Matthew Cordell
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cordellmatthew.bsky.social
Matthew Cordell
@cordellmatthew.bsky.social
Dad. Husband. Illustrator and author of books. 2018 Caldecott Medalist.
If there's voting going on in your state today, please vote! Local elections, state, federal elections, it all matters. Don't let the billionaire apologists, traitors of the poor and middle class, book banners, racists, and gay and trans phobes on the ballots squeak into power in your elections.✌️
November 4, 2025 at 9:00 PM
October 31, 2025 at 6:20 PM
I started an ongoing series in my sketchbook, drawing (pen/ink, standard ball point pen, gel ball point pen, colored pencil) and collage-ing (using different shades of blue paper plus watercolor papers) scenes from 1982's Blade Runner. Here are the first three. 🟦

#drawing #penandink #collage #art
October 22, 2025 at 6:11 PM
I love you, #Chicago ✊️
October 8, 2025 at 5:21 PM
I'm just a breath away from finishing this David Bowie picture book biography that's been in the works for literal years. I'm excited about it, and it will be out in fall of 2026 from Neal Porter Books. It's called STARMAN.⚡️
#penandink #watercolor #collage #davidbowie #childrensbookillustration
October 7, 2025 at 7:49 PM
October 5, 2025 at 4:19 PM
October 4, 2025 at 2:09 PM
October 3, 2025 at 6:05 PM
October 1, 2025 at 6:41 PM
September 30, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Have a good weekend.

Note to self (and anyone else who needs it): spend time away from phone, internet, social media. Spend time with family, friends. Go outside. Listen to music. Draw. Read.

Have a good weekend.
September 26, 2025 at 7:54 PM
Wondering if anyone else refers to their pen as "an a-hole" multiple times a day? #ArtDrama
September 25, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Portrait of Uncle Jon of Piedmont (CA)
#drawing #penandink #portrait #sketchbook #art
September 9, 2025 at 7:02 PM
The future is... questionable. But in 2026, I'll be working krautrock into a picture book. ⬛️
September 8, 2025 at 8:29 PM
HELLO NEW BOOK COVER ALERT! My next author/illustrator picture book, 102, will be released April 2026, and I'm excited to share the cover! Thanks to fam at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for making this one special--esp wildly cool Mary-Kate Gaudet and Angelie Yap. #kidlit #kidlitart #booksky
August 27, 2025 at 4:04 PM
August 26, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Clocking out Friday while the ink's still wet ✌️
#workinprogress #wip #penandink #kidlitart
July 11, 2025 at 9:51 PM
Still trying to get a handle on this nib I bought in Tokyo. I thought I might use it to draw my next book, but I'm a little afraid of it! I love it, but it is a wild one for real. 😬

#penandink #drawing #sketchbook
July 10, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Hello! I will be at ALA Annual Conference this weekend in Philadelphia talking about TO SEE AN OWL at a few fun events. I hope you'll join me tomorrow morning (Saturday) for a signing of the book from 10:15-11:15 at the Random House Children's Books booth #1512. See you soon! ✌️ #alaac25
June 27, 2025 at 4:02 PM
I've been taking my time on this sketchbook drawing, working on and off for a little over a week. Drawn all in ballpoint pen. I used, I think, 9 colors on this. Inks are scented like different candies and desserts, too, so there's also that.
June 25, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Happy Pride 2025! All love, full support to my LGBTQ+ friends, family, and beyond. You are beautiful, you are strong, you inspire me all year long. ✌️❤️🎉
June 20, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Just for fun, I've been working on this bigger-than-life big boy in my sketchbook. Two colors in, with more scribbling and more colors to go. This stuff is tedious and relaxing at the same time. Go figure! (One of the adult barred owls I've been observing this season)
#art #illustration #drawing
June 18, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Good weekend. Now more protests, now more boycotts. No time to relent.
June 16, 2025 at 5:05 PM
How is anyone supposed to get anything done, when sh!t is hitting fan every waking minute in Trump's America? I'm just trying to contribute to the economy, earn money for the fam, draw some silly pictures for my next children's book. He ain't having it, man.
June 12, 2025 at 8:27 PM