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was painting on the walls when I was 4 years old,” says artist Darlene Olivia McElroy, winner of this year’s Illustrator’s Cup. “I’ve never had another career.” And what a career. Spanning back to time spent doing commercial illustration for the likes of CocaCola, McElroy says that while she still focuses on illustration, painting and using computers as an extra tool have catapulted
her work to a whole new level. “It was honoring Black History Month,” she says of her winning piece, “and I love complementary color. It feels dramatic, the blue hues; the goldy, orangey, reddy stuff.” Elsewhere in this issue, find a horrifying glimpse into January 6, a subtly dense cityscape from an aspiring children’s book illustrator and some gloriously strange and beautiful honorable mentions. You really brought it, Santa Fe.
1st Place
POWER IN THE FEMININE Darlene Olivia McElroy McElroy is an illustrator, artist, author and educator. Descended from an old New Mexico family of artists and storytellers, she was born and raised in Southern California. She has worked both in the states and in Europe as a painter and illustrator and her work is in galleries internationally.
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JULY 7-13, 2021
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