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DONTE SERIES

Cover of “Una duda”, book 15 of the Donte Series: Donte sitting on the floor at home next to his cat Deon. Cover of “Una gota de agua”, book 16: Gus the dog beside the lake, surrounded by green trees. Cover of “Fun in the Fog”, book 17: Donte and his dad point at something in the field, with Gus and Deon beside them. Cover of “The Rat and the Rug”, book 18: Donte in the living room with Gus while Deon watches.

DONTE, DEON, GUS & DAD

Pencil sketch sheets of Donte, his dad and the pets in different poses. Sketchbook with early full-body versions of Donte. Early sketches: the dad with Donte and the pets, and a sketch of the living room. Donte and his dad in full-body line art, with a detail of Donte's hair. Six line-art expressions of Donte: happy, serious, surprised and thoughtful. Deon the cat in line art in five poses: sitting, from behind, stretching and lying down. Gus the dog in line art in six poses.

Dad & Donte

Deon

Gus

Donte's dad in color, reading in an armchair with a blanket. Deon in color: a white cat with black patches and a red bandana. Gus in color: a beagle jumping happily. Donte in color, holding the torn red rug.

BACKGROUNDS

HOUSE AND GARDEN
House and garden background: a red-roofed house with a porch, surrounded by trees and grass.
LAKE
Lake background: a pond among green hills with flowers.
HOUSE INTERIOR
House interior: a room with a door, a coat rack, a red rug on the floor and a green armchair. House interior: the living room with a green sofa, a yellow rug and the red rug.

SKETCHES

Line sketch of a page: Gus, Deon and Donte by the lake. Line sketch of a page: the dad in the armchair and Donte in the living room. Line sketch of a page: Donte, his dad, and Deon in the field, looking at Gus covered in mud. Line sketch of a page: Donte in the living room, holding a broken toy, with Gus and Deon beside him.

FULL-COLOR PAGES

Full-color pages from “The Rat and the Rug”: Gus tears a toy while Deon looks on. Full-color pages from “Fun in the Fog”: Donte and his dad look for Gus, who is playing in the mud. Full-color pages from “Una duda”: Donte’s dad reads on the couch while Donte watches Deon from the floor. Full-color pages from “Una gota de agua”: Donte, Deon and Gus spend the afternoon at the lake.

THE PROJECT

The Donte Series is part of the Descubrir collection and consists of four decodable readers set in rural Georgia, USA. The story follows an African American family—Donte, his dad, his cat Deon, and his dog Gus—through everyday experiences exploring family bonds, pet companionship, and nature.

Books in the Collection

  • Una duda (Ang Chagoya): Donte enjoys a quiet afternoon at home with his cat Deon as curious questions arise.
  • Una gota de agua (Ang Chagoya): a relaxing day outdoors where Donte, Deon, and Gus spend an afternoon at the lake.
  • Fun in the fog (Grace Dircz): on a foggy day, Donte and his dad venture into the woods to find Gus, who took the chance to run off and play.
  • The rat and the rug (Grace Dircz): a playful afternoon turns chaotic when Gus tears his toy and damages the rug, all under Deon’s watchful, disapproving eyes.

PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS

  • Authors: Ang Chagoya and Grace Dircz
  • Client / Publisher: Acuarela Biliteracy Works LLC (formerly Acuarela Curriculum Co-op)
  • Year: 2025
  • Target Audience: early childhood education / early literacy (kindergarten) — bilingual decodable format
  • My Role: character and background design, interior illustration, and visual composition
  • Medium / Software: digital illustration (Adobe Photoshop)
  • Scope: 28 pages in total (7 per book)

Process and Teamwork

  • Technical Onboarding & Growth: as my first project illustrated for Acuarela, this served as the foundation for understanding the specific requirements of decodable book illustration, learning to balance visual storytelling with early-reading pedagogical guidelines.
  • Character Design & Setting: developed the visual world for the family and their pets, capturing the warmth of African American culture in a rural setting through cozy character design and inviting background art.
  • Art Direction & Coordination: close conceptual collaboration with the Acuarela editorial team and direct coordination with the project designer for page layout and print prep.
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