The Book Show

When I was in Paris earlier this year for The Daily Zoo exhibition at Galerie Daniel Maghen, Olivier Souillé, one of the organizers, told me about an upcoming group show that would pay homage to books that had inspired us as children.

It was called, simply, The Book Show, and Olivier invited me to participate. For my subject matter, I had a very tough time narrowing it down to a single book. I've been a lifelong bookworm and had many, many favorites as a child. Since the show was in France, however, I thought it might be fitting to pay homage to Jean de Brunhoff's classic series of children's books featuring Babar the Elephant King. I tried to keep many of Babar's iconic features (the green suit, red bowtie, spats, the crown atop his broad forehead, beady black eyes, etc.) but give it a bit more rendered and detailed look. And it was fun to throw his monkey friend, Zephyr, into the mix as well.

The show is now over at the Galerie, but all the entries (featuring the work of over 80 artists from around the world) can be seen on The Book Show's blog.

Fan Art from Wisconsin

To my delight, a classmate from college sent me photos of her two sons proudly displaying their drawings, having used their MY Daily Zoo Drawing Activity Books to get their creative juices flowin'. Nice work Ryan and Tommy!

This has been one of those unanticipated perks of having some books published. I've received interpretations of various Daily Zoo characters (and even a few cartoons of me!) from around the world. I'll try to share some more in future posts. 

It also reminded me of when, for a class assignment in grade school, we had to write a letter to an author or illustrator that we admired. I chose the amazing Bill Peet, a former Disney artist and the man behind over 30 wonderful children's books such as Hubert's Hair-Raising Adventure, How Droofus the Dragon Lost His Head, and one of my all-time favorites, The Whingdingdilly. (If you are not familiar with his work and are a fan of cartoon animals or a parent with young children, please give him a look.) In addition to my letter to Mr. Peet, I enclosed a few of my drawings and he was kind enough to make my day by responding with a short hand-written note and a few copies of his drawings, all of which I still have.

I don't consider myself to be on the same plateau as Mr. Peet (now deceased), but it is neat to feel like my work is contributing in a small way to that never-ending flow of one generation inspiring the next.

September 29th: Santa Clarita Literary Festival

The City of Santa Clarita, just northwest of LA, is celebrating the Grand Opening of the Old Town Newhall Library with a literary-themed street fair on Saturday, September 29, 2012 from 10 AM - 4 PM.

I was invited to have a table there and will be signing books for anyone interested. I've never been to Santa Clarita before so I'm looking forward to it. Hope to see you there!

Comic-Con Recap

I'm happy to report that my first year exhibiting at San Diego's Comic-Con went very well. The latest book, The Daily Zoo Goes to Paris!, seemed to be received well and I did not lose any limbs to careless lightsaber usage or run into any problems by not being fluent in Klingon.

Thank you very much to those of you who stopped by and said hello! Hope to see you again next year!

Mom helped with booth duty while I did a quick sketch for Claudio from Australia.

Comic-Con and the Latest Daily Zoo Book!

Greetings Daily Zoo friends,

Just a quick note here to say that my latest Daily Zoo book, The Daily Zoo Goes to Paris, has reached American soil and is now available! It features the 58 pieces (all previously unpublished) that were in the Daily Zoo exhibition in The City of Lights in January 2012. There are some additional surprises too. If you couldn't make it to Paris to see the exhibition, this is the next best thing!

It will probably take a few weeks for it to be available through Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or your favorite local bookseller but why wait? You can order your copy direct from The Daily ZooMart now! (www.chrisayers.bigcartel.com) I'm happy to sign all books and add an animal sketch of your choice.

Sample pages can be seen below.

In other news I'll have a table at San Diego's Comic-Con for the first time this year (July 11-15). If you're going, please stop on by and say hello. I'm at table E-8. Or look for the big tiger. I'll have copies of The Daily Zoo Goes to Paris! on hand. Hope to see you there!

Mayo Clinic Events - Rochester, MN

Greetings from Minnesota! It's good to be back home for a bit. I am in town for some events at the world-renowned Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. I will be the giving the keynote address at tomorrow's Cancer Survivor Day celebration (free for all cancer survivors and up to 2 guests). Please see the flyer below for more details.

Monday I will be giving an in-house presentation to the Mayo media & illustration staff followed by a Creative Renewal workshop for patients and staff in the afternoon.

Currently there is an exhibit of 30 Daily Zoo prints in the Mayo Clinic's Hage Atrium which runs through June 6, 2012. This Monday evening, June 4th from 5:30 - 7:30 PM, is a reception in the exhibit area with light refreshments. I'll be giving a short presentation at 6 PM. If you're in the area and looking for an alternative to watching reality television, please stop on by!

Hershey, PA - "The Sweetest Place on Earth"

Last week I made a quick trip to Hershey, Pennsylvania, to give the keynote address at the local chapter of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's annual blood cancer conference. Hershey, the town built up around Milton S. Hershey's chocolate empire, calls itself "The Sweetest Place on Earth." Though my trip was a short one, I have to agree that it is, indeed, pretty sweet. The people that I met were all very kind, helpful, and friendly. (It threw me for a loop, however, when I was asked, "Milk or dark?" at the hotel check-in and then handed a big Hershey bar along with my room key!) My heartfelt thanks to Danielle Bubnis and The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for the invitation to share my story and art!