Signing at ALA in San Francisco!

June 24, 2015 in Children's Book, Shows & Events

Friends! On Saturday I'll be attending the ALA (American Library Association) conference for my very first signing event for the JP books! Series author Ana Crespo and I will be at the Albert Whitman booth (#1204) from 1:00 to 2:00pm. Because the JP books don't come out until fall, we'll be signing broadsheets featuring interior art from book one (sort of like little posters) instead. If you'll be there, pop by, say hello, and get some swag!

Also--JP artwork is featured on the cover and first two pages of Albert Whitman's Fall catalog! Everything is awesome.

Doggie Wonderland at Leanna Lin's

April 14, 2014 in Shows & Events, Process, New Illustrations

I'm really excited to participate in my third show at Leanna Lin's Wonderland in Los Angeles, Doggie Wonderland! This one is really special because it's a benefit to raise funds for Ken-Mar Rescue, an LA-based small dog rescue. My own dog, Russell, came to me by way of a similar organization that gives dogs a second chance after time at their first shelter has run out. I couldn't be more grateful for the work of groups like this. What's terrific is that 100% of show proceeds go to the rescue and all work displayed is totally affordable--less than $100 per piece! The show is co-curated by Supahcute, a blog dedicated to cuteness in general and art in particular. Naturally, I had to get in on this event.

The theme of the artwork in Doggie Wonderland is "Fun Adventures with Your Best Friend" so my piece depicts one such adventure shared by a girl and her dog. I've called it "No Finer Friend." Just one framed print of this piece will be available for purchase at the show.

Show participants include Jerrod Maruyama, Bubi Au Yeung and tons of other talented folks I'm honored to share a gallery wall with. Also, Joey Chou created the most adorable event poster ever. Doggie Wonderland opens with a reception at Leanna Lin’s Wonderland on Saturday, May 10, 2014 (6-10pm).

When I first conceived of this piece, I drew it as a boy and his dog.

But I wanted more visual drama in the piece and a stronger suggestion of wind, so I decided to make the character a girl and focus on her hair blowing in the salty breeze.

In the final sketch with the revised character, I added a few more critters into the mix, as I am known to do :)

I used solid blacks in the center of the piece to amplify the girl and her best friend as the focal point.

I printed it at a diminutive 8" by 8" (giclee), framed it and shipped it off to Leanna Lin's this morning. Such a fun little piece for a great cause.

And here's an adventure I recently had with my best friend :)

Erica and Russell in Carmel Valley, California.

California Printed at Rare Device

January 29, 2014 in Process, Shows & Events

This month I had the pleasure of participating in a group show, California Printed, hosted and curated by San Francisco boutique and gallery Rare Device. The show features twelve artists' interpretations of California in print form, including work from talented Bay Area artists like Emily Proud and Christina Song. When I was invited, I immediately thought of the print I created a year or two ago, "Living California," a wildlife map of the state. I've been wanting to explore California's prehistoric fauna too, so this ended up being the perfect opportunity to do so!

"Prehistoric California," a limited edition print created for Rare Device's California Printed group show. — "Prehistoric California," a limited edition print created for Rare Device's *California Printed* group show.

It turns out that more is known of the mammalian megafauna that lived in the state during the Cenozoic (due, in part, to specimens unearthed at the La Brea Tar Pits) than about the dinosaurs of the state's Mesozoic age. So I ended up combining creatures from all three major prehistoric periods of California's history on one map, rather than just depicting the state's dinosaurs, as originally planned. Each creature is linked to its time period with markers preceding their species' names and a corresponding key on the right side of the map.

Here are a few of the original ink drawings included in the piece--of the Giant Ground Sloth, two species of Ankylosaur, and the Pygmy Mammoth. These are some of my favorite prehistoric creatures anyway, so finding that they inhabited the California of yesteryear was pretty exciting.

Detail of the completed "Prehistoric California" print by Erica Sirotich.

"Prehistoric California," the new companion piece to "Living California," is exclusive to Rare Device for the duration of the show (until February 26, 2014). Prints, including the framed edition #1, are available from the San Francisco store and online.

At the California Printed opening on January 10, 2014. Framed and unframed prints are available from Rare Device. — At the *California Printed* opening on January 10, 2014. Framed and unframed prints are available from Rare Device.

For a discussion of how "Living California" was created, you can visit the Ten Paces and Draw illustration blog, where I shared a process post a couple years ago. "Prehistoric California" was, mostly, created in the same way, except that some of the leg work was already done this time around!