Caricatures, Silhouettes and Illustrations by Leona Hosack

 Thought I 'd share some photos of Salt River from the last few years From left to right we are: Cathy King on Bass, Mike Rogers on guitar, harmonica, and vocals, Bev Rogers-vocals, and me, Leona Hosack, guitar and vocals! For more info. on ordering Salt River CD's or for booking Info. Click here: http://www.harmonicaworkshops.com/saltriver.html Salt River is performing (our original and traditional folk-blues) at the South Church, in Portsmouth New Hampshire tomorrow night- New Year's Eve!! Two  half hour performances at 8 and 8:45 pm. A lot of different concerts and entertainment are available on New Years eve at Portmouth's First Night Celebration! Great fun for kids of all ages! Hope to see ya all there! Salt River has been together for almost 16 years and has been performing at First Night Portsmouth for many of those years! I've lost count! Always a fun night! For more info on obtaining a button for Portsmouth's First Night click here: http://ww...

This is a commissioned Caricature I did recently of the subject as Santa with two reindeer and a Christmas Tree in the background! Look at what his beard is holding! A caricature I was commissioned to do of the same person for both Christmas and New Years last year! I just drew this Christmas Tree for fun! I guess I have been drawing Christmas trees my whole life! I have no memory of learning to do this. Drawing seasonal symbols were just part of every holiday for me! How easy is it to draw a Christmas tree? Not that hard! I'd thought I'd share three different fun videos on how to draw a Christmas Tree. From the very simple to the more detailed!  Which one do you like? Learn more about the history of Christmas trees here: http://www.history.com/topics/history-of-christmas-trees  Happy Holidays!

I'm still cleaning out my portfolios and I recently found a booklet I illustrated once about Religion in the USA. I was living in Connecticut at the time. It was entitled Religion USA and was produced by a company called Happy History, Inc. It's goal was to celebrate the diversity of religions that were present in the area at that time. These are some of the religious symbols I was asked to draw for the book. I thought it would be fun to share these during the Holiday season. I was asked to draw this as a symbol of the Baha'i concepts on the Oneness of Religion. Torah- Judiasm Christian Cross Menorah-Judiasm This symbol- the Crown of Thorns was included in the book as a Christian Science symbol Another pretty Menorah Happy Holidays!

This handwritten letter from Howard Glasser was done with a regular pen in informal italic script. I'm in the process of moving to a much smaller place, and have been working on down sizing since summer. After living in a home for fifteen years and raising three children we have accumulated so many things that were useful to us at the time, but not are simply not needed now. At times it has seemed like an overwhelming task. But the joy I've found in reconnecting with old items I'd long forgotten, old photos I hadn't looked at in years, has helped me to reconnect with long neglected parts of myself as well. In clearing out some of my artwork I discovered that I had kept a letter and a poster from one of my teachers at UMass at Dartmouth. I studied Calligraphy with Howard Glasser in the 1970's. He was a wonderful teacher and mentor and is a great artist and calligrapher himself. He was also very involved in the folk music community and organized many large scal...

A illustration for an activity in Brilliant Star Magazine that I did in 1999! I am constantly cleaning out portfolios and scanning artwork I want to keep these days, and throwing out a lot I no longer need! Here are some projects I've done over the years for various Baha'i publications. I love the work I've been able to do in this area. I love being given a story or concept to illustrate! What a fun challenge! An illustration of Green Acre Baha'i School I did a number of years ago for Sarah's Dream Activity Book, produced by Spirit of Children Press.  Drawing of Sarah Farmer for the Sarah's Dream Activity Book. Illustration for one of the Core Curriculum Books (Stories for Children) produced by the National Spiritual Assembly of Baha'is of The US. Another illustration for one of the stories in one of the Core Curiculum Books. This was a card I did for myself- to send out to friends at Naw-Ruz,  the Baha'i New Years, which is...

Pattern Girl! Here is my latest submission to Illustration Friday! The theme this week is Pattern! I thought it might be fun to have the girl be in pattern rather than the picture she is creating. Submitting to Illustration Friday has allow me to exercise my  illustration muscles and keep up my skills! Below are two illustrations I did a few years ago, for a story to be included in a book about George Washington Carver. It somehow never came to fruition, but was fun to do! George Washington Carver in the field with farmers. Portrait illustration of George Washington Carver!

I had a great time silhouetting  at historic houses this last weekend . On Friday night, Dec.6th I was set up at Sarah Orne Jewett House in the dining room next to the kitchen which is now the gift store. Many people came by during the free tour they offered as a part of the Home for the Holidays celebration in South Berwick, Me. Quite a few people wanted their silhouettes cut and this time many adults were interested in having their own silhouettes cut to give as Christmas presents. More often than not it's parents that want their children's silhouettes done. I had a few children that night but probably more adults. One of the last people to come by was the curator of the New Hampshire Farm Museum, who was a very delightful person! She invited me to come and do silhouettes at the Museum next year! I love doing pony tails! So much fun! You can learn more about the many upcoming events at Sarah Orne Jewett House here:  http://www.historicnewengland.org/ On Sa...

I am excited that I will be cutting silhouettes again soon!  And at historic houses!  My favorite places to cut silhouettes! This Friday, Dec.6, 2013, I will be cutting silhouettes at Sarah Orne Jewett House in the middle of South Berwick, Maine! They will be offering tours for free as a part of South Berwick's Home For The Holidays Celebration, and I have been happy to have been a part of that for the last couple of years.  Also o n Saturday morning, Dec.7 from 10 am to 2:30 I will be cutting silhouettes at a Christmas Tea at Jeffer's Tavern which is part of Historic York Village in York, Maine! And in the afternoon from around 3  pm to 6 pm I will be back at Sarah Orne Jewette House in South Berwick, cutting silhouettes again! What fun! Historic Houses are such a wonderful place to do silhouettes and I'm happy to say that I've been able to present silhouettes at quite a few of them  since I started doing silhouettes.  ...

Story-telling!  It's such and important part of visual art, believe it or not. Especially in illustration! When I saw that the Theme of this week's Illustration Friday challenge is "Refrain" I instantly thought of two meanings of the word. Refrain-to keep from doing something, and -the chorus of a song. I think I managed to depict them both in this illustration. What do you think? What is the story here? The illustration below is one I did a few years back for a book idea I had called "Katy Has A Kitty." I still have a lot to learn about story telling in Illustration but practicing helps! My newest submission to Illustration Friday! The theme this week is "Refrain"! Cover for "Katy Has A Kitty". Norman Rockwell is one of my favorite American artists!  He was both an amazing portrait artist and illustrator! I remember with fondness visiting the Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, Mass. with my family when I was a kid. And throug...

   This is my latest project that was recently commissioned through my Etsy Shop! There's something so wonderful about portraiture. I love the challenge of not only capturing a likeness but also the challenge of suggesting visually something of the soul or personality of the subject! Below is a portrait I did a few years back. Audrey Hepburn said "The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul." This video offers a fun presentation of female portraiture throughout the ages! Enjoy!