About Darlene Olivia McElroy

Darlene Olivia McElroy comes from an old New Mexico family of storytellers and artists. She began making art the first time she found a wall and a drawing instrument. Her grandfather, a painter on Catalina Island, was her mentor and taught her to play and experiment with art. Darlene attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, and has worked as an illustrator both in the United States and in Paris. She went from creating illustration traditionally to becoming one of the first nationally recognized digital illustrators in the late 1980s. Darlene lives and works in Santa Fe, New Mexico, where she paints, teaches, writes and enjoys a delightfully chaotic life with her husband, Dave, and their four dogs, Bernie, Bella, Taco and Zola.

Dedication:

To Dave, my loving husband and centering force. Thank you for your support and for inspiring my dreams in color. To Bonnie Teitelbaum and the Blonde Bombshells, whose creative and fun influence always shows up in my art.

Acknowledgments:

Big thanks to our critique group who added their touches to our Pass it Around project and lived through our travels of creating a book.

On the incredible F+W team, we would like to thank Tonia Davenport for getting this book on board; Kristy Conlin, our wild and crazy editor; and Christine Polomsky, our talented photographer. You all made it fun and easy once again.

We would also like to thank our students, who gave us the inspiration to create this book. You kept us exploring and experimenting, and we hope to keep coming up with more innovative ways to play.

For easy-to-use links to Darlene’s website, Facebook page and more visit createmixedmedia.com/mixed-media-revolution.