auction week

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I’m angry. The fight against immigrant camps is much more than keeping families together – it’s become an inhumane, cruel and wicked reality that I wish wasn’t real.

I purchased postcards and prints at Disney to auction. This is the only place you can buy my signed Disney artwork. I will auction a new item every day until Sunday. It will only be available on the blog so please check back. The money will be donated to RAICES, an organization that’s bailing out families, as that seems to be the only way to help.

I don’t have much more to write – I want to write something uplifting but I’m crushed by the news every time I read it. Figuring out ways I can help is my only option because I just want to close my eyes and hide but apathy is a privilege.

If you have a minute please fill out this form and inform your representatives that you don’t support the raids and ICE. Thank you.

Rules

Open to US only.

Each item will be sign and can be customized with names.

Bid by commenting on this post. No limits on number of times a person can bid.

Auction will end at 12 midnight, pacific time the day of the post.

I will email the winner with a paypal request, once paid I will ship to address provided.

All funds will be donated.

Let’s start!

Set of 4 postcards, signed, customization available.

Starting big $20

seattle tomorrow!

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I will be speaking and signing books in Seattle tomorrow at Third Place Books in Seward Park. I hope to see you there!

Also I’ll be back at Disney this weekend for more live watercoloring and the release of my new Disney piece! If you’re interested in the original of my first watercolor of Baby Dory or the new Disney print please contact WonderGround Gallery. They can take orders via email at merchandise.guest.services@disneyparks.com or by telephone at 877-560-6477.  Just let Mail Order know that they are interested in the Nidhi Chanani artwork from WonderGround Gallery West and they would be happy to let them know if it’s currently available.

Hope to see you in Seattle or Anaheim!

1 day sale!

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1 day sale!! Use offer code YAYDAD for 15% off today only! Father’s Day is around the corner! Shop our prints, cards, totes, mugs and canvases. Discount ends at 11:59pm PST.

Residency and Binny’s Diwali

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My Disney residency begins this weekend! I will be painting live at the Wonderground Gallery in Downtown Disney every Saturday (5-9p) and Sunday (4-7p) this month.

Meanwhile I’m excited I have permission to share! I AM ILLUSTRATING A BOOK ABOUT DIWALI FOR Scholastic. A beautiful text by Thrity Umrigar, BINNY’S DIWALI will release fall 2020.

I LOVE DIWALI! I’m half way through the final art and I smile the entire time I’m drawing. It’s a dream project with a dream team. I’m very happy!!

I hope to see you sometime soon!

disney in june!

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I’m returning to Disney’s Wonderground Gallery this June! It marks my 6th year working with them and the experience is lovely every time. The Wonderground Gallery is located in Downtown Disney and does not require park tickets for entry. I’ll be their artist-in-residence which means I’ll create watercolors live four weekends in a row. I’ve selected some of my favorite characters for the watercolors and I look forward to sharing them!

The piece above, “Imagination has no age” will release on June 15th between 2-4pm along with pieces from Michelle Bickford, Michael Murphy and Mcbiff .

Disney asked the artists involved to help celebrate the 60th anniversary of the matterhorn, monorail and submarine. I took it as an opportunity to push myself with a complex piece. I combined the three attractions with 25 (!!) classic Disney characters! Whew! It was a lot of work! Throughout I cursed myself because it was more challenging than I imagined. When I submitted the final illustration, Disney asked me to refine it. That never happened before! I wanted so much to push back and say it was fine! However, I know they don’t provide unwarranted feedback.

I stepped back and thought about the environment. It is just as important as the characters but my first attempt didn’t look that way. Harmony is important. I adjusted colors, added more texture and lighting. And as I completed it, adding the soft twinkles in the sky, a sense of pride washed over me. It was approved quickly thereafter.

In work like that, the journey isn’t pleasurable. However, I learn along the way and when I arrive at the destination, there is great joy. Earned joy.

In addition to the art release on the 15th, I’ll be painting June 8, 9, 15, 16, 22, 23, 29 and 30, 2019. Saturdays from 5-9pm and Sundays from 4-7pm.

I hope to see you in June!

 

mother’s day sale

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All our prints, cards, mugs, totes, and canvas prints are 15% off through May 7th for Mother’s Day! Use the code momday at check out!

I hope you have a lovely Sunday!

Bay Area, St Louis, New York in May!

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I will be in MANY places in May. The upside of work travel is meeting teachers, librarians and kids on the road. Those connections are heart warming and necessary. I keep those as fuel for the times I want to give up. The downside of travel, of course, is time away from my family and book deadlines. I’ve been inkng away on Jukebox, my next graphic novel, and reached the joyful part of the process where drawing pages becomes easier and more exciting. My main characters, Shahi and Naz, become more real every day.

The hardest part of this set of travel is that I will be away on Mother’s Day. That’s the reality of loving my job and my family, though.

My events kick off this weekend at the Bay Area Book Festival – I will be participating in an illustrator duel and story time. Then I head to St Louis for two events at their libraries (my first time there!), New York for PEN America’s World Voices event, back to the bay with a comics demo at the Apple Store in San Francisco’s Union Square, Turn the Page event at Fairyland in Oakland and end the month at my alma matter, UCSC, providing a heritage month keynote presentation. You can find all the details here.

I look forward to every event and I hope to see you on the road!

Fierce tomorrow!

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Tomorrow our picture book, I WILL BE FIERCE, written by Bea Birdsong and illustrated by me is out! As I prepare for promotional events in the bay area and beyond, I reflected on the process. From when I agreed to illustrate it in October of 2017 to when it hit shelves, it’s been a year and 7 months! I created the illustrations from sketch to final in 5 months and delivered in July of 2018. In between July and now, our publisher, Roaring Brook, prints and promotes to help build excitement.

One of my favorite pages is in the library (of course!) and below are some early sketches. I receive manuscripts with art notes. From those notes, I drew our fierce girl in a well stocked, inviting school library with a helpful librarian.

But my editor wanted to try a few different ideas, so I drew a more fantastical library.

But we settled on the first take, modified.

Creating picture books is a fascinating challenge. These opportunities allow me to grow as an artist and story teller. Like my graphic novels, I add people from my life into the art. The librarian is based off our local librarian who my daughter loves, the bus driver is my adopted auntie and the grandma is based off my mother in law. I also added the author and her son! It’s these things that make the work personal and fun.

When I held the finished I WILL BE FIERCE in my hands, I felt the same as when I first read the manuscript – happy and strong. I hope that it’ll make you feel that way, too.

Thank you for the opportunity to share this and I hope to see you on the road!

P.S. For any who are interested there’s a free story time kit available to use in conjunction with the book.

 

japan travel thoughts and LA Times festival of books

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I’ve dreamt of traveling to Japan most of my life.

Traveling for us is a huge undertaking financially, emotionally and physically. I am grateful for every trip we’ve managed and Japan was a dream come true. The culture and art has influenced my work and life so deeply. Between Tokyo, Kyoto and jet lag, it was a whirlwind. I only had a few moments to draw which I’ve included below. My schedule for the rest of the year is packed between work and travel… I hope in the fall I’ll be able to create more art inspired by our trip. I have so many ideas!

Meanwhile, I was interviewed on the Children’s book podcast about my bilingual board book, Shubh Raatri Dost/Good Night Friend. It’s my favorite interview of the year, if you have a moment check it out. Also, Matthew is hosting a giveaway for the book on his instagram.

Lastly, if you’re in the LA area this Saturday, please come by the LA Times Festival of Books. I will be there with copies of Pashmina, Shubh Raatri Dost and advance copies of I will be fierce for sale!!

That’s all from me now! I hope to see you at one of my upcoming events.