My love of digital illustrations began here. Sort of.

The inspiration behind this illustration.

Welcome to my first blog post! I wanted to take this opportunity to introduce you to my illustrations, share some of the inspiration behind them and maybe talk about the creative process, and most of all #spreadbeauty!

How it all started

Around 2008-2009 Stowe Mountain Resort asked me to illustrate a piece that would be used as in invitation and print for their season pass holders. This is not that illustration. Sorry. I no longer seem to have a copy only the digital files of the first two winters. Maybe one of you season pass holders from Stowe remember the ones I am talking about. They were of the Spruce Base Camp. One at night and one during the day. If so, let me know. The style that developed for me while creating these illustrations was meant to mimic the silk screening process. Simple, bold shapes, and limited color palettes. I was inspired by the art of fellow Vermonter Sabra Field. Seasonal, beautiful and truly Vermont.

This particular illustration was created for the 2010-2011 season when construction was well under way for the Village at Spruce Peak. I worked with a few photos as reference—one taken as early dusk, a few day shots, but all with a great deal of construction clogging up the beauty of the mountain. The dusk shot, Field’s silk screened prints, and some night photos of my own I had taken, provided the most inspiration. Days are short in Vermont in the winter, so light from the homes and buildings bleeds out onto the snow for many hours each day. It creates a warm and inviting feeling inside the cozy homes. Add in the wonderful full winter moon and you have a beautiful evening in Vermont. The title of the piece is simply, Winter Night.

The mountain and the moon and the lighting and the feeling…this will always be one of my favorites.

This illustration is no longer an accurate representation of what The Village at Spruce Peak looks like. The development of that area has continued over the last 10 years and there are buildings that be been torn down and many others have been built. But, the mountain and the moon and the lighting and the feeling that this illustration is about, remains the same. This will always be one of my favorites.

It used to be one that I would sell as part of my print and note card offerings, but it wasn’t as popular as some, so I stopped producing them. Recently a customer bought one of the remaining cards and reached out to me to ask about a print. I am grateful they did. It reminded me how much I loved this image. I had several printed and they are now available to purchase along with many others on my ETSY site. Check back next week for the story behind another illustration.