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Growing Up With Shan Shan - Children's Book Series

2022
Ongoing
Book cover design (english version) of the third book in the series, Shan Shan and Big Brother Myna. It shows Shan Shan happily flapping her arms and singing along with Big Brother Myna amongst a grove of heliconia.

This is a Chinese children's picture book series that I'm working on as both an author and illustrator, one of two that will feature a spirited and nature-loving young girl named Shan Shan along with her animal friends. "Growing Up with Shan Shan" is targeted at children 4 years and above, and imparts various life lessons through stories of Shan Shan playing with and learning from her animal friends.

There are 5 titles slated to be part of this series:

  1. Shan Shan and Ms. Water Monitor
  2. Shan Shan and Mr. Otter
  3. Shan Shan and Big Brother Myna
  4. Shan Shan and Little Sister Kitty
  5. Shan Shan and Friends Go On An Adventure!

Artworks

Short animated Chinese New Year greeting card showing Shan Shan and Friends bounding upwards and greeting a happy year of the rabbit as flowers blossom
Digital painting of Shan Shan, Little Sister Kitty and Big Brother myna doing the Southern Lion Dance. Style is bright, graphic, with vivid colors, thick outlines and geometric shapes.
Digital painting of Mr Otter and Ms. Water Monitor doing the Southern Lion Dance. Style is bright, graphic, with vivid colors, thick outlines and geometric shapes.
Digital painting in a fuschia and dark blue theme, showing Shan Shan, Mr. Otter and Ms. Water Monitor admiring a cluster of blooming orchids. The style is slightly graphic, playing with outlines and positive/negative space.
Digital painting of Shan Shan emerging from a cluster or orchid blooms, again in a fuschia and dark blue theme. The auspicious Chinese phrase: A hundred flowers blooming in unison frames the top of the design.
Digital illustration showing a young girl with pigtails, Shan Shan, emerging from a few chrysanthemum blooms, with an auspicious chinese phrase above her. The color scheme is red/burgundy and navy blue on white with subtle texture on the color flats.
Digital illustration showing a little girl with a straight fringe and short pigtails, Shan Shan, taking in the fragrance of chrysanthemums in bloom for the new year, together with Little Sister Kitty. Big Brother Myna is perched on a sakura branch above, against a red sun/moon. The color scheme is red/burgundy and navy blue on white with subtle texture on the color flats.
Digital illustrated winter solstice greeting card in Mandarin, showing a young girl Shan Shan holding up a bowl of Tang Yuan, sticky glutinous rice balls in sweet soup with a sweet filing traditionally eaten during the winter solstice, as if offering it to the viewer. She is surrounded by the other characters from her universe, her animal-friends and mum, in colorful tang yuan-form.
A two-page spread from 'Shan Shan and Big Brother Myna' (english version), showing Big Brother Myna trying to encourage Shan Shan to practise singing the song 'Mother Duck and her Ducklings' in the park
Book cover design (english version) of the third book in the series, Shan Shan and Big Brother Myna. It shows Shan Shan happily flapping her arms and singing along with Big Brother Myna amongst a grove of heliconia.
Book cover design (english version) of the first book in the series, Shan Shan and Ms. Water Monitor. It shows Shan Shan and Ms. Water monitor having a splash at the beach, looking happily at the viewer.
A two-page spread from 'Shan Shan and Mr. Otter' (english version), showing Shan Shan running towards Mr. Otter and greeting him in a park full of lush vegetation. Mr. Otter is holding a fish and squatting next to a river.
A two-page spread from 'Shan Shan and Ms. Water Monitor', showing Shan Shan and Ms. Water Monitor playing with water at the beach. Shan Shan is splashing water at Ms. Water Monitor with her hands, while Ms. Water Monitor is splashing water at her with her tail
Book cover design (english version) of the second book in the series, Shan Shan and Mr. Otter. It shows Shan Shan and Mr. Otter sitting side-by-side on the front cover, beneath the title. Shan Shan is holding a pair of binoculars in front of her face and looking at Mr. Otter out of the corner of her eye. Mr. Otter is holding a scaly fish in his paws and is looking at Shan Shan out of the corner of his eyes. They are sitting in a park lush with vegetation.
Overview of the 6 characters in the children's book project Shan Shan's World. Each character is waving at the viewer and saying hello with a soeech bubble over their head. Characters are: Mr. Otter, Ms. Water Monitor, Shan Shan, Big Brother Myna, Little Sister Kitty, and Ah Tin (Shan Shan' mom).
Character design model sheet of Little Sister Kitty, who is a tortoiseshell kitten, showing her in a few different poses, juxtaposed with Shan Shan for size and mood reference.
Character design model sheet of Big Brother Myna, who is a Javan Myna, showing him in a few different poses, juxtaposed with Shan Shan for size and mood reference.
Character design model sheet of Ms. Water Monitor, who is a Malayan water monitor, showing her in a few different poses, some with Shan Shan for size and mood reference.
Digital painting of a scene in a storm. Shan Shan, a young girl with short pigtails in a blue denim jumpshoot and yellow shirt, is sprinting towards Mr. Otter and his family from the distance, on the right of the painting. She is carrying a green umbrella overhead as she sprints, mouth wide open and calling out to them. Mr. Otter is looking in her direction, surprised and touched. His partner is curled up next to him trying to comfort their young son, who has a fish in his two paws and is bawling, frightened by the sudden rain. Their daughted is snuggled between them both and playing with a fish in her paws, oblivious to the storm.
Character design model sheet of Ah Tin, Shan Shan's mother, showing her in a few different poses and expressions, some together with Shan Shan.
Character design model sheet for Mr. Otter, a smooth-coated otter who likes to roam about a park near Shan Shan's home. The sheet shows Mr. Otter in several different poses and expressions, also juxtaposed next to Shan Shan for size reference.
Character design model sheet of a young girl, with her in 6 different poses. She has two short pigtails with yellow hairbands, a blue headband, and wears a blue denim jumpsuit and brown-striped yellow shirt. She usually carries around a pair of binoculars which are slung over her shoulder.
Digital painting of a young girl with a blue hairband and pigtails in a denim jumpsuit and striped yellow T-shirt, with a pair of binoculars slung over her shoulder. She is standing in a park with spider lilies and tall grass in the background on a clear day with white clouds against a blue sky, and waving at the viewer.

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