SCBWI SoCal's ART DAY Faculty

Susie Ghahremani is an award-winning illustrator whose work is licensed, exhibited and sold internationally. A graduate of Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), she is an editorial illustrator as well as the author-illustrator of STACK THE CATS and BALANCE THE BIRDS (Abrams) and illustrator of many other books. Susie’s next release will be the picture book MEMORY GARDEN by Zohreh Ghahremani, publishing in 2024 by Godwin Books / Macmillan, and her newest author-illustrator deal is top secret and in the works! Please visit her online at boygirlparty.com and on social media @boygirlparty.

Kim Dwinell is the author and illustrator of the Surfside Girls middle-grade graphic novel series (Top Shelf/ IDW) and was a consultant on the Surfside Girls AppleTV+ live-action show based on her books. She has also contributed to a variety of comic anthologies. Her professional artistic career started in feature animation on such films as Hercules, Mulan, Tarzan, Cats Don’t Dance, and The Swan Princess (Walt Disney Feature Animation, Turner Feature Animation, Rich Animation.) In addition to writing and illustrating, Kim is Adjunct Faculty in the Animation Program at California State University Long Beach, where she mentors young creatives on their own journeys. She is inspired by the warm Southern California climate and can often be found in the ocean when not at her desk.

Chuck Grieb is an award-winning story artist, illustrator, and animator with past clients including Disney, Nickelodeon, and Magic the Gathering. He also serves as the program director for Animation and Visual Effects at Azusa Pacific University. Chuck has lost himself exploring the world of The Garden Clan. Inhabited by a variety of Faerie Clans and Goblin Tribes, the Garden Clan has been expressed in a series of illustrations and stories the most recent of which is The Goblin Twins, an illustrated novel. www.chuckgrieb.com

​Born and raised in the Austrian Alps, Susi Schaefer trained as a glass painter in the medieval town of Rattenberg. After moving to Southern California for sun and adventure, Susi studied graphic design. She's the illustrator of ZOO ZEN and GOOD MORNING, I LOVE YOU, VIOLET!, and author-Illustrator of CAT LADIES and THE GLOW SHOW. Susi lives in North Tustin, California, with her family.