Courtney.

Courtney Booker has been an artist for as long as she can remember, and art has been the common thread throughout her life and work. A Los Angeles native, Courtney received her formative education at Crossroads School for the Arts and graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with her BFA. She has worked in design and animation at Pixar, Laika, Radium, Mekanism and other notable film studios and commercial agencies. Her work can be seen on Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, and Coraline as well as the short film and published children's book Moongirl. In 2000, Courtney founded Booker Design, for film and commercial projects.

 

Courtney’s most recent series, SoJellyJelly, draws on influences ranging from vintage TWA travel posters, Mary Blair’s Disney animations, Saul Bass’ paper cutouts, and Tadahiro Uesugi’s illustrations and design for Coraline, as well as the artist’s own innovative production design work. SoJellyJelly is a playful travelogue and an ode to California’s abundant natural beauty and diverse landscapes, from the majestic mossy greens of Mount Tamalpais (Sleeping Lady) where the artist currently resides with her family, to the desert-baked sunsets of Joshua Tree. Courtney has cultivated an exuberant Pop-inspired aesthetic to distill and capture the essence and particular charms of California’s hiking trails, beaches, small towns, mountains, and lakes. SoJellyJelly is simultaneously nostalgic and contemporary: each location holds personal resonance for the artist and captures our beautiful natural monuments while they still exist; at the same time, the series’ crisp design gives center stage to the artist’s playful use of color, which flourished in the darkest of times-as our world shut down due to COVID. “During the pandemic, the natural beauty of Marin was a saving grace for my family and I, and the beach and ocean in particular are my spiritual places. The ocean and creating art have revived me many times throughout my life and I want this series to bring similar joy and connection to nature to others.”  

When not creating art, Courtney can be found on the trails and beaches of Marin with her husband and two children, searching for new inspiration as she expands her SoJellyJelly  series.