Now that it’s officially summer, you probably have plans to take your kids to the beach.  No need to take an extra bag with art supplies. With objects found on the beach and a little imagination your kids will have a fun day filled with creative inspiration from mother nature.

Your little Scribblers can create sculptures crafted with with stones, sand and seaweed and all kids of things that wash up from the ocean.

Pebble Fish by Richard Shilling

Here are some things to think about before creating your beach master piece.

Relax and take a good look around.

Take in the color, smells and textures of the air, water and sand.

Let the ocean speak to you then decide what you would like to create.

Select some objects and materials that you would like to use to make your art….sand, stones, seaweed, etc.

Get creative, draw designs in the sand by swirling the sand with a stick or your hand. 

Play with patterns, and textures.  You may want to use sea shells to create patterns in the sand or use a stick  to carve lines.

Take a look at this Sandy Lion – amazingly this sculpture is created completely from sand and seaweed! 

Lion On The Beach – Gurnsey Arts Commission

I love this Rock Man.  How fun!  Some seaweed and rocks and there you have it!

Rock Man Photo by Hubpages.com

Art in the sand can be created by using a rake, a stick, objects that wash up from the ocean.Think about the wonderful patterns that can be created when you use the sand as your canvas.

Beach Art by Andres Amador

Try making art the next time you go to the beach and let us see what you and your kids come up with.

Please send us photos.  We’d love to share your creativity and inspiration with our readers!!!

Happy Scribbling!

Scribble Town (ST): Yulia is everywhere!  We first discovered her while flipping through an Oprah magazine and then saw her work featured in Material World: The Modern Craft Bible.  Yulia is an expert paper artist and is generous to share her tips!  Where are you and what are you up to these days?

Yulia Brodskaya (YB): I live close to London, very busy with my paper art and two little kids.

M Real by Yulia Brodskaya

ST: I have never seen anything like your art.  How would you define your work?  It seems to be a peaceful combination of craft and fine art.

YB: I just call them paper artworks; but I don’t normally try to put any labels such as craft or fine art or even focusing on the term ‘quilling’ too much. I use a combination of paper manipulation techniques to create my paper artworks.

Jungle Bird by Yulia Brodskaya

ST: How did you discover this artistic process of creating paper artworks?  Was there somebody that encouraged you?  With your two kids perhaps they help with the playful aspect of your images!  Your birds and butterflies look like they will just fly away.

YB: I always had a special fascination for paper, I’ve tried many different methods and techniques of working with paper, for instance Origami, paper collages, however Quilling technique turned out to be ‘the one’ for me. I started to use it about five years ago: I was planning to create a small brochure with my hand-drawn illustrations to be sent out to potential clients and I was looking for an eye-catching image with my name ‘Yulia’ for the cover. I created a number of hand-drawn variants, but I didn’t like any of them and then I remembered an image from some school book showing a paper strips standing on edge, so tried to make the letters using this technique and apparently the attempt was successful; over the next couple months I switched to paper illustration completely.

Nature by Yulia Brodskaya

ST: Through playing and dabbling we just stumble upon what we didn’t expect! Where do you find yourself feeling really inspired to create?

YB: In my little studio.

ST: How do you manipulate your paper? What is the process?

YB: I use cocktail straw and little cocktail sticks for rolling the paper strips (I didn’t know that there are specially designed tools available when I taught myself to shape the paper strips, I started to use the cocktail straw and I still use it now). Also, scissors, twisters for little details, glue and of course paper paper paper. For the process the best thing will be to search for some basic youtube lessons.

ST: Yup, anything can be a helpful tool especially when you know what your aim is.  Cocktail straws do the trick!  Yulia, any tips for our scribblers out there?

YB: Just have fun with it; it will be a pleasure if you enjoy it. The process is very slow and time-consuming so if you are not enjoying it the whole experience can be a plain torture.  I have a fish pattern that I designed for my workshop in Shanghai, it is very simple, people can use it as a basis for the quilling experiments.

ST: Thanks Yulia!  I’m going to give it a try!

Pure by Yulia Brodskaya

Scribble Town (ST): Carly Kasner shows us how animations bring to life more imagination than we could imagine.  It is easy to see in her artwork and her approach to creativity!

Carly Kasner (CK): Hello Scribblers, I come from Long Island and graduated from FIT, May 2012. I am a graphic designer with some essence of illustrator mixed in. From the time I was little till this very day, I have had a special connection with cartoons, which inspires and or impacts my work today.

Anime self portrait of Carly Kasner

ST: How are you spending your time these days?

CK: I am currently interning at The Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services in New York City. It is a non-profit organization that provides mental health and social services. I design various flyers, books, and print/e-mail invitations there. In my spare time, I have been recently involved in t-shirt design contests between the websites threadless.com, and welovefine.com.

In addition to that, I occasionally create my own characters for fun. In recent years, I do consider my work to be more digital but I still highly respect the traditional methods as well as the digital I utilized InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator as my main digital formats I use whatever tool(s) will get the job done in the best way for my idea/client.

Monster’s Inc scribble shirt by Carly Kasner

ST: Designing t-shirts sounds really fun and it must feel good when you see somebody wearing one of your ideas. When did you start illustrating / scribbling / being creative?  Was there somebody that encouraged you?

CK: The beginning of my creative era was around kindergarten I stumbled into my interest of drawing through the inspiration I got from cartoons and my love for doodling. I used to like to draw dogs. I feel that I was born with a love for drawing.

ST: Your love for dogs is seen in your North Shore Animal League Logo.  I really like how you’ve nested the dog and the cat together.  It’s as if they were hugging each other.  It’s a very clever design!  Where do you find yourself feeling really inspired to create?

North Shore Animal League logo by Carly Kasner

CK: I think my inspiration can come from different sources and/or artists, but I think my, main root was the endless hours I spent in front of the TV growing up. I was a 90s child and some of my favorite cartoons were Courage the Cowardly Dog, Hey Arnold, the Rugrats, and The Angry Beavers. I was inspired not only by the characters image; I was inspired by the stories that molded the characters personalities. And as I got older, I became inspired by Japanese cartoons and comic books a.k.a. anime and manga.

ST: What other forms of art do you practice?

CK: In high school, I did some ceramics, collages, oil painting, and water colors in recent years, I am still partial to the sketchpad and pencil. I try to use that for my creativity as much as possible and even though I haven’t practiced it much lately I am also fascinated by watercolors.

ST: What is your favorite movie?

CK: My favorite movie is Hayo Miyazaki’s Spirited Away.

ST: I also really liked Miyazaki’s Howl’s Moving Castle.  The story and images are unforgettable!  Carly, please share any tips, advice, or ways of encouraging scribblers.

CK: I struggle sometimes with accepting mistakes but it is important to accept mistakes and to learn from them. Try not to let them discourage you. I try to look at mistakes as boundaries to define what not to do next time. Keep in mind that you can’t get something right unless you get it wrong.

ST: Thanks Carly! That’s great advice!  Making mistakes is a big part of life and making art.  At least we can say we tried

Sweet Bots by Carly Kasner

Scribble Town (ST):  Every year, Youth Art Month (YAM) has a flag competition for each state.  Students from each grade level (elementary, middle, high school) creates a flag design for YAM in their state.  The design can use the National theme: Art Shapes the World, or you can create your own theme.  A winner will be chosen from the three levels and the winning flags will be represented on the posters and postcards promoting the YAM show at the Capitol in March.  The winning student artist will receive an actual 3’x5’ flag of their winning design.  On the Scribble Blog with us is the winning high school student from Minnesota, Chelsea Waite!

Chelsea Waite’s winning NM YAM flag!

Chelsea, what was your first thought when you heard of the YAM project?

Chelsea Waite (CW): When I first heard of the contest, I was excited because I have never been involved in a art contest this big before.

ST: Already you sound like a person who is up for challenges and like to take a chance! How did your idea develop?  What story or idea are you trying to convey with your flag?

CW: I wanted to focus on the idea of diversity. I think diversity is important to New Mexico because of the many different cultures we have here. My first idea of how to represent diversity is in using the Zia symbol. I found that I could manipulate the ends of the symbol to go off into different direction, but then come together in the middle to make one complete symbol. This is how I think the people of New Mexico are, we come from lots of different cultures but live together as one.

ST: Multiculturalism in New Mexico is just one of the things that makes it a special place. How did you decide what medium to use?

CW: I decided that I would use Sharpie and color pencils because it is easy to make small thin lines with these mediums.

ST: How do you feel about your final outcome?

CW: I was happy with my final outcome, but I never thought it would win.

ST: And that’s exactly what happened! What do you like most about your YAM flag?

CW: My favorite element in my flag are the yucca flowers. I didn’t choose the yucca flower because it is our state flower, I chose it because it is not very pretty. Compared to the millions of flowers in the world, the yucca flower is ugly but if you look close enough there is beauty there. I think this represents New Mexico because of that very same reason. This state is often overlooked but if people take the time to look close enough they will be able to see beauty.

ST: That’s such an honest approach to depicting your surrounding.  There is beauty everywhere if we just tune our eyes in the right way.  You are so wise and thoughtful!  How did the idea come into your head?

CW: I came up with the idea the moment I heard about the contest. The idea popped into my head very easily and with not much effort.

ST: And just like that we now have a beautiful YAM flag for New Mexico! Thank you Chelsea for your creativity and taking the time to share with the Scribblers!

Portrait of Lewie JPD

Scribble Town (ST): Lewie JPD said hello to us on the Scribble Town Facebook page one day and I am so happy he did! Lewie JPD is a cutting edge visual artist who has lived and worked in Sydney, Tokyo and Los Angeles. His work is a hybrid of imageries – pop, surrealism, collage and comic art – blended together to create zany worlds and characters. His strong use of color and free-styling, casual brush work come together to form eye-catching images that are unique and highly imaginative.

In the midst of excitement where are you and what are you up to these days?

Lewie JPD (JPD): Currently, I’m living in Sydney, Australia, by the beach. Everyday I spend time looking at the clouds and the ocean.

They’re always changing and are magnificent inspiration on a visual level. Of course, I have to dive in to the ocean and swim, too; everyday! Artistically, although trained as a painter, I have spent the last year creating all my new works digitally – on my cell phone! It is a large screen Samsung Galaxy Note and it has a stylus and a wonderful program called SMemo which I use to make art.

Painting 1 by Lewie JPD

ST: That is quite a transition to go from painting to cell phones. I’m so curious to see your new line of work! You have traveled a lot and have mentioned that you grew up in Japan. How have living and being exposed to other cultures influenced your work, if any?

JPD: Growing up in Tokyo was a huge influence – not only on my art – but on my life. I moved to Tokyo when I was ten and stayed till I was eighteen. Then I came back to Australia for art school. Soon after I moved back to Japan where I worked as an illustrator for six years. Tokyo is a very exciting, dynamic city and the Japanese people are thoughtful and kind, innovative and hard working. Culturally, they are incredibly evolved and inspirational. I was lucky to be able to speak Japanese and have been very positively influenced by some wonderful, talented people there.

Dancing Fishface by Lewie JPD

ST: Artistically Tokyo has so much to offer, as well! Is that how you discovered your love for drawing and painting?

JPD: I pretty much discovered drawing and painting on my own. Growing up in Tokyo in the 70′s, we had access to second hand American comics from a book shop in Roppongi – not far from a US base. Over six years, my brothers and I collected well over 3,000 of them – not only well know titles like Archie, Superman, Wonder Woman and Mad, but also, more obscure, equally entertaining ones like Swamp Thing, Sergeant Rock, Richie Rich and Cracked. We loved comics! I guess all those images rubbed off on me and I began to do some drawings and simple comics of my own from around the age of thirteen.

ST: I think your Dancing Fishface would be a great protagonist for a comic. Maybe another future project. I noticed that you even make films! How did this medium come into your repertoire?

Floating Organic by Lewie JPD

JPD: Film making, too, I think, is an extension of all the comic (and book!) reading. Simultaneously to drawing, I began writing short stories in my early teens which lead to writing and publishing humorous zines (20 or 30 pages, photocopied, handmade, editions of 200 – with titles such as Free Spirit and Idle).

I then went on to writing and making short films in my late twenties; animation, comedy radio shows and later, after studying screenwriting at UCLA, feature films.

My latest feature – a coming of age story set in Tokyo – is yet to be produced – but I am confident it will, eventually! Film is a fantastic medium full of inventive and inspired collaboration. I usually make one or two shorts a year on video just for fun and practice.

ST: This is a loaded question, but which filmmakers do you like?

JPD: My biggest influences from the early days are David Lynch’s, Eraserhead + Martin Scorcese’s, Taxi Driver + Robert Altman’s, Nashville + Akira Kurosawa’s, Seven Samurai. These days I think all the great energy is in TV series, not only big dramatic shows like Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad – but also great comedy shows like Community, 30 Rock and The Office. Laughing is the best!

ST: The rumors are right- laughing is the best medicine!

What is the process of designing like when you create murals? The murals, tables, and benches you painted at Harry’s Espresso Bar are amazing! There must be a huge amount of planning when creating on such a large scale.

Harry’s benches by Lewie JPD

JPD: When it comes to art, I am not really a planner. I love to dive in and create things out of nothing, to be in the moment. I have been doing it now for over thirty years – that’s a lot of practice! – so I have enough confidence that even for big jobs like the work commissioned by Harry’s in Bondi Beach, I can just turn up, after a body surf and a coffee, with my bag of paints. I am amped with a positive attitude and start creating, going with the flow.

ST: Earlier you said that everyday you are inspired. Living by the beautiful beach in Sydney encourages that! How do these pops of inspiration come about?

Lewie JPD painting a mural

JPD: I create every day. I carry a pocket size journal with me everywhere – for notes, ideas, comics and doodles – and I have been doing this since my twenties. For me, life and creativity are the same thing. Inspiration is everywhere. Ideas zing around all the time and pop in from nowhere. I spend a lot of time in libraries, cafes and also travelling. On the net, I constantly seek and find works of wonderful artists and get inspired that way, too.

ST: What other forms of art do you practice?

JPD: As I mentioned earlier, these days, I have been able to carry my art studio with me – in the form of my cell phone. I get pleasure from making new images everyday. Most days, I spend between three to four hours – and to since April last year, I have made 1,700 new works. Over the years, I have had various artist studio spaces, where I have worked on large style canvases and drawings for exhibitions, but lately I have been leading a more gypsy-like existence. Art on the go. Suits me well. The joy of expression takes many forms.

ST: Lewie JPD has a new solo exhibition of his latest work – and it’s a world first! – with all of the 28 featured art pieces created on his mobile phone – opening in Sydney at Deus Cafe gallery – 98 Parramatta Rd, Camperdown, Sydney on June 26th, 2013. His website is http://www.lewiejpd.com. Be there!

For another boost of encouragement and confidence to just start creating please go to the Scribble Shop http://www.scribbleshop.com/content/lewie-jpds-words-inspiration. Thanks Lewie JPD!

Lewie JPD’s latest works, May 2013

Scribble Town (ST): Hi Ernest! To me, your work is very playful so I wonder how do you describe your own artwork.  Especially in the portrait of you I can see the play oozing out of you as you play at work on your One Cloud painting (see below)!

Ernest Concepcion (EC): Hi! My name is Ernest Concepcion. I’m a Filipino visual artist and currently live in Brooklyn, NY. My works usually depict opposing forces engaged in ridiculous battle based on the nostalgic references of childhood and adolescence.

One Cloud, work in progress by Ernest Concepcion

ST: From the Philippines all the way to Brooklyn, where are you and what are you up to these days?

EC: I still live in Brooklyn, and have been here since moving from the Philippines in 2002. I do go back often to my home city of Manila and was just there for 6 months last year. It was probably my most productive trip so far. I was only scheduled for 1 solo show and then when my friends found out I was coming home, they invited me over to participate for more shows. In half a year, from February till August 2012, I ended up having 2 solo shows and 4 group shows, including exhibiting at a prominent museum in Manila. It was pretty crazy.

Gerana (The Wrath Of), ink, acrylic and colored pencil on paper by Ernest Concepcion

All the works were made there. For the first three months I was cranking it up doing 6 x 4 feet paintings. My sleeping habits changed. I started doing the UBERMAN cycle. Have you ever heard of that? You’re basically awake and work for 4 hours then take powernaps for 30 minutes to an hour and then work again for 4 hours and so forth. I tried it – I wasn’t exactly successful. Haha. Nah, I took it easy and still hung out with friends. I found out it’s better that way. But when I do work at the studio, I’m like an unstoppable freight train. I’m going back this year on August 2013 for more art projects.

ST: Your friends sound so great! So supportive of you and your art. I’m sure they were also just so happy to have you back home. When did you start drawing?

EC: I would say I started drawing when I was real young mostly because I was inspired by my older brother. He would draw these fantastic cars based on the 80’s movie Mad Max and I totally got into and started copying him. Later on I started drawing my own little stories with pictures on notebooks similar to the CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURES books. Comicbooks and Saturday morning cartoons have been a major influence as well. Come to think of it, my drawing style has not changed much at all. It probably has changed technique-wise in terms of perspective, anatomy, linework – but I would say it has retained its childlike qualities that harkens back to young Ernest. I was trying to think if art school changed my drawing style at all, but I think not that much. Undergrad in the Philippines was more about theory for me and my drawing process went into a dormant state because I got heavily into conceptual art and video. But when I moved to New York, it almost seems like that hibernating child-general woke up all of a sudden ready for action.

Life In A Hidden Valley by Ernest Concepcion

ST: Between all the traveling, is there a favorite place you like to create?

EC: Well, I currently work from home and do my oil paintings in my own apartment. Oftentimes I couldn’t believe how I managed to do this but I guess I was able to adapt and develop my organizational skills in paintings. So I would say this is my favorite place right now. I did have a studio in Gowanus, Brooklyn for 3 years and that used to be my favorite place to work. I would spend countless hours there and was able to produce a ton of work. But alas, I had to move out in 2009. However, when I fly back to Manila I work at Mom’s house and she has prepared a space for me to work there, which I would say is probably the best. Its right beside her garden and there’s a sense of calm and serenity in the studio – a perfect contrast to my conflict-ridden works. I’m not exactly the type who draws in the subway, in a café, etc. I don’t usually carry a sketchpad at all even. Just a notebook to jot down ideas and that’s it. I make art at the studio. When I’m at a café, I drink coffee.

Queens 2020, Ernest Concepcion

ST: What other forms of art do you practice? What are your favorite tools you use to create?

EC: I also practice installation art and I collaborate murals with my friend Mike Estabrook as the Shining Mantis. I’ve been getting more and more into comicbook making and that’s definitely something I would like to develop soon. I was a big fan of the Sharpie for my drawings, I still am! But I’m totally getting into drawing with a brush these days and India ink tends to stay longer and seem more vibrant in the long run. Also, I could make entire fields of black with an ink-filled brush and that saves a lot of time.

ST: I’m seeing and hearing a theme of childhood in your artwork, but is there something in particular you want to say with your art?

EC: In my works, I would like to express what it’s like to be a kid again. The joy of expressing relentlessly.

ST: Is there a piece of art that speaks to you?

EC: There are so much art that speaks to me, but the ones I really appreciate are the works that I could feel express a certain vibe of ferocious expression – I don’t know, I can’t explain it too well.

Pajama People vs. Apparitions, ink on acetate, watercolor on paper by Ernest Concepcion

ST: Where do you get your inspiration from and who inspires you?

EC: Right now I’m getting a lot of inspiration from independent game designers. Haha. Seriously. I’m an avid gamer and seeing the works of most indie game developers and feel the years they spent on coding, designing, beta testing and perfecting these games via patches and downloadable content never fail to inspire me. I recently attended a festival about Andy Kaufman and it ran for 2 weeks. I was there almost every day! It was amazing. For me he’s a real inspiration, and he’s true to his craft. And when I mean ‘true’, I meant he doesn’t care what he was doing really, he was totally just having so much fun at the moment. And to me that’s awesome.

Kangarok 1 and 10th, Ernest Concepcion

ST: Your work does look fun and Ernest, you have done so much!  Any tips for us?

EC: I would advice to everyone to just keep making work and expressing without boundaries. I am also an art teacher myself to kids and I have always been open in encouraging my students to constantly experiment and explore. Breaking rules are great, but it will be futile if you don’t know the rules first. So learn the basics, the parameters, the limitations, the rules, and then transcend them.

ST: Thank you Ernest for sharing so much with us!  And don’t forget to play Ernest’s Shooting Stars game, http://www.scribbleshop.com/content/play-shooting-stars-game-ernest-concepcion

Kangarok III

Scribble Town (ST): From the looks of Chris Reed’s self portrait I think it’s safe to say he’s a very talented illustrator and designer.  Chris, I like your portrait!  Where are you and what are you up to these days?

Portrait of Chris Reed

Chris Reed (CR):  I work from my home studio in New Jersey and I love creating art every single day! I have been a professional Artist for about 25 years so I have had a chance to work on lots of different types of projects.

ST: It’s amazing when you find something you love to do and it just never gets old!  In fact, that’s when it gets more exciting  How old were you when you first started making art and who encouraged you to create?

CR: I was always interested in drawing pictures, and I got lots of encouragement from my family and my teachers. Drawing was always just a hobby until I finally realized that there were actually people whose job it was to design and draw pictures. I wanted to be one of those people, so I moved to New York City and went to art school.

Chris Reed's Illustrative Samples

CR: My advice to kids who like to create art is to find a way make it fun. Make your own comic strip, paint a crazy swirly picture, or create a character for your favorite video game. The more you paint or draw or whatever, the better you will get!

ST: Thank you Chris!  Your passion for art and drawing shine even through your words.  Many smiles have formed from looking at your pictures so I think you are doing what you should be!  I smile every time I look at this sledding penguin Weeeee.

Penguin Sledder by Chris Reed

Scribble Town (ST): Let’s move to the New Year with Kristine Marsh’s animations! Thanks Kristine for being with us today!

Kristine Marsh (KM): Hello! I’m a full time illustrator and designer who specializes in creating original artwork for children’s media using a variety of styles. I graduated from the School of Visual Arts in 2010 with a BFA in Cartooning. Afterwards, I started my own business called Knightingale Studio. We are a small design group that does animation, illustration and graphic design work in addition to creating original content. My work has appeared across a range of commercial platforms including books, games and apps. In my down time I enjoy cooking and relaxing with my loving fiancé, Eric and our adorable corgi, Colonel.

Munch Friends by Kristine Marsh

ST: It sounds like you are surrounded by love I can see that in your super cute illustrations and animations. Where are you and what are you up to these days? Is there a particular animation you are working on?

KM: I currently live in NJ and aside from freelance I’m developing two animated series concepts titled, “Samurai Chinchilla” and “What’s for Lunch, Munch?” You can find out more about the first at . I hope to launch a Kickstarter campaign within the next month in order to fund a short animation showcasing the world and characters. Keep in eye out!

Samurai Chinchilla Poster by Kristine Marsh

ST:  There are many things for all of us to look forward to! With all of these current goodies in the works can you tell us how has your art practice changed over time? What kind of animation or art did you start out doing and where has that taken you?

KM: I actually entered SVA as a traditional animation major. It has actually been my dream since the 6th grade to be the creator of an animated television series. When I was really young, I did what most kids do: Draw my favorite characters from my favorite cartoons! I drew Pokemon, Yu-Gi-Oh, Cardcaptors, a lots more (I actually really loved Kids WB!). To this day I still say that I developed a knack for adapting to different styles by do so. Once I got to art school, it really pushed me out of my comfort zone in a lot of ways, but it taught me to experiment with different techniques and forced me to look at elements of design in a new way.

ST: Kristine, you just proved that dreams do come true! That in itself is such an inspiration for us to all just continue with what we have fun doing. Are there any other artistic mediums you work with?

KM: For mediums, I do a lot digitally these days, for the sake of time and efficiency. I use Adobe Illustrator almost exclusively, with a little bit of Photoshop. When I work traditionally I like to experiment and I often mix media, like pen, ink, brush, marker, colored pencil and watercolor.

Pirate by Kristine Marsh

ST: Is there a particular animation technique you like to create with? Does the story follow the technique or vice versa?

KM: My goal with my art is actually quite simple. To me, I see art as a very powerful medium and I always strive to create artwork and stories that makes a positive impact in peoples lives. Hope, Unity and Love are actually the core believes of my studio as well. I believe firmly in the aspect of family and friends, taking care of and giving to those you care about and who need your help. For me, art of course is a form of self-expression, but more important I see it as an opportunity to speak into people’s lives and leave them with something encouraging and I hope that that same perseverance will spill over in the life of another and so on.

ST: We all have mentors, who are some of your favorite artists? If so, how have they inspired you? It’s always nice to be aware of what about their artwork touches you.

KM: Some of my favorite artists and directors include: Makoto Shinkai, Hayao Miyazaki, Bill Presing, Peter McCarty, Anne Pätzke, Sean Galloway, Luigi Lucarelli, Jen Corace, Mary Blair, MEOMI honestly there’s just too many to name! And I discover new favorites online all the time! But the things that always catch my attention: Color, Composition, and Character! I’m a big fan of a really simplistic style, but I’m also a big fan of beautiful line quality and color. These are all things that inspire me and challenge me in my own art as well.

Ashby by Kristine Marsh

ST: I know what you mean when you say there are just too many to name!  It’s the same with crafts and art projects. But out of all of them do you have one craft, piece of art, or art technique you can share with our Scribblers for them to make at home? Perhaps give advice on how our Scribblers can start making their own animation at home.

KM: A quick bit of advice: I love looking at kid’s drawings and hearing them talk so passionately about their ideas. Never let go of that enthusiasm for creating new things! As you get older, it’s easy to get bogged down, you start comparing yourself to others and not everyone may like your ideas. It can easily become more about technique (which is still very important) and less about the concept. But keep plugging forward, learn, absorb and experiment, don’t let go of that boundless creativity! May you stay inspired all your life and always keep drawing by hand!

ST: That’s amazing advice, Kristine!  In short- let’s keep our ears, eyes, and heart always open for the creativity to flow. To learn more about Kristine Marsh please go to www.kristinemarsh.com or email her at . Thank you for being with us!