Nantucket Historical Association Museum Children's Activity Book

This past summer I did a commission for the Nantucket Historical Association creating artwork for an entirely new childrens' activity book planned to be released next year. The book will allow children to interact with the Whaling Museum's collections in a meaningful way that teaches them about the artifacts they see through fun games and activities.

Above is a wrap-around cover I did; the final book will have text over it. The paintings were designed to focus on the artifacts and history of Nantucket in a child-friendly, non-graphic-side-of-whaling manner. The paintings below are a small selection of the many works I did for the book. The rest can be viewed in the book when it is completed. All illustrations were done with a mixture of watercolor and photoshop painting.

Brant Point Lighthouse

The Legend of Maushop

(a Wampanoag tale)

Scrimshaw Bicorn Horse Pie Crimper

(it's a side view but the thing actually has two horns)

Toby Jug

(yes, it is scary)

Giant Squid

(a sperm whale's favorite food)

Sperm Whale

Whaleship

Last semester's work

Finally getting around to uploading my finished work from last semester, which was in my senior illustration show. To start with, since I had posted some progress pics of this painting in a earlier post:

The Shirley Temple Dudes

The Event (opening chapter of Island in the Sea of Time)

Departure

Portrait of Lizz

I have one more on the way, the photo I took of it cam out bad so I have to re-photograph it.

The Nantucket Sea Monster Returns

This image is about a historical event that took place in the late 1930s. A man named Tony Sarg designed a large balloon of a sea monster for the 1937 Macy's Day Parade. Later, he decided to start a hoax about sea monster sightings in the Nantucket Sound. He even went so far as to carve large footprints in the sand, which were recorded by photograph, and float it half inflated near the shore. He eventually blew it up on the beach with air, so it rested on the beach. Large crowds of people flocked from all points of the island to come and see this monstrosity and have their children play near it. In all honesty, it has a somewhat simple and childlike appearance with its smile and large bubble eyes, while still appears menacing due to the sharp fangs.

I came up with the idea of bringing that monster to life as the original hoax suggested, but putting it in a modern Nantucket setting, tearing its way through town. There's a lone man ready to take him down with a harpoon.

Watercolor Piece from last semester

This is a piece I did last semester for Illustration. It shows the life of a wealthy ship captain on Nantucket. He has just returned from a long voyage at sea, happy to see his wife again. Many successful whaling ship captains were able to retire in their 30s as millionaires. Every boy dreamed of becoming one. That's what this image is about. It needs a bit of color and touch up work done but I want to put this one in the senior show in May.