Family Party in Prospect Heights

Time to celebrate.  A grandson graduated last month, a daughter was in town from Colorado, somebody has a birthday in a couple of weeks, it’s the middle summer, what more do you need…let’s get together and celebrate.  Celebrate what?  Celebrate this family!!

I was set up in a spacious backyard in Prospect Heights. You can tell from the drawings that the pace was leisurely and chatting with my subjects got, well, chatty and funny.  My hostess—the lady with the hat, above—was delighted that I drew her with a microphone.  We had been talking about her singing career and our favorite sopranos.

How did she find me?  A few years ago I drew caricatures at a nursing home party where her mother was a resident.  The line, she reminded me, was long and people loved the drawings.  She kept my card. Voila!

Thank you, Micky!

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

khilden.com

katherinehilden.wordpress.com

facefame.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »

Family Group in Wicker Park

When I do a “group shot” like this, I need to see everybody before I start drawing. I hang out in the kitchen with everybody else and roughly position the heads on a piece of scrap paper. Hair becomes a big factor in planning the composition. I had to draw two people from photos, but apparently nailed both of them. At the end, when the drawing was done, everybody got a chance to identify the faces. Score!

This really is a great idea for a family get-together at a holiday. Thank you, Scott.

Markers on 12″x18”. Each person sat only for a minute or two.  Completing the drawing in full color, two hours, amid much chatting.
All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.
khilden.com
katherinehilden.wordpress.com
facefame.wordpress.com
katherinehilden.com

Read Full Post »

Drawing for Christmas Card

A family of four, looking all yuley-tidey and red and green all over.  Fun for them, fun for me. Thank you, Sara and Chris!

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

www.khilden.com

https://katherinehilden.wordpress.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

www,katherinehilden.com

Read Full Post »

Renewal of Marriage Vows

It was a family party on Mothers’ Day in Naperville, a cozy gathering of just sixteen people. But the hostess and I had a secret.  I was to draw her and her husband, showing her proposing to him.  The speech bubble would say, “Will you marry me, again?”  So that’s how I drew them.  I think he must have known this was planned.  Yes, he must have, because there was talk about doing this formally in church the following week.  Anyway, after I had drawn them, she went down on her knees, took his hand, declared her love for him and asked him to marry her again. Right there in front of me, in that tight little space.  Really, it was quite moving. What a privilege to witness such heartfelt emotion! 

I drew all sixteen people in full color on 11 x 14 in two hours.

Thank you, Sarah, and congratulations!————————–

———————————————————————-

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

www.khilden.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

http://artamaze.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »

Halloween in Huntley

When I turn onto the street where my party is, I don’t have to look for the house number.  It’s easy to find my place of work, it’s where the balloons are.  In the case of Halloween, I also look for the giant pumpkins and the femurs sticking out of the front lawn.

Halloween for this Huntley family was just one of many excuses to get together.  That kind of family tradition makes for an gracious crowd, everybody being comfortable with everybody else.  A jovial, relaxed atmosphere is obviously reflected in these pictures.  The ambiance at a party naturally flows into my work.  Thank you, Robert!  May there be many more!

 

 

 

 

 

.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

—————————————————————————-

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

www.khilden.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

http://artamaze.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »

Party for Mom

It was already too cool for the swimming pool, but the cake lighting was done outside on the patio, along with sparklers for everyone.  What a lovely scene: a close-knit family coming together to celebrate mom’s 60^th birthday, with style and good humor.  Perfect.  Thank you, Nichole!———————————————————————

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

www.khilden.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

http://artamaze.wordpress.com

 

Read Full Post »

Birthday Celebration at Maggiano’s

The family flew in from Florida to celebrate the baby’s first birthday back in the old neighborhood, the northern suburbs of Chicago.  This made for a very lively atmosphere because some folks had not seen each other for months and there was a lot to catch up on. I drew all the kids and then some parents, as time allowed.  You can see, that the parents got all my caricature “ammo.”  Loved it!

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

www.khilden.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

http://artamaze.wordpress.com

———————————————————————————————

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read Full Post »

Kaylee and Karlee’s First Birthday Party

The Sugar Creek Golf Club in Villa Park was a perfect setting for this cozy family party to celebrate Kaylee and Karlee’s first birthday.  It was a warm early-spring Sunday afternoon, but a bit blustery and so most  guests preferred the party room.  There were lots of toddlers and school age kids and I drew them all, with time left over for some couples.  Bailee, age ten months, and  propped in a high chair at a table close to me, showed interest in my work as soon as I arrived.  Here she is, curious about how she turned out.  The twins, Karlee and Kaylee, took time out from their social obligations and finally sat for me, but only for a few seconds.  A few seconds is all it really takes sometimes.  I’ve learned that one-year-olds have to be drawn very fast.  It’s fun.    Thank you, Brittney!

 

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

www.khilden.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

http://artamaze.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »

Four Birthdays in One

Mount Prospect. A big family get-together where the deck and the white tent were full of tables and food and drinks and the Greek gandmas  kissed the little ones and the guy in charge of the music was really going for the Beatles.  I felt privileged to work in such a warm atmosphere.  We were celebrating four birthdays.  It’s a tradition, I found out:  you have four kids and you throw one humongous party for all of them on one day.  When the cake came out—actually two, one white and one chocolate, and both predictably humongous—everybody sang “Happy Birthday” four times, one for each kid.  Maybe they also have individual birthday parties, but I didn’t find out about that, just that this family throws a lot of party, so yes, they probably do have individual birthday parties for each child.  Any excuse for a party is fine with me.  Happy Birthday Thano, Gia, Anastasia and Bobby!  Thank you, Julie.

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

 

 

www.khilden.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

http://artamaze.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »

The Crown Family Picnic

I feel privileged to have been part of the entertainment at this annual even for about ten years.  At the Crown picnic on the family’s Waukonda farm, nothing comes in plastic.  The table cloths are cloth, the plates are earthenware, the tableware is stainless steel and the glasses are glass. Imagine hundreds of people enjoying wonderful food, plus the music of the Banjo Buddies.  Plus a hayride, a stilt-walker, a magician, three face-painters and six caricaturists. And so much more…good company and the chance to meet new people. Did I mention the bungee jump and getting  close to farm animals?  Too good to be true.  True!  It’s inspiring.  I love it.  People come back year after year to be drawn by their favorite artist.  I have my fans: Bridget, Fred, Carla, Peter, Cheryl, Sue, Anthony, Rachel… Some of these deserve their own posts here and I plan on doing just that in the next couple of weeks.  Check in later.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

———————————————————————————————–

All contents copyright (C) 2010 Katherine Hilden. All rights reserved.

www.khilden.com

http://facefame.wordpress.com

http://artamaze.wordpress.com

Read Full Post »