There are so many interesting people on the subway. This woman seemed a little bit sad to me.

     Before I start to colour a design or illustration, I spend some time working out a simple palette. I pick colours that will help set a mood, add drama, and help to illustrate the idea. I like to keep my palette's to five colours, including several tones of each colour if necessary. Chosing a palette and adding colour to a painting or illustration is like adding icing on a cake!

5

The work of artist Mary Blair has long been an inspiration for me. I marvel at the knowledge of colour she brought to her pieces. Mary Blair worked as an artist at the Disney Studios, and as an illustrator for children's books, ads, and designed theatrical sets. I learned a lot about shape and colour from spending a lot of time staring at her work. I remember how awed I was when I opened my copy of the Illusion of Life, the animator's bible, and saw her paintings and inspirational drawings for Disney films. I'm grateful for the archive of her work, there's just so much to draw from.

4

I came across this print by Robert Lyons today. I love the lines and the colours. Gorgeous! I can't find any information about the artist on the web, which is fairly odd. I saw some of his other prints but this one stands out as the most inspiring to me.

I've been busy working on some freelance animation. The client wanted hamsters dancing like MC Hammer, which was loads of fun.   This week I'll be starting another freelance project; I had better set aside some time to work on my own designs. I like being busy!