One of the great things about running this blog is all the wonderful contemporary illustrators you come across. I assume they come here looking for inspiration in vintage children's illustrations, but more often than not, they end up inspiring me. From the time I was a wee baby, my mother taught me the best thing you can do to support the artists you love is to purchase their work. Ward Jenkins was the first illustrator I started following through his blog. Eventually, I invested in an original Jenkins painting (you can purchase a print of it here) which I'm sure will be worth zillions someday. After I learned about Cory Godbey through his Terrible Yellow Eyes, I got the idea to commission a stylized portrait of my son which hangs proudly in my dining room and brings me joy each and every single day.
Recently, I've fallen absolutely head over heels for Zack Rock and his birds. This guy has such amazing technical talent, coupled with a fabulous sense of humor, that I'm sure 30 years from now someone is going to be blogging about how his children's books touched them when they were young. With my husband's birthday coming up (shhhh, don't tell... he doesn't read this blog), I figured I'd keep the tradition going and e-mailed Zack to see if I could commission a picture of my son riding a peregrine falcon (the boy's favorite). The result is above. Super fun, and I'm sure the hubby will love it! I was so excited with the final version I had to go ahead and post it, so seriously, if you see my husband before next weekend, mum's the word. In the meantime, have a look at Zack's portfolio and fall in love for yourself.
All these great illustrators are online and most of them are willing to sell you a bit of their heart's desire. I know they hate shilling for themselves, so I'll do it for them. If you love Ward, give him some love here. If you love Cory, give him some love here. If you love Zack, give him some love here.
You are awesome, Burgin. Thank you so much for supporting us artists. We try our best to enlighten everyone's worlds with our artwork, and it really means a lot when you can reciprocate. Thank you, from the bottom of my (and my fellow artisans') heart.
ReplyDeleteThanks a ton for the super kind words! Really glad you like the piece, I had fun doing it.
ReplyDeleteWow, this is a great post. I never dreamed of commissioning a portrait, and these are wonderful. Thanks for sharing about this!
ReplyDeleteWow, Zack's work is just too cool! I'm also tickled at your appreciation of one-of-a-kind, original art from your favorite illustrators, Burgin. You're a class act!
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