On the heels of a successful Rabbit Hole Artist Collection auction, where a good number of beautiful "Alice in Wonderland" themed art was sold, I will soon begin working on a series of Alice paintings for the local Art For the Animals charity auction.

Sponsored by Howards' Arts and Frames, located on Route 40/Dual Hwy in Hagerstown, Maryland ~ Art For the Animals brings together artists from all across the area, who donate 5"x7" original paintings, which are framed by Howards' staff, and hung in their store.

Throughout the month of October, visitors can bid on the pieces via a silent auction. Bidding sheets are hung beside each painting, and every person interested in purchasing is assigned a bidding number.

I have been donating artwork since 2011. Each year, I do a series of paintings with a theme: i.e. Wizard of Oz, Gone With the Wind... and this year, I've decided to paint six Alice in Wonderland pieces.

Below are the sketches from a brainstorming session for ideas.

I normally wouldn't show these! They are very rough, indeed!

Alice holding the bottle labeled "Drink Me". I drew her from this perspective because I hoped that it appears she is shrinking.

Two more Alice sketches... figuring out her hair, costume, and whether the bottle looks better with a label or tag. In the book, I believe it was a label.

And here she is growing larger after biting into the cake. This was a really awkward angle to draw, and I'm not entirely happy with it. She doesn't look particularly huge to me.

I should probably add the little table for a size reference.

Here, Alice is peeking through the tiny doorway that leads to Wonderland. Although it currently resembles an archway.

Maybe I should include the door, or at least the key. ;)

Now, the Caterpillar should be fun to paint as a Cat-erpillar! This is probably the roughest of all my sketches, though. I loosely based him on a monarch caterpillar.

Here is my dilemma. I really don't want to paint him smoking a hookah! Although mainly used for tobacco in those days, many consider it a drug symbol. LOL

But the book references the device several times, and the image of the caterpillar blowing smoke letters has become synonymous with Alice in Wonderland.

Hence, I hinted at the hookah with the pipe curling around him.

Also, some of you might know I had a weird mushroom-phobia as a child; I was terrified that they were carnivorous plants that attacked people!

The caterpillar scene was actually my LEAST FAVORITE because he was sitting on a giant mushroom. Hahaha

I still have an irrational lingering dislike for real mushrooms, but I've made some progress, as I was able to draw the fungi here! :D

My Mad Hatter.

I imagined him as a mix of a crazy inventor and a slick traveling salesman peddling "cure all ointments". LOL

And, finally, my Red Queen! Off with their heads!

Remember, these are just sketches! Undoubtedly these portraits will change drastically once I start applying paint! LOL

But this gives you a rough idea of the direction I am planning to take with this upcoming series. I am really looking forward to working on these, and sharing my progress with you! :)