Number 38 of 150

February 6, 2023February 2, 2023Leave a comment

This one’s happy. This facial expression and pose was fun to do.

A Middle Eastern child stands with their hands over their chest and belly, laughing. Their eyes are closed and mouth open. They're wearing a pale purple track suit with a white stripe and gray slide-on sneakers. Their hair is black and shaggy.

Number 37 of 150

February 4, 2023February 2, 2023Leave a comment

He looks very 1990’s, doesn’t he?

Middle Eastern boy stands with a finger to his cheek in a thinking pose. He's wearing jeans, a heathered gray t-shirt, a black and gray checkered overshirt, and converse-style hi-tops. His hair is dark brown and cut in a bowl cut.

Number 36 of 150

February 2, 2023February 2, 2023Leave a comment

Not sure what she’s pointing at. Interesting pants.

A Middle Eastern girl stands with one hand raised, pointing up into the air. She's wearing a white t-shirt, red denim jacket, red sneakers, and wide capri pants with white pinstripes on black.

Number 35 of 150

January 30, 2023December 30, 2022Leave a comment

Representation of queer, or at least non-traditional, gender expressions was an important part of this project.

So far, we’ve had some characters that were deliberately ambiguous on gender, presenting as more-or-less androgenous. Today’s character is a little different. They’re wearing traditionally female clothing, but their hair and facial features are drawn using visual cues that typically read as masculine. However, I tried to make it ambiguous enough that it still wasn’t entirely clearcut. Personally, I’d hesitate to guess how this child identifies. I’d have to ask for their pronouns.

I’m not certain I got the age to read quite right. They may look a little older than they should.

A child, aged 7-9, stands with one hand up as if gesturing. They are wearing a yellow button-up dress, with a long-sleeved t-shirt and leggings underneath. They're wearing red high-top sneakers and glasses. The child is Middle Eastern and has a larger body type. Their gender is ambiguous, but it possibly reads a little more male than female.

Number 34 of 150

January 28, 2023December 30, 2022Leave a comment

I don’t really have much to say about this one. Just a boy in jeans and a hoodie.

Middle Eastern boy, aged 7-9, standing with one hand raised in a wave. He's got medium-dark brown hair, an orange hoodie, jeans, and sneakers.

Number 33 of 150

January 26, 2023February 1, 2023Leave a comment

Now we start the 7-9 age range. From here on out you’ll note that we have put all the characters in modest dress, though in this age range, the girls still have their heads uncovered. Since people with Middle Eastern heritage are often (though not exclusively) Muslim, we wanted to honor that by at least not showing lots of skin in this batch. But since our market is primarily US-based, we wanted to reflect what Americans Muslims of Middle Eastern descent typically wear. Therefore, we chose not to put girls in the 7-9 age range in hijabs, but you will see hijabs in the older age ranges.

A Middle Eastern girl, aged 7-9, stands with both arms as if gesturing while talking. She's wearing a wrap-style shirt over a t-shirt, jeans, and flats. Her medium-dark brown hair is pulled back into a ponytail.

Number 32 of 150

January 24, 2023December 30, 2022Leave a comment

This little guy is happy, isn’t he?

A Middle Eastern boy, aged 4-6, stands with a big smile on his face and his arms up and open wide. He's wearing a long-sleeved t-shirt, plaid shorts, and sneakers. He also has glasses. His hair is black.

Number 31 of 150

January 22, 2023December 30, 2022Leave a comment

New batch. This time we’re doing Middle Eastern people. I don’t really like how this girl turned out. I’ve got her head too far forward and it looks awkward, I think.

A girl, aged 4-6, stands with one hand up, pointing into the distance. She has a long-sleeved t-shirt with a cat printed on the front. She's also wearing jeans and sneakers. Her hair is medium-dark brown. She is Middle Eastern.

The Neighborhood’s Night – Page 15

April 6, 2021March 25, 20211 Comment

Page 14 doesn’t have an image, so we skip on to page 15 from The Neighborhood’s Night by Juliana Catherine. This is the last illustration and the end of the book.

It’s not a completely happy ending because, even though Leena’s back in her own home, Amaya’s family lost their house. This is supposed to be a “tough subjects” series, so a not entirely happy ending is appropriate. But it’s not all bad because Amaya has sent Leena a letter saying how they found a place to live and are doing okay. They even sent pictures.

I made sure it’s the same couch and wall as page 4 so it’s definitely the same house. It comes full circle.

An illustration for page 15 of The Neighborhood's Night by Juliana Catherine. A girl curled up on her couch leans back against her mother who is sitting beside her. The girl is reading a letter and the mother is looking at some photo prints. They are both smiling.

The Neighborhood’s Night – Page 12

April 4, 2021March 25, 2021Leave a comment

Here’s the 10th illustration for the book project I just finished for Learning A-Z. Page 12 of The Neighborhood’s Night by Juliana Catherine.

In the gym again, this time all crowded around a new character, Juana, who is covered in ash.