The Contributors: Andy Catling

Andy Catling grew up in East Anglia, a rather flat primeval place where any Dutchman would be at home rolling his Edam. He lived with big skies and a ruler straight horizon. Imagine his boggle-eyed awe when he first sighted a landscape with bumps. He vowed one day to live in a land of big bumps (these are called mountains). Currently, Andy lives in Hampshire, a place of a subtly bumpish nature that will allow him to acclimatise himself before the next incremental move toward the ultimate 3-dimensional landscape.

At school, he used to chew pencils a great deal and it was probably such a diet that lead (uh-oh) to an artistic longing straight from his internals.

Andy Attended the Norwich school of Art and Design where he had nothing to do with illustration. He did learn a great deal about animation, biscuits and why penguins are bad.

Oh, and there’s some career stuff about working on games for Microsoft, Hasbro and others on well known licenses. He also originated and co-wrote an animated feature for BBC1 or something. He has illustrated many many children’s books.

Andy Catling currently works as an illustrator and lives with his lovely wife and two pet children who sometimes sneak into his bedroom and draw on his pants.

Andy provided several illustrations for "The Teahouse," written by Andrew Segal, appearing in Fables for Japan, Book 2

The Contributors: Gary Shipman

Born in 1966, Gary Shipman has been exploring different styles of art for more than 29 years with no formal art training. His work has been collected worldwide and his comic series, “Pakkins’ Land,” has been nominated for the Eisner, Harvey, and Russ Manning Awards. Gary’s been published by Image Comics, Caliber Press, Alias Comic, Zondervan, and Disney.

And you can see more of Gary's work on ebay, youtube, and Comic Art Fans.

Gary has donated a piece called, "The Snow Woman," which we paired up with Patricia Morse-McNeely's haiku, "Snow Night Flowers."

The Contributors: Andrew Segal

Andrew Segal is a teacher, game artist, and designer. After graduating from Norwich School of Art, specializing in animation, he worked in various areas of computer game design.

After leaving the game industry, he helped set up the Games Design degree course at NSAD, now NUCA, Norwich, UK and became course leader. Since then he has been teaching Game design in colleges and is currently working on an independent game project.

Andrew has written a story called “The Teahouse,” with illustrations by Andy Catling, for Book 2 of Fables for Japan. Here is an excerpt:

     Many years ago, although not as many as you would believe, there was a teahouse in the greenness of Northern Kyushu. The teahouse sat on the banks of a once prosperous waterway, waiting for customers. Each morning, like a flower in bloom, it opened. Its shutters were unfolded and the large open room revealed and made welcoming to tempt passing traders. By the end of each evening, its single lamp would be lit, attracting nothing more than moths, and the owner would walk to the edge of the teahouse and throw slices of cucumber into the darkness. No one ever asked her why. They might guess it was for the spirits that a teahouse seemed to attract.
     The owner was a widow by the name of Kaori who had often been amused by the way her name looked like a teahouse, as if she were destined to own one. Her husband, Takumi, had been a skilled craftsman and built the once beautiful structure to show his love for her. Crafting the wood carefully that the shape of the building formed her name. He proposed for them to live out their days together by the majestic willows, on the banks of a thriving waterway. That would have been a joyful story, if fate had not intervened...

Read more in Fables for Japan, Book II. Coming soon! 

The Contributors: Neel Sawhney

Website: http://cargocollective.com/neelsawhney

Neel Sawhney was born in New York City on August 16th, 1989. Making him the first U.S. born Indian in his immediate family. He participated in programs such as the Art Students League and the New York Film Academy summer programs in his youth and he is currently attending the School of Visual Arts, working towards his BFA in illustration. He also plans on attaining a PhD in Child Psychology.

Neel primarily works in ink and etchings and tries to create worlds that evoke emotions and feelings. His core interests lie in book illustration and hopes to publish a series of children’s 'self-help' books.

Neel has done a couple of illustrations for the haikus of Patricia Morse-McNeely for Book 2 of Fables for Japan.

The Contributors: Viktoria Piechowitz

Website: http://viktoria-elisabeth.blogspot.com/

Viktoria Piechowitz, a 23-year-old student from Germany, is currently studying Computer Graphic Arts at The Animation Workshop in Viborg, Denmark.

Viktoria and her friend, Unnur Jònsdòttir, have collaborated on a short children’s story called, “The Little Scarecrow,” for Book 2 of Fables for Japan.

Here is an excerpt:

The Contributors: Amy Mihara

Websites: http://ajmihara.blogspot.com/ and http://lotusblade.deviantart.com/

Amy Mihara is a freelance concept artist and 3D modeler from the Bay Area, California. A graduate of Cogswell College, she has worked on several websites and student projects. Her interest in art stems from a deep love for animation and video games, with aspirations to one day join the ranks of that industry.

Unable to contact her family in Japan for almost a week after the tsunami hit Sendai, news of their safety finally reached her through relatives in Taiwan. After hearing about the Fables for Japan project through Twitter, she joined to help in raising money for the recovery process.

Amy provided illustrations for the story, “Origins of Flying Fish.” Written by Matt Funk. Here are her comments on the story:

I found the way that the fish, "Jump," held on to his dreams to be very endearing. He works hard every day even after everyone mocks him for it. He doesn’t bear any ill will against them, just sadness that they don’t even try to understand him. He dares to chase the impossible and wakes up living the dream! I think a lot of us lose sight of our dreams and give up too soon. Nobody knows what the future holds, after all.

Illustration for "Origin of Flying Fish." Appearing in Fables for Japan, Book II.