Darwin And More on 7-Imp

Julie Danielson has done a lovely roundup of art and early sketches from DARWIN and a few other cool picture books over at her blog, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast. Check it out! ♡

My Website Got a Facelift...

 

www.jenniferthermes.com

A Mappish Show-and-Tell Process Post

I was recently commissioned to do a few maps for an upcoming book* due out later this year. A few people asked to see the final art after I posted some work-in-progress details over on Instagram, so here it is, along with some process show-and-tell.

Since I'm usually asked to illustrate places that exist in reality, this project was super interesting, because these were more fantasy-based maps.

In this case, the art director sent over detailed notes about the story, along with a rough sketch of how the author visualized the world in her head. This was all extremely helpful, and gave me a great starting point, yet still left a lot of creative freedom...


























Below is the first sketch sent to the publisher. (I swear I had some tiny rough thumbnails, but they were lost in the flurry-of-paper that is my studio.)...

Close up inking details and adding a tone wash...

Coffee meditation break. (No worries! None was spilled! Don't try this at home, kids!!)...

And voilá, one of the finished pieces...

*The book is called THORNGHOST (Dial 2016), by Tone Almhjell, coming in August. Check it out!

Monday Map ~ Laura Ingalls Wilder

From LITTLE AUTHOR IN THE BIG WOODS, A BIOGRAPHY OF LAURA INGALLS WILDER.

New Map ~ After the Ashes

I love getting snail mail, especially when it's a shiny new book with a map that I worked on earlier this year!

New Map

Here's a new black & white map for a middle-grade novel coming out soon. I'll post the book when I get a copy. (I've been humming that Dora the Explorer song A LOT lately... I'm the map, I'm the map, I'm the map, I'm the map...)

I'm the Map

It's a week of waiting-for-okays and working-on-maps.
And I can't get this song out of my head...



In other news,  I'll be signing copies of Sled Ride at the C.H. Booth Library in Newtown, Connecticut this Saturday from 10 am to noon. (More info here.) Hope you'll stop by!

It's a Very Mappish Week

Charlotte Magazine Map

Here's a recent map for Charlotte Magazine. I love imagining the flavor and atmosphere of places I've never been to through working on these maps.

New Map Promo Card

It's been way too long since I've done one of these. My oh my, time flies!

Imagekind Updates

I've added a few new pieces to my Imagekind Gallery.

I also created a separate section for maps... most of the ones I work on are commissioned for a specific purpose, but these are a few that I thought may be more general interest. Hope you enjoy!

Good Eats in Charlotte

Here's a map for the July issue of Charlotte Magazine, for an article about restaurants on Central Avenue. (Not wise to work on this kind of map when I'm hungry.)

Charlotte, N.C. Map

Here's a map I did recently for Charlotte Magazine, for a feature story about how good and bad planning decisions have impacted the city and its future. Fitting a large amount of information that spans a wide geographic area into one spread was a challenge, but I was game for a good one. Keeps the ol' brain cells flexible.

Love It When Good Things Come in the Mail

I have a piece in the May 2010 issue of Highlights!

New Map

This is a map of the St. Regis canoe wilderness area, for an upcoming issue of Adirondack Life magazine.

Can You Say, Garden Time?

This is the finished garden map that I was (ironically) working on back in January. (With the help of my trusty assistant.)

Here we are March 18th in Connecticut, AND IT'S SUPPOSED TO HIT 70° FOR THE NEXT FEW DAYS! (Sorry, I had to shout!)

Garden, here I come!

New Map! The Iditarod Trail

Here's a new piece for the November/December issue of ForbesLife Magazine.

(Sheesh, how did it get to be November already?)

Oldies But Goodies

I'm on another semi-futile kick to clean out my files and came across a whole stack of old tearsheets, so I thought I'd post some oldie-but-goodie work.

This was from, whoa, 12 or so years ago, I think. Again, such fun to work on the detailed borders.

New Map. Old Cat.

Here's a map I did recently for AAA Traveler magazine. It's fun to research these kids of pieces, but I have to be careful not to waste all day reading about fascinating places.

On a sad note, Athena, our ancient outdoor cat, passed away peacefully last night. We'd had her for over 21 years, since before my husband and I were married. She was a sweet old lady. She lived in our barn and spent her days catching mice and assorted other critters, though the past few years she mostly enjoyed lolling around the house on a sunny patch of ground.

I think she had some sort of an agreement with the wildlife around here, because despite the raccoons and coyotes (and speeding cars!) she never got into trouble. We fed her a few times a day, and one night, a raccoon mother and her babies scuffled outside the front door gobbling up her dinner. Athena just watched patiently from a few yards away, letting them take their fill. She knew there would be more for her.

The inside cats loved having staring contests with her through the screen.
RIP, Athena.

Book Map!

This is a map I worked on last year for a book that's finally coming out in December! The book is called Hands of the Rain Forest: The Emberá People of Panama, by Rachel Crandell. It was great fun to research colors and patterns for the border on this one.

I'm a big fan of books with maps. As a reader I find it helpful to have a picture in my head of the story's location, whether it's for a non-fiction book like this one, or a novel with an invented setting. (Just my two pence!)