Past Projects
Every project here started with someone who had a story worth telling. My job was to figure out what it should look like — and make sure the art did justice to the words.
“The Adventures of Lulu the Pig”
Art Director and Illustrator
Written by Jeremy Ferrell & Crispina Calsada · Published 2024 · Distributed by Ingram Spark
Interior Pages
Storyboards
Jeremy Ferrell and Crispina Calsada had a story they wanted to tell about their real-life pot-bellied pig, Lulu. For years they mulled over the possibilities, not knowing where to start. So they reached out to me.
I was brought on with story beats alone — the manuscript and the visuals grew together from there. They shared photos of their actual pets and property, and I used them as the foundation for every illustration in the book. The ranch, the animals, the landscape — all of it is real. These aren't illustrations of fictional characters. They're portraits of a true story.
Drawing from the classic illustrations of Charlotte's Web and the work of Beatrix Potter, I built a visual style designed to evoke nostalgia in adult readers while remaining accessible to children. The color palette shifts intentionally as the story progresses — a deliberate choice that mirrors Lulu's emotional journey.
“Busy Feet”
Art Director and Illustrator
Written by David Lilienthal · Published 2019 · Available on Amazon
Interior Pages
Concept Art/ Reference
Busy Feet began as something deeply personal — a love letter from a father to his children. David came to me with a finished manuscript and knew what he wanted: bold, graphic art.
He shared photos of his kids, and the two main characters in the book are designed directly after his own children. They're in it, on every page, running and jumping and doing the things kids do.
I developed a bold, colorful vector-based visual style designed to capture the energy and joy of childhood — whimsical, fun-loving, and built for the way children actually experience books. Representation was a core part of the visual direction from the start. The artwork consciously includes children from all walks of life, so every child who picks it up can find themselves somewhere in its pages.
I built in subtle visual foreshadowing early in the book that pays off in the final spreads — a detail most readers feel without knowing why.
David was consulted and involved at every stage. This was always his story — a celebration of his family and every family, made into a real, finished, beautiful book.
These books exist because two people trusted me with something that mattered to them. That's not something I take lightly. If you have a story like that — one you've been sitting on, one you're not sure how to start — I'd love to hear it.