In spring of 2010, I started a project. It was to create a coloring book - for big kids. I am 4/5ths of the way through my undergraduate education and I can tell you what I've learned: kids my age still color. And while big, open illustrations of dinosaurs printed on newsprint are good for the occasional crayon , I wanted something that would be more engaging, require concentration and sharp hand-skills. And above all else, I wanted the colorist to learn something. I'm a fiend for facts and a stickler for correct colors, so the final coloring book is the love child of color by numbers, a scavenger hunt, and a trivia treasure trove.
I bring you: Tour Washington
The first edition was screen printed on newsprint for an independent study at school. The second edition was fully digitized, and printed at Applied Digital Imaging, in Bellingham WA. (The staff is wonderfully helpful, it was a four day process of proofs and edits, and I got excited every time I went in). On July 2nd, it had its debut at the Artisan Gallery, found on 1215 Cornwall. If you're familiar with Bellingham, it's in the space where Innate used to be.
So if you'd like to learn more about the great state of Washington, sharpen your colored pencils (or whatever you wish, there are no rules for coloring books!) and stop by the gallery. If you don't live locally, send me an email: giraffe.banana@gmail.com, and I'd be happy to help.
Thanks to everyone involved in the process: Kent Smith, the Stampadoodle gang, friends at ADI, editor extraordinaire Mac, production wizard Leanne, the always supportive Katie and Parisa, Torin the wise, and every other Washingtonian out there. And my parents, who besides being phenomenally encouraging and patient, decided to move us here in the first place. And Liv 'cause she's awesome, and Oz because he's one of the best explorers I know.
