Starred ReviewStarred Review Swing around the Sun

Cheng-Khee Chee, Associate Professor Emeritus of the University of Minnesota, has been represented in numerous national juried exhibitions and captured over 200 honors, including the American Watercolor Society Silver Medal, Transparent Watercolor Society of America Skyledge Award (First Place), Allied Artists of America Gold Medal, and Knickerbocker Artists USA Grand Award Gold Medal and Purchase Prize for Excellence. Among his publications are Old Turtle (1992), Swing around the Sun (2003), Noel (2005), and numerous contributions to books and magazines. He is a popular workshop instructor and national show juror. His breakthroughs in concepts and processes have greatly influenced the direction of watermedia painting.

Educated at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Mary GrandPré began her career as a conceptual illustrator for local editorial clients. Continually experimenting with media, Mary underwent many artistic changes in her expressive visual form. Her concerns for light, color, drawing, and design came together in evocative, ethereal pastel paintings evolving toward a style she now calls “soft geometry.”

In addition to her work on the covers of the Harry Potter books, Mary has now illustrated several children’s books. Her book illustration possesses highly personalized lyrical story interpretations and has received very favorable reviews in the national press.

Janice Lee Porter was born and raised in Chicago. She has a BFA in painting from the Kansas City Art Institute and an MFA from California State University, Chico. She is the illustrator of over two dozen children’s books and is an art faculty member at Shasta College in Redding, California, where she teaches painting and drawing. She lives in Chico, California.