working artists

I have the fortune of working near and dear to the Library of Congress. Being the fortress of our nation's treasures and resources, they occasionally enjoy dusting off our nation's treasures and putting them on display. Much like the Kennedy Center, they also invite many fascinating artists to showcase their wares.

Today, I was fortunate enough to attend (on my lunch break, of course) a lecture featuring guest artist, Mark Wheatley. He is one of the sequential artists known as the Insight Studios Group. He has had a sterling career creating the likes of Frankenstein Mobster, Tarzan, and Heavy Metal. Not that I am the comic book fan, but I always enjoy shmoozing with fellow artists.

In 2004, I spent another one of my lunch breaks listening to Ann Telnaes. One of the few women in the field of editorial cartooning, she was in DC presenting several of her drawings as gifts to the Library's Prints and Photographs Division. And I learned that at the time, she was also one of the faculty members of the Illustration Academy, which happens to be affiliated with one of my old stomping grounds, VCU's School of the Arts. I feel so special.

Pretty cool and productive lunch breaks, wouldn't you say?