nine cool things on a tuesday

October 3, 2023August 22, 2025 ~ jama ~ 22 Comments

1. It’s Octo-boo-ber! Come join this friendly autumnal gathering courtesy of children’s book author-illustrator Naoko Stoop. You may know her as the creator of the Red Knit Cap Girl picture books — see her up there with her woodland friends?

Originally from Japan, Naoko now lives and works in Brooklyn. Her favorite mediums are pastel, pencil, watercolor, gouache and acrylic, though during the pandemic she started to draw more and more digitally. She paints on used paper grocery bags and leftover plywood from a speaker factory in her neighborhood. She has loved art since childhood and is entirely self taught.

Inspired by everyday life, her mottos are “Stay authentic. Stay at your finest.” I enjoy following her on FB; her pictures are true to her description of being “cozy and comfy art therapy,” and I like the gentle innocence and sweet animals. Her intention is to “bring out the five-year-old in people” through her artwork.

For more, visit Naoko’s Website, X (Twitter), Instagram and Facebook Page. To purchase prints, please email her directly via her website.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

September 5, 2023August 22, 2025 ~ jama ~ 26 Comments

1. Happy September!! What better way to anticipate the best season of the year than with Heegyum Kim’s delicious art. The little girl and her animal friends are celebrating fall with pumpkin cupcakes and donuts, apple pie and carrot cake. Yes, please. 🙂

Originally from South Korea, Heegyum is a freelance illustrator and graphic designer currently based in NYC, where she lives with her husband and two corgis, Fry and Mandu.

She studied Communication Design at Pratt Institute and Ewha Women’s Institute in Seoul. After working as a graphic designer in the beauty industry for ten years, she decided to shift her focus to illustration. Her favorite subjects are animals and nature depicted in a whimsical, humorous, and graphic style. She likes to explore shapes and colors to show characters’ unique personalities, and typically works in gouache and colored pencil.

She recently published her first children’s picture book, Un Hiver Chez Bleuet (Michi, 2023). This project actually began during the pandemic, when she shared a drawing of a blue bear on Instagram (she’d always loved the color blue and often made pictures entirely in blue). Her followers loved it so much that she started a Blue the Bear series, which she made into a postcard book.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

June 6, 2023August 22, 2025 ~ jama ~ 12 Comments

1. Happy June! The lazy days of summer are just about upon us. How will you while away the hours — relaxing on a quiet beach, sharing ice cream with friends, or indulging in some midsummer magic with your favorite critters?

Michigan artist and illustrator Gretchen Ellen Powers helps us envision the possibilities in her beautiful pictures. In fact, her debut picture book, Summer’s Call (written by Amber Lynn Hellewell) captures the feeling of a “Michigan summer,” something she’s known well since childhood.

The nostalgic feel and soft, muted palette of Gretchen’s art is reminiscent of Tasha Tudor. I also see a touch of Amy June Bates in how she draws her characters. I like the old fashioned throwback to classics such as Anne of Green Gables and Little Women in some of her pictures — a comforting nod to simpler times. And one of her favorites is Beatrix Potter. 🙂

Prior to Summer’s Call, she created 30 interior illustrations for the 75th Anniversary Edition of the Boxcar Children. She’s also done label and greeting card design and editorial work for such clients as The Telegraph (Stella Magazine), Mollie Makes, Lionheart Magazine, and Creature Comforts.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

May 2, 2023August 22, 2025 ~ jama ~ 8 Comments

1. April showers bring May flowers! We’re celebrating the merriest of months with stunning images by Japanese artist Shinya Okayama.

I wasn’t able to find much biographical information about him online in English. Wish I could read Japanese so I could have done additional detective work. 🙂

But we do know Okayama was born in Ibaraki Prefecture in 1982 and that he studied at Sokei Academy of Fine Art and Design (2003-2007).

I stumbled upon his work on Pinterest and was immediately taken with his beautiful colors, extraordinary level of detail, and gentle depictions of children and animals, who are portrayed on equal footing and living in total harmony.

He paints an idyllic world, where children are free to explore their surroundings and enjoy wonderful adventures with many wild creatures on land and from the sea. He injects elements of the surreal in some of his pictures, as boundaries between earth and ocean disappear.

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nine cool things on a tuesday

April 11, 2023August 22, 2025 ~ jama ~ 14 Comments

1. Hello April (come she will)! I see you there on your chaise lounge, totally relaxing with a glass of wine and a bowl of cherries. Who said April is the cruelest month? Doesn’t look that way to Nevada based artist Elaine Cory, whose vibrant, textured paintings transport us to a dream world.

She’s known for her color saturated florals, gorgeous landscapes, and pretty street scenes that make you wish you could be relaxing on a balmy tropical isle or sitting at an outdoor Parisian café right this very minute. Mais, oui!

An Army brat, Elaine lived in Germany and France and traveled to many foreign countries, which opened her eyes to the beauty of the world. Upon returning to the U.S., her family settled in San Francisco, where she frequented museums and art galleries.

She attended San Francisco State College on an art scholarship and worked as an interior designer for about 20 years. All the while, she continued to paint, working in acrylics and mixed media, developing her distinct impressionistic style.