I'm finally finished!
Cambridge University Press (African Division)
commissioned over 20 illustrations from me for their Grade 2 English textbook. It was a huge project, and learning process for me. How do you illustrate the lives of children in a completely foreign country? I spent a lot of time asking Mark seemingly irrelevant questions about South African childhood.
But, all the wondering and worrying was worth it. I packed them up and sent them off to my editor last week. And someday soon, a gaggle of young seven- to eight-year-old children will be learning from my illustrations.
Working on reference works is a huge responsibility. These images will inform the young children, and stay in their memories for years to come.
And the icing on the cake? Walking away from my editor's house on 'delivery day' and seeing a hummingbird buzzing in a purple bougainvillea above my head. The perfect end to a huge project.
