborated on).

A still from Tulip from Andrea Love & Phoebe Wahl

A still from Tulip from Andrea Love & Phoebe Wahl

FANTASTIC MR. FOX

I went back and forth on whether or not to include this Roald Dahl classic turned stop motion by Wes Anderson because it seems too obvious to list but with it being September I can’t not add it. And because I’m really into the sets, this one is hard to beat imo. It screams Autumn. Liquid Gold! All the tiny details of the apples and the farmland. Such a warm and cozy and brilliant film, that really doesn’t get old to me. If you’re into the film, I also really loved the FMF Making of the Motion Picture Book, though there’s lots of behind the scenes online too. It’s hard to pick just a few of my favorite stills but I’ll attempt it…

Still from Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox

Still from Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox

I know some of you out there have brilliant recommendations for stop motion films/sets and I’d love to hear them in the comments. It’s a world I’m definitely am not entrenched in, but always inspired by.

Also, to celebrate September, I’m running a Fall Studio Sale! I put up a handful of originals, discontinued ghost prints, and a few test/discounted prints.

I hope this September brings with it coziness, all the most beautiful colors, and lots and lots of apple desserts! Thanks for being here every month, it means the world to me.

Until next time,
Becca

Hello my hot potatoes! How are you!

We are well into Summer now and I’m soaking up every bit of Sun on my skin and grass underfoot. In my past, I’d be counting down the days until Fall but now I’m loving the wildness that summer brings. That paired with the fact that winter is oh so long here makes me savor each tiny moment.

This month for our Year Long Celebration of Things I Love About Art, I’m sharing work that is three dimensional and tactile…work you’d want to touch! Think paper sculptures, found objects, clay, etc. This stuff always gets me so jazzed and inspired yet I never take the time to let myself explore this territory. If that’s you too, maybe seeing all of this work will help us break out of our little 2d shells?

I do have just a few pieces from over the years where I explored three dimensionally - it’s forever in my mind and in my heart that I’ll do more yet…why don’t I!

Celia, 2020, Paper, Acrylic Paint Tube, Ink, Wood Fishing Rods

Faux Cake, 2020, Plastic packaging, colored pencil candle, paint, tape, glue

Someday soon…someday soon!

“The world we live in is not purely visual. For me it's totally poly-sensorial so the tactile, sensual aspect of living in the work that I do is brought to the fore.”

Ross Lovegrove

SABINE TIMM-GNOTH aka VIRGIN HONEY

I’ve been following the work of Sabine Timm-Gnoth aka Virgin Honey on Instagram for a long while and I never get tired of seeing what she comes up with. Using found objects, food, furniture, paint, toys and more, she’s built a 3d world all her own. The characters all feel very much hers, the color palettes blend beautifully, and the utter playfulness of it all inspires me. I promise you won’t regret following her either.

© VirginHoney

©VirginHoney

BERNARD JEUNET

I found Bernard Jeunet’s work while digging for 3d inspiration a couple years back. Sadly I can’t find a ton out about the artist, but what I do know is that he is a French artist who studied at the Regional School of Fine Arts in Rennes. He creates delightful scenes, illustrations and puppets from simple materials - kraft paper, cardboard, and other scraps. He has illustrated picture books such as Voyage à Poubelle-Plage and Attrape-moi aussi un poète!

Book Cover ©BernardJeunet

© Bernard Jeunet

© Bernard Jeunet

I love that one above of the can of sardines!!

I think both Sabine and Bernard’s work are both great reminders that you don’t necessarily need fancy materials, training, or tools to make exciting and playful 3D work.

IRMA GRUENHOLZ

Spanish artist Irma Gruenholz creates beautifully soft sculptural work which then takes on the form of two dimensional illustrations. To see the work in progress is stunning so I’m including a screenshot from her Instagram so you can see behind the scenes as well. The sculptures are surprising large in some of the pieces! I especially love the ones of the food - all the little details! She does work for books, magazines, advertising, and more.

Fruit Forest, © Irma Gruenholz

For AD Architectural Digest Germany, © Irma Gruenholz

Instagram of @irmagruenholz

RED NOSE STUDIO

Chris Sickles of Red Nose Studio was one of my very first contemporary influences in art school - I remember finding his work and all these sparks of inspiration just ignited. There was nothing like his work being shown in my very photorealistic program which someday I’ll talk more about, but suffice it to say, I was blown away by his craft and still am. He primarily creates illustrations for books and editorial clients, from clay, found objects, fabric - things easily accessible, though he has a way of magical repurposing them into a tinier more magical universe. I was super lucky to grab one of his displacement stereograph sets which I cherish (and am inspired by the fact that he put so much energy into a brilliant personal project.) Also I’ve met him and heard him on podcasts and he has to be the most humble artist working today…such a nice human!

Illustration for ‘The Tree Where Los Angeles Began’ written by D.J. Waldie for Alta Journal, ©Red Nose Studio

For the opening of Grand Central Madison for MTA, © Red Nose Studio

Aside from illustrations, the artist also does stop motion animations - like this one for the opening of Grand Central Madison!

‘From Foundations to Finishing Touches’ Marriott Alumni Magazine, ©Red Nose Studio

Book Cover for Seven Vampires by Lavie Tidhar, © Red Nose Studio

SONIA ALINS

Sonia Alins is a Spanish artist who uses an array of tactile materials to create stunning dream like pieces. When I asked the artist to pick a few illustrations to share, she explained a bit more about them, “all my artworks are done by hand, using different materials to create a unique and textured sensation of seabed and atmosphere.” She was also kind enough to clue us in as the materials used for each piece, which you’ll find in the captions. Truly, the work is ethereal, feminine, and romantic and I especially love the pieces she shared with me for today’s post.

· Placer, 2020. © Sonia Alins. Canson paper, plastic, feathers, threads, chiffon fabric, and plastic pieces in a wooden box.

Essence, 2021. © Sonia Alins. Canson paper, plastic, threads, fabrics, and artificial flowers in a wooden box.

The Girls of the Rocks, 2021. © Sonia Alins. Canson paper, plastic, cardboard, threads, and plastic and wooden pieces in a wooden box.

ANN WOOD of WOODLUCKER

Ann Wood is part of the duo making up Woodlucker along with artist Dean Lucker. Together they live and work in Minneapolis (from the loveliest studio!) Ann is a botanical paper artist, working true to size, creating the most beautiful paper flowers, food, and insects. I’m especially fond of the food! The craft is unreal and the colors are so soothing. Also the attention to detail! The little seed holes in the pear - the teeny caterpillar chew marks on the leaves. Just so sweet. You can follow her on Instagram too - it’s such a treat.

Paper Food, © Ann Wood

Paper Food, © Ann Wood

Paper Botanicals, © Ann Wood

More artists to check out that have incredible 3D work -
ZIM & ZOU Literal paper wizards…seriously blows my mind.
SOPHIE PAGE Sweetest picture book work, but also tiny things to wear and love!

I could go into stop motion too and miniature worlds/sets bc THAT is true indulgence for me but we do have a couple more months in the year 😉. For now, enjoy this smattering of truly touching 3d work. Are you inspired to do some? Me too!!

For this month’s Patreon Video on The Dessert Club, I’m exploring some new materials - a must for keeping work fresh! I do a little Art Supply Haul and then use some juicy new paint markers to explore beach paintings from a recent observational drawing session on Lake Huron. You’ll find it all and more on The Dessert Club!

I’ll also be sharing another post mid month about my time in Spain and Denmark and the loveliest painting retreat with 16 of the world’s best humans. I’m still reeling over such an inspiring and re-energizing trip.
Hope you have a fun and wild August - this summer is flying by, but I’m doing my best to soak my (very swollen pregnant) toes into the water and into the dirt. Hope you’re doing the same and enjoying every bit of the season.

Until next time!
xo, Becca