Sometimes, opportunities come to you in the most unusual, unexpected manner.

I was playing Texas Hold'Em online and as I sat at one of the poker tables, mulling over a shitty hand I'd just been dealt, this quirky character greets me outta nowhere. And the first thing I notice about him? His disturbingly spot-on Cheshire Cat grin he's got going on in his pic. How strange I was to mention that to him, as the following indicates.

He went through my profile and, I guess, saw some of my artwork and said I was quite possibly the person he had been searching for. He had been placed in charge of organizing this award luncheon and the theme the committee decided on was Alice in Wonderland. Trouble was, they couldn't use any copyrighted Disney imagery for their pamphlet cover of the tea party scene. So he'd sent out bulletins to lots of artists advertising this and requesting "donated" artwork, as this is a non-profit organization. When he told me no one else responded, I was floored. Most artists would LOVE a chance to dabble in the world of Wonderland! So I literally jumped at the chance and ended up finishing my piece in 2-3 days, as I had a deadline of like, less than a week. But I do happen to work better under pressure, so I didn't mind at all.

I just got the committee's approval yesterday and it seems they will definitely be using my design, so I'm very happy and excited to see what comes from all this. I had a blast drawing it, and coincidentally, I had started another Alice piece before I was asked to do this one. Of course, that one has a bit of a more twisted take, as I was asked not to make the tea party scene twisted in any manner. Once that one is finished, I will upload it here as well.