Limited edition print available!

Happy Friday from my friends at Tiny Showcase!
Gallery Night (featuring Providence, RI) print now available. Limited edition of only 100.
http://tinyshowcase.com/artwork.php?id=2292

Autumns final day at Redwall Abbey

Autumn at Redwall Abbey

A little autumn for The Redwall fans.
When I began work on A Redwall Winters Tale, I created a series of very small thumbnail sketches immediately after my first read through. This image came directly from one of those sketches. 
I have included a jpeg of the image as it appears in the book with Brian's wonderful poem. I remember that he read that poem to me over the phone and I knew what he wanted-how he wanted the piece to feel. I think it came from a shared appreciation of this particular time of day and season.
The Thistledown troupe and stray travelers of Mossflower are making their inside the gates of Redwall Abbey where the lanterns are lit and the fires are already burning. The warmth and smell of cooking welcomes the weary travelers inside as the light slips up the mighty walls and great bell tower. 
This original art is currently available, though probably not for long, at my Etsy shop.

Its Fall-time for Oliver.

I've stretched out the summer to the last warm beach day but alas...its Fall. I do actually enjoy the season and had a chance to indulge my love for this time of year in New England a few years ago while illustrating Oliver Finds his Way by Phyllis Root. The board book is still available at your favorite independent bookstore. Visit my site, http://www.christopherdenise.com, for quick links to purchase past titles.

Baking Day Birthday!

It's officially Baking Day at Grandma's. Move the furniture and start the music! 

Our new book releases today! Many thanks to all the folks at Philomel Books and, of course my wonderful collaborator- Anika Denise!

Learn more about Baking Day at Grandma's and check out the free downloadable goodies at 

www.anikadenise.com

Two new listings of original Redwall Art now available at my ETSY shop!

New listings-check them out!

 https://www.etsy.com/shop/christopherdenise?ref=listing-shop-header-item-count

Baking Day at Grandma's Book Trailer!

Check out the trailer for my new book!

Save the date! Baking Day At Grandma's book release party!

Join us for an afternoon of fun and have your book signed by both the author and illustrator!

http://www.northshire.com/event/saratoga-kids-anika-and-christopher-denise-baking-day-grandmas

Original Redwall art available at my ETSY shop today!

          This large pastel painting was one of the first that I created while illustrating The Great Redwall Feast (Philomel Books, 1996). I remember trying to create a sense of discovery, much as we do when reading Brian's first Redwall novel. Tucked into Mossflower woods on two sides, the meadow and the great road on the others, we see Redwall for the first time! This book and image pre-date the animated series by several years. This view of Redwall would be from the south. This small party of woodland characters is probably returning from St. Ninian's. 

       The finished art area measures approximately 13 inches x 16 inches, roughly 133% larger than the reproduction in the book.

See the listing at:https://www.etsy.com/listing/67279767/discover-redwall-abbey?ref=listing-shop-header-0

Baking Day at Grandma's review in Kirkus!

KIRKUS REVIEW

A rollicking, rhyming salute to the grandmother-grandchild bond.

Three independent, bundled-up young bears set off across the snow and past the pond for Grandma’s cottage, all smiles, as “It’s baking day at Grandma’s!” Everything at Grandma’s house—from the fire and old-fashioned stove and Victrola to her pink shawl and the woodsy cabin decor—points to coziness and love....

Read the rest here:

https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/anika-denise/baking-day-at-grandmas/

Sleepytime Me, new art-the back cover that never was.

Final cover for Sleepytime Me by Edith Hope Fine

The cover for my most recent book, Sleepytime Me by Edith Hope Fine, came together very quickly. Those of you who are in the business picture books know this is a rare occurrence. We all loved the image of the house and wanted to stay with that theme. I could have done a wrap but was enjoying painting the images so much that I wanted to produce another piece of art. I was so excited when I had the idea of painting the same scene after the kid went to bed and the moonlight and stars had shifted that I went ahead and painted it. I loved painting the moonlight on the leaves and having it dapple over the house. Sadly, the art was never used but the incredible designer I worked with, Jan Gerardi, came up with a wonderfully elegant solution. Her design was beautiful but even with that we almost had the cover changed on us at the eleventh hour. Fortunately, we were able to compromise and meet the needs of the marketing department by zooming in on the house and character. For fans of the book, here is a look at never before seen art! Which one do you like?

Original cover art ©2014 Christopher Denise. I remember stargazing from the bedroom.

Original back cover art ©2014 Christopher Denise. ".ooo..what a little moonlight can do..."

How it might have looked...

My proposal

Jan Gerardi's design. I loved working with Jan! Love her type on this version.

My new book is now available!

Help spread the word by sharing this postcard!

Children's Book Week

I will be celebrating Children's Book week with a fantastic crew of super nice and incredibly talented folks. Join me, Adam Lehrhaupt, Jamie Michalak, Anika Denise, Mary Jane Begin, Zoe B. Alley and Melissa Guion at Barrington Books. Join us for an after school kick off party on Monday, May 12th, 3-5pm.  Readings, book signings, drawing-demos, prizes, cupcakes and more!