Bring your postcards, stamps, concerns, and friends, cuz we're having a postcard write- in! Join us next week Thursday, Feb. 2, at Brooklyn Kitchen for a marathon postcard-writing session to tell our representatives what's top of mind in our district. We'll also have local artist-designed postcards for sale with proceeds benefitting Planned Parenthood. If you have any writing anxiety, don't sweat it. You're not alone 😨 We'll have some talking points to help. AND we'll have a donation box for tampons and pads for a miracle bag program for the local food pantry. Consider donating some much needed supplies! Thanks to Kate Coats for organizing and The Brooklyn Kitchen for hosting!
Details:
When: Thursday, Feb. 2, 5-9 pm
Where: Brooklyn Kitchen, 100 Frost Street
Snacks and wine will be provided!
Women who Draw + Shared Stories
Hey folks! I'm excited to share that I'm now part of the womenwhodraw directory, a new site dedicated to highlighting the work of women artists. If you have a little time, this is a super fun rabbit hole to fall down. So much to look at! And such a broad range of work.
Once you've poured over all of this eye candy, then pop over to Shefolk. The editors have put together a really lovely group of essays and post-election thoughts from artists and writers on the topic of self-care. I'm proud to have contributed a piece, which you can read here on their blog.
Happy New Year!
Cheers to a new year, a fresh start, and a steeled resolve. My resolutions are pretty standard: eat better, exercise more, drink more water, go for more walks, spend more time on my bike, dance more, bake more bread, spend more time with family, maybe get back into knitting, paint more, write more, read more, be a faster typer, brush my hair, etc, etc, say no more, say yes more, say more, hmmmm... and maybe don't be so hard on myself. That's all :)
So let's roll into the new year like...
Group show! Calicornicopia this Friday
Hope you all can make it to Calico gallery this Friday for Calicornucopia -- their annual affordable art show!
Details:
WHEN: Friday, Dec 9th, 7-10pm (free beer by Narragansett) // exhibition dates: Dec 9-18 // open gallery hours Fridays, Saturdays, & Sundays 12-5pm
WHERE: 67 West, 2nd Floor, Brooklyn, NY, 11222
I'll have a couple pieces there, my Landscape and Seascape:
Keep your December Giving on Track with Illustrated Impact
All throughout the month of December, Illustrated Impact is working with artists to highlight different charitable organizations. Tis the season of giving, and this is definitely a fun way to be reminded. Stay tuned for my Illustrated Impact contribution coming later this month! Cheers <3
ACLU Benefit Show: This Friday Dec. 2
Hello Friends! I hope you can stop by this Friday to enjoy some art and help raise some dough for the ACLU! Here are the details:
WHAT: Unbroken / An Art Benefit for the American Civil Liberties Union.
All proceeds go to the ACLU in its fight to defend and preserve our individual rights and liberties.
WHEN: Friday December 2, 6-9pm (stay after for drinks and good company!)
WHERE: 183 Lorraine St. 3rd fl., Brooklyn, NY
100% of all sales will go to the ACLU. The organizers will accept online donations directly to the ACLU with a credit or debit card, personal checks made out to the ACLU and cash.
Here's a look at my show contribution:
Organized by Spencer Merolla, Megan Piontkowski and Traci Talasco
Participating artists:
Natty Bumpercar
Hollie Chastain
Annie Coggan
Jackie Duval Smith
Cecile Dyer
Carl Ferrero
Sonya Gropman
Iviva Olenick
Sara Jones
Matt Keegan
Katherine Keltner
Branden Koch
Stephanie Land
Kakyoung Lee
Christina Martinelli
Spencer Merolla
Ellen Moses
Kirsten Nelson
Laura Nova
Tinuade Oyelowo
Sarah Nicole Phillips
Megan Piontkowski
Sreshta Rit Premnath
Audrey Ryan
Toni Serratelli
Devika Sen
Elissa Swanger
Traci Talasco
Libby Vanderploeg
Ward Yoshimoto
Season of Giving
In the spirit of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, here is a list of some of NGOs and charitable organizations that are working extra hard right now, and could use your generosity if you have the means to donate!
(in no particular order):
Happy Halloween
Eat lots of candy!
Digital Folklore of the 2016 Election
My Hillary gif shimmied its way into the L.A. Times this week! Read the fascinating history of political memes and how it relates to the digital folklore of the 2016 election in Carolina Miranda's article, "Call It the LOLcat effect: Memes are the Digital Folklore of the 2016 Election".
Shimmy on.
Greenpoint Hill Opening on October 20
Hello folks! I'm very excited to invite you all to come see some new works on paper that I'll be showing at Greenpoint Hill, a new gallery and shop in Greenpoint, Brooklyn opened by artist and friend Kim Brown. The opening party will be on Thursday, Oct. 20 from 7-10 pm at 100 Freeman Street in Greenpoint, BK. Here's a look at some of the ladies who lead that I'll be showing. Hope to see you there!
WHAT: Ladies Who Lead, New Works on paper by Libby VanderPloeg
WHEN: Thursday, October 20, 7-10 pm
WHERE: 100 Freeman Street, Greenpoint, Brooklyn
October 13: The Art of Greenpoint Beer & Ale
Join me and friends at Brouwerij Lane In Greenpoint this Thursday, Oct. 13 at 7 pm for "The Art of Greenpoint Beer & Ale", a show of prints featuring artwork from Greenpoint Beer's can designs by Mike Hambouz, Paul Richard, Josh Whitehead and myself. Opening reception this Thursday, and the show will be up until Nov. 13. Hope to see you there!
Poster (above) by Josh Whitehead at Best Practices. And if you like the Instant Credibility art (below), then now's your chance to get a print of it!
National Voter Registration Day!
No excuses to not vote. If you have not yet registered, stop waiting and ready yourself for this crucial election. And here's a link to resources that can help you figure out how. This portrait is of the late Grace Lee Boggs, feminist, social activist, writer, community Leader, and all-around inspiring woman. Interested in learning more about her? Check out the PBS documentary American Revolutionary.
Billion Oyster Project
I'm really excited to share this map that I created for The Billion Oyster Project's NYC Billion Oyster Crawl, happening this September 16 through October 22. What an amazing organization! If you haven't heard about them yet, here's a little bit about what they do. Partnering with NYC restaurants and Earth Matter, the Billion Oyster Project collects discarded oyster shells and then uses them to rebuild NY Harbor reefs in the East and Hudson Rivers. But they do more than that! Part of their programming also involves outreach to NY public schools, educating tens of thousands of young people in local ecology and STEM at the New York Harbor School on Governer's Island. If you're interested in learning more about the restaurant events, then have a look at this article on Food Republic. Cheers!
Can-tastic!
Exciting news! This Friday, Sept. 9, Greenpoint Beer and Ale will be releasing two beers, one of which I did the artwork for -- their Instant Credibility Double IPA. So happy for these talented brewers as they embark on their first can release. Hope you'll come by the Brewery at 7 N. 15th Street on Friday to say hello and pick some up! And grab some delicious Smash Street Extra Pale, while you're at it. It's also quite lovely <3
Hike for Hope
There's nothing like a good hike to make you feel better. In fact some doctors believe that a good hike (i.e. a challenging, consistent exercise regimen) could help minimize the side effects of radiation and treatment during cancer recovery. That's what Dr. Paul Nyugen of Brigham and Women's Hospital has been researching in his patients, with some very promising results! So to help further this research, one of his patients, Dan Snyder, has challenged himself to complete a 133-mile hike through the Adirondacks this September, a hike for hope to raise funds for further cancer research at Brigham and Women's Hospital. The hike will start in Northville, NY, wind through the mountains, and finish in Lake Placid, NY, following one of the ADK's most famous stretches— the Northville-Placid Trail. Want to get a print of this map that I created to show Dan's journey? Well, you're in luck! It's one of the donation rewards :) To learn more or make a donation, visit adkhikeforhope.org.
Hello Kazoo Magazine! A new feminist mag for girls 5-10
I'm so excited to share some new illustrations I did for Kazoo Magazine's premier issue. If you haven't heard about it yet, Kazoo is a new feminist magazine for girls 5-10. It's filled with fun activities, like how to make a seed bomb, and beautiful illustrations from a stellar lineup of artists and illustrators, like Mickalene Thomas, Lisa Congdon, Lucy Knisley, and Alison Bechdel. If you've got a curious little girl in your life, I highly recommend getting her a subscription! Here's a look at the Brazil map I made for Kazoo's Summer Olympics and Paralympics feature.
And here is Kazoo Magazine's founder and editor-in-chief, Erin Bried with her daughters Ellie and Bea.
And here's the gorgeous cover, with hand-lettering by Mary Kate McDevitt and surfer illustration by Nicole J. Georges.
Happy reading!
Working towards justice
I've been struggling to comprehend the seemingly endless violence that's been occurring here in the U.S. and all over the world these past few weeks. The list of tragedies that have happened over the past year, really, have been unfathomable. Needless to say, it's been hard to see any hope through all of this ugliness. It seems like every time I turn on the news, another shooting is being reported, another person is being senselessly murdered, another public figure, political candidate, or former mayor is broadcasting their racist opinions, fueling deeper anger and feelings of injustice within our communities. But we can't give up. We have a job to do. We have to stand up for one another. We have to call people out on their reprehensible behavior when we see it. We have to fight for policy change, criminal justice reform, and help change racist attitudes so that these horrors aren't repeated. We have to be more empathetic. There are actions, large and small, that we can all do to work towards a more just and peaceful world. So let's do better, be louder, be brave, show support, and take action and make certain it's known that black lives matter.
Thank you Curators of Quirk and Trendland!
Thank you to Curators of Quirk for such a nice feature. Especially happy to see my sunscreen PSA as the header :)
Read Curators of Quirk's writeup here:
http://curatorsofquirk.com/2016/06/libby-vander-ploeg-a-brooklyn-based-illustrator-whose-sketches-will-instantly-bring-a-smile-to-your-face/
And thank you to Trendland too for such a lovely writeup on some of my illustrated maps!
Read Trendland's writeup here:
https://trendland.com/libby-vanderploeg-cute-illustrated-maps/
United State of Women
This week marks the first United State of Women Summit in Washington DC! I recently worked with the Summit and Tumblr to create an animated gif of one of their six main talking points, Economic Empowerment. I know so many women who run small businesses (or dream of doing so), are new moms who want to be able to afford day care, or simply can't figure out how to achieve their career goals when confronted with economic hurdles. So this topic hits close to home. We want to be paid equally for the work we do. We want the chance to achieve our goals. We want to live in an economically healthy community, and we want to have the means to invest in that community so that it can continue to flourish. Going to college, being able to afford day care, starting small businesses, and supporting them — it all starts with economic empowerment.
To read more about the main topics of the The United State of Women Summit, check out their links:
- Economic Empowerment
- Health & Wellness
- Educational Opportunity
- Violence Against Women
- Entrepreneurship & Innovation
- Leadership & Civic Engagement
And can we talk about how awesome Michelle Obama is for bringing together so many amazing speakers for the event? President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, Vice President Joseph Biden, Valerie Jarrett, Connie Britton, Warren Buffett, Melissa Harris-Perry, Billie Jean King, Lilly Ledbetter, Cecile Richards, Shonda Rhimes, Eleanor Smeal, Gloria Steinem, Oprah Winfrey are just some of the inspiring folks who will be speaking at the summit. And you can watch the live stream here!
Schumacher Q&A: the Making of Freddie!
Have you met my new friend, Freddie, yet? Oh, you should! He's really cute, cool, super helpful, and he's got a full-time job too, as Schumacher's new mascot. I had the chance to talk with the design team on their blog, give some insight on my creative process, and talk about some of my favorite things in this great, big world. You can read the interview and peek in my sketchbook here!