A Brand New Cover

As we near the print date for the book, a last-minute change of plan took place with a brand new cover as seen above...

Young Colonel George Washington

This is the final artwork for the Colonel George Washington illustration. We see young Washington, aged 26, as he spots Wynonah for the first time, lowering his spyglass to see her with unaided eyes.

Much research was involved in the creation of this image-- from forensic analysis of his skull and scientific reconstructions of the younger version of him that we are unaccustomed to seeing-- to the buttons on his Virginia Regiment uniform. The spyglass is based on one he actually owned, which I saw in person while doing research at Mount Vernon.

A terrible mistake happened during the creation of the drawing in which his face turned purple after an application of solvent. Luckily this was fixed with some sanding and erasing. I hope you like the final result!

See one of many early concept sketches for this image here.

"Miles Fell Behind"

Detail of illustration (nearly done) for pages 28-29

Details of their journey blurred in George’s memory.

Changes of exhausted horses . . . Maehhumund emerging from dense forests with supply-laden natives . . . warming fires, prepared food . . . travel through water and wind gaps. George, at times in stuporous slumber, progressed northeast day and night. By his side rode the erect Lenape squaw, black hair rolled at her nape, a sacred bundle of bones across her saddleless horse. [Excerpt from "Buttons & Beads" -- text by Gretchen E. Hardy]

The full panoramic image will span two pages. Finished art is 28 inches wide

This early thumbnail sketch is only about two inches wide

Fort Lebanon by Night

This drawing shows George Washington and Wynonah approaching Fort Lebanon in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, one cold night in December 1758. The fort is found empty.

The drawing will act as one half of the back endsheet of the book. The page on which it appears will actually be glued to the inside of the back cover.

This drawing took a few days to do, mostly because of pencil layering required to create a darker scene.

Fort Lebanon in Progress

Washington and Wynonah on horseback survey the abandoned Fort Lebanon by the light of a candle lantern.

This image is a detail of the back endpaper in progress. The entirety of the fort appears in the full drawing.

It is difficult to create the look of darkness in a way that can still be read, but I'm having some success with this so far.

The figures in this drawing are about three-quarters of an inch tall.

Colors for George

Here's a concept sketch showing how George Washington might appear in color. I've sketched this same page probably six times already and it's finally shaping up into something I like. This is not the final image.

The uniform is his colonel's uniform in the Virginia Regiment. Keeping the color scheme in the red-white-blue range we get hints of historic events yet to come.

The spyglass (based on one of Washington's own spyglasses) plays an important role in the story.

George and Wynonah Campfire Colors

I have been experimenting with the two illustrations involving campfires-- basically trying to create a unique identity and feel for each one, even though both involve people sitting by campfires.

Sketches of George

Using the bust seen in the last post and some of the thumbnail sketch ideas seen in older posts, I refined the sketch of George Washington by the campfire. More sketches will follow but the ones seen here experiment with lighting and poses.

In the first sketch we get a solid, rough idea of George at the fire, but I wanted his pose to be more dynamic and also more "open" to Wynonah, who will be seated opposite him. In the more complete sketch he doesn't have the appearance of someone who will meet her halfway. In the second sketch he is more relaxed and reaches farther out to her.

Some challenges in this image include how to fit George comfortably on the page without putting his face in the gutter of the book; also how to balance the composition nicely. The "Rule of Thirds" suggests that objects of interest are pleasing to the eye when they fall along the one-third division lines of a composition; however in this case, the one-third line is the book gutter!

Another challenge will be for George the image to live up to George the legend. In Gretchen's text young Washington's physique is described as "extraordinary." He will of course be clothed in the final image but it helps to start with the human form, and then clothe it.

Who's This Happy Fellow?

The path to finished art takes more twists and turns than many would expect.

Take for instance one illustration in which I must depict George Washington, age 26, smiling by the light of a campfire. Setting aside concerns of my art skills getting rusty or overly challenged in general, how does one draw a young George Washington? Lit by a campfire? While smiling?