Nature Girl

©2008 Jacqueline Hudon-Verrelli

This piece was born of a sketch I did one Sunday afternoon in March. I just felt like drawing so I drew this girl. Once I had the girl, I wanted to do something a bit more interesting so I came up with the idea of tree branch antlers. Perhaps to represent the girl's connection with nature. I added the bird to the sketch later, in photoshop. It seems natural to put a bird wherever there is a branch. Originally the bird was on a branch to the right of the girl, but it seemed a little less predictable to put it on her head.

I'd wanted to paint it since I finished the sketch but only recently found the time. I really wanted to keep the colour scheme simple and I thought about colour choices for several days before putting paint to paper. I've done a few paintings where I've left the person's flesh white and I like that effect. I thought it might reinforce her connection to nature if the colours of the nature around her (the pink of the bird and the green of the leaves) were also the only colours on the girl (her cheeks and shirt). I also wanted to try a colour combo I hadn't used before. I like how the simplistic colours turned out. Sometimes it's hard for me to know when to stop adding colour.

Illustration Friday - worry

I actually did this sketch several years ago, but 'worry' was the feeling I was trying to capture at the time.

May Update

I updated my website last week with the work I did during the last few months. I also made a few changes in an attempt to make my site run better. I took out the sketchbook section and removed some of the work in the portfolios. I'm hoping that with fewer images to load it might load faster. I'd appreciate some feedback if anyone is having trouble viewing my site.

When I first made my website a few years ago, I used to view it on different computers to see how the site looked from one monitor to the next. I hadn't done that in a long time. The other night I glanced at my husband's computer screen as he was looking at my site and I was appalled. The colours were drastically different on his screen compared to mine. On my computer screen, my illustrations look pretty much the way they're supposed to, but on his they were dark and the colours were acidic. I guess there's not really anything I can do about that (is there?). I just hope most people who view my site have monitors like mine.

With a Cherry on Top

©2008 Jacqueline Hudon-Verrelli

I'm donating this piece to the Art Attack live auction at the Alberta college of Art and Design on June 6th.

Housing Guide cover

Here's the final of the Saskatoon Housing Guide cover. The space at the top and bottom is for text.



I also did a black and white line version to use as a spot drawing on the inside.

Housing Guide sketch

In April I illustrated a cover for the Saskatoon Housing Guide. This is the sketch. It was art directed by Michelle Boulton.

Too cute not to share

Bubble Gum Girl

©2008 Jacqueline Hudon-Verrelli

Some painting process...

Frump Boy

©2008 Jacqueline Hudon-Verrelli

Here's some of my painting process:










I'll post Bubble Gum Girl tomorrow.

Sketches for children's poetry

A while back I was commissioned to make a couple of illustrations based on some children's poetry by Valerie Bean. These are the final sketches for those illustrations. The first poem is about a little boy who likes to squeeze noses and say "frump!" The second poem is about a little girl who blows a really big bubble and it lifts her up into the sky.


©2008 Jacqueline Hudon-Verrelli


©2008 Jacqueline Hudon-Verrelli