Julie Lonneman Studio

James and Evelyn Whitehead received a notecard from a friend, and noticed my illustration on it. They thought the image would be perfect for the cover of their new book that was to be published by The Crossroad Publishing Company. I received my copy today.

I'm pleased that Comundo in Lucerne, Switzerland, is using my image to celebrate their anniversary. More about this wonderful organization: www.comundo.org.

A sign of the times....my last regular print client is folding. I'd been a contributor for almost 25 years. Celebration was a marvelous resource and I am sorry to see it go. The editors kindly invited me to choose a few of my favorite covers and write a reflection for the final issue. 

Making something beautiful from repurposed materials: deconstructed old sweaters, leftover bits of yarn. This one is for my daughter. Planning to do more and contemplating getting a loom of my own.

This quote from Dorothy Day, which builds on a line by Dostoyevsky, appears on this necklace by Contemplative Rebellion , along with charm featuring my scratchboard drawing of a woman kneading dough. Of course I had to order one for myself, and I wear it often. Since my daughter modeled for the illustration, it's particularly close to my heart--literally and figuratively! Proceeds benefit homeless women.

My design the 2017 Annual Report for the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association . What a satisfying project, working with Brett Baunton's gorgeous photography and contributing to the important environmental mission of this fine group. Entire publication here . Working with this group is helping me feel more grounded in my new surroundings in northwestern Washington State.

Thank you, David Haas, for your appreciation and support. I am honored to be in such fine company! Check it out here .

Last fall I was invited to contribute a piece to this show which opens December 16 at the Sheen Center in New York City. Though I have created a few portraits of Dorothy Day (see my recent posts for two of them), I chose to send this scratchboard drawing instead.  The exhibit juxtaposes excerpts from Dorothy's writings with art addressing the ideals she devoted her life to such as social justice, voluntary poverty, resistance to racial prejudice, and nonviolence. The artists represented in the show include those, like myself, whose artwork has appeared in The Catholic Worker newspaper as well artists who have been homeless and imprisoned. My image of a woman kneading dough was originally created to illustrate Christ's parable of the leaven, certainly  apropos considering the strength and persistence of the legacy inspired by Dorothy's life. I also see in this image the voluntary simplicity of Dorothy, her respect for domestic work, and her service to others. The woman'...

Fortunately I checked my email last Tuesday morning. The subject line was "urgent request from a German newspaper." They wanted second rights to my illustration of Pope Francis. Their deadline was in four hours. Glad to oblige.

Lately as I find myself away from my studio and supplies for extended periods, I've been brushing up on my digital skills so I can make art anywhere. Here's a recent image that will appear on the cover of the September issue of Celebration. My inspiration was Psalm 63. I've also discovered a printmaking studio, Runaway Press, here in Bellingham so I am hoping to continue to work in more traditional media as well. Nothing can replace the beauty of ink on actual paper, in my opinion.

My image of the mature Dorothy Day, originally created for a column in St. Anthony Messenger, gets a second life on the cover of this new edition of The Reckless Way of Love  recently published by Plough. They did a great job with the book design.

St. Anthony Messenger picked up my image of Dorothy Day for their August 2016 cover.

Completed this morning: "Comfort the Afflicted" from a series on the Works of Mercy for the University of Notre Dame.

I was asked to provide the seasonal panels for this icon which is the focal point of the Chapel of Christ the Healer at the new Mercy Health headquarters. I enjoyed the challenge of attempting something new (painting large) and the opportunity to collaborate with Schickel Design, who created this beautiful sacred space for the folks at Mercy. Martha Schickel Dorff designed the framework for this icon and carved the corpus. Christmas season is shown above. There are five other sets of panels.

I have been getting some interesting commissions during this Year of Mercy. This image, "The Least of These", was one of 16 illustrations I created for Blessed Are the Merciful: Stations to Celebrate God's Way of Mercy by David Haas. Check it out  on Clear Faith Publishing's website. What do you think of this new style? Different for me to be working in this softer manner with many more values to play with.

Latest illustration for the monthly column on Pope Francis/St. Francis in St. Anthony Messenger magazine.

New portrait for upcoming Celebration cover. A true privilege for me to depict this martyr for justice in El Salvador.

Another recent work for the cover of Celebration .

Artist Ouida Touchon incorporated my woodcut print from the 2013 Tiger Lily calendar in the interior of her sweet treasure box assemblage.

My illustration for the February 2014 Celebration cover is meant to convey the many layers of meaning in the scriptures available to homilists. Though this illustration is unabashedly digital, I started by sketching by hand. Then I cut the basic shapes out of plastic with a knife, also by hand. At that point I scanned them to my computer, added color and manipulated them in Photoshop.