Letters from the kids

These letters are from Finland Elementary School.
You will notice this lion theme in the letters...I teach them how to draw a lion using the number five. The Groundhog is made the same way.



I find that using numbers to teach kids drawing is an easy way to get them started in drawing. By the end of my lessons the kids are using all kinds of numbers to create all kinds of animals.

More Gallery Show

This is my wife and I standing in front of my paintings opening night at the Cox Fine Art building. I'm not going to lie, I was nervous at this show. It's really strange having your art hainging on a wall for all to see. It was a great night once I was able to shake the nerves and lighten up a bit.

Fine Arts Show at Ohio State Fair

This was my first time entering the Ohio State Fair Fine Arts Show and I'm glad that I did. You're allowed to enter three paintings and so I did and to my surprise all three we selected. Why was I surprised? Well for one I work digitally and not everyone responds well to the computer...I guess some think that the computer just does the work for you....(NOT AT ALL.)
In many ways the computer has a huge learning curve that you have to master before you can even begin painting and creating on it. Another reason I thought I might not be selected for the show was due to my subject matter. I create art that kids like and more importantly art that I would have liked as a kid...and that means monsters, monsters, and more monsters. So I am really happy that I entered the show and was thrilled to see my work hanging on the walls with so many other talented artists. I would also like to thank the very talented Amy Kollar Anderson for sending me an e-mail telling me how much she liked my work. It meant a lot to me because her paintings are so awesome and must take so long to paint. Feel free to google her name to see her work. Okay, last I would like to thank the person that bought the painting above titled First Contact. It was a thrill to sell my fist painting at my very first show.

Doodle Loves Italian

While I was in Illinois for two days my wife decided that Doodle might want some marinara sauce mixed in with his dog food. Doodle loved the red sauce but his face was covered with it. I thought he was an Old-English sheep dog, not Italian.

Justin's Monster

So when I arrived at my hotel there were boxes of books waiting to be signed. Inside those boxes of books were not only books but many drawings from the kids welcoming me to Chatham Illinois. I came acoss this drawing and was quickly scared out of my mind. So scared, that I put the drawing in the closet and shut the door. I soon forgot about the drawing until later that night when I woke up to find this guy looking at me from behind the closet door. Thanks Justin for sending your frightning monster thing to my room.

Ball Elementary

My second day in Illinois was spent at Ball Elementary...Another huge school for K-3rd. The library was decked out with posters and art from my books.

Chatham Elementary

I spent two days in the Springfield Illinois area talking to two elementary schools. I signed over 400 maybe even 500 books between the two schools. The amazing thing was how large these elementary schools were and they only had K-3rd grades. These schools were close to the size of my High School. Everyone was so nice and even though it was a long drive, it was a great time for me to talk to kids outside of Ohio.

Union Local Visit

Had a great time at Union Local Elementary. The kids and teachers told me they had a great time too. Signed over 400 books for kids and of course when I sign a book I also draw a small doodle too.

ESC young illustrators day!

This is a great event put on by the ESC here in Columbus OH. A handful of kids from several school districts get to spend the morning with me drawing and learning about being an illustrator. Each kid gets a drawing booklet and a T-shirt to remember the day.

Dayton Monroe Visit

This is one of my favorite schools to visit. Brenda Gelm, the librarian, is a huge fan of kids' books and has had many authors and illustrators visit her school. I was honored to have my art hanging with the likes of C.F. Payne and Christopher Canyon.

Louie Kabloowie

This is my cray dog Louie. I thought Labs were easy going. Boy was I wrong.

Kids Horse Drawing

This is one of the things I teach kids how to draw. This is a third graders drawing of a horse. I teach them to start with a lower case h.

My very first school visit

This was my very first school visit, since then I have done about 40 school visits. Most here in my home state of Ohio, but also in Indiana and Illinois. I really enjoy the visits and getting to meet the kids and teachers that read my books and enjoy my art.