My Halloween illustration this year was inspired by last Halloween in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, when I saw these two lovers riding up my street on the edge of the park during trick-or-treating. That's how I remember them, in any case.

"Halloween in Brooklyn" Jessica Boehman, 2024. Fountain pen ink, watercolor, acrylic ink, and digital.

I made this comic in the wake of late winter and Spring 2024, when my father was gravely ill following a massive surgery in Baltimore, MD. I spent about a month all said and done traveling back and forth to be in the hospital or to provide care for my dad. My 5 siblings took up the slack for me when I had to be in NYC and for each other over the course of nearly three months. It was a traumatic time for us all, and during that time, I started thinking about this story, likely as a way to make order where there was none and to process the trauma of it. I find it generally helps. 

In a coda that's not in the comic: After two and a half months in and out of the hospital, Dad has been finally making a great recovery. His tenacity, guts, and bravery saved his life. 

This story weaves together many seemingly disparate parts of my life, which, in hindsight, all feel like they fit together perfectly. Dad, this one is for you.

"The Comet," Jessica Boehman. Fountain pen ink, watercolor, and digital drawing. Summer 2024. ​

Here's another illustration from "The Last Unicorn;" it's the scene where Schemendrick, the ageless magician, transforms the unicorn against her will to save her from the red bull.

I started this one, like the last drawing from this book (see two posts down), sitting in the hospital with my dad. I finished it home in NYC. I feel unsure about it, but it's been a hard, hard month, so I don't really trust my judgment just now.
​
"The Lady Amalthea" Jessica Boehman, 2024. Watercolor, fountain pen ink, and digital drawing.

I started this drawing accidentally, by testing out some new fountain pen inks from The Birmingham Pen Company used as watercolor. This one, "Algae Bloom," intrigued me; it splintered into dark green, yellow, and blue with the addition of a little water. 

The more I looked at it, the more it looked like. a landscape. So, I turned it into one, a quick little drawing on a warm, false-Spring sort of early March day, channeling those golden warm nights on the horizon. (And a nod to "Blackboard Bear", a favorite book as a child. 

"Perfect Day" Jessica Boehman, 2024. Fountain pen ink, acrylic ink, watercolor, and digital drawing. 

"Mommy Fortuna' Finds the Unicorn" (from "The Last Unicorn") Fountain Pen ink, Watercolor, and Digital Drawing. 2024. 

Second attempt at a concept drawing for a new project. 

​Jessica Boehman, watercolor, acrylic ink, and digital drawing. 2024. 

I made the first version of this drawing seven years ago.  I've wanted to rework it for a while, and finally took the chance to do it this winter as a break from the end of school madness. 

"Wee, Wee, Wee, All the Way Home" Jessica Boehman, 2023. Watercolor and digital. 

​"Goldfish" Jessica Boehman, 2023. Watercolor, acrylic ink, and digital drawing.

My favorite wolf returns to celebrate another big bad year. 

"He Huffed and He Puffed..." Jessica Boehman, 2023. Watercolor, acrylic ink, and digital. 

I've kept this a bit on the down-low, but I've been working with the Children's Tumor Foundation for about a year (with plans stretching back about 2) to create a book for little children who have been diagnosed with a common illness called Neurofibromatosis 1, or NF1, which affects about 1/2500 children. It's a neurological illness that can produce tumors on pretty much any nerve in the body.
Since the illness is often diagnosed around the age of kindergarten, the CTF needed a children's book aimed for these young children, so that they could start to understand what's happening, and to have conversations with their parents, teachers, and friends. It also gives representation to kids just like themselves, which every kid deserves.
This project meant a lot to me, especially as I have been dealing with the aftereffects of a neurological autoimmune disease for the last decade now. It was a big change from my last book, and a great challenge to work on a fictional treatment of a non-fiction concept. The visuals needed to be clear and simple, and the language straightforward. My storyboards and script were run past doctors and psychiatrists before I could proceed to begin drawing. It was such a great learning experience, an overwhelmingly positive one.
I worked to make the book very friendly and positive, and used coffee and watercolor to make the book. I hope it helps some kid out there, somewhere.
"Café Au Lait: A Story of NF1 and My Special Spots" Jessica Boehman, 2023. The Children's Tumor Foundation. Purchase here for your library, child, or classroom.