Oral and written storytelling traditions are well and good, but painting blueprints for the imagination in his folkloric “Lencho” style is the one that comes most naturally to this teller of tales.

The illustrator of seven delightful children’s books, storytelling runs in the family. His wife, Nancy, authored two of them, “Doggie Dreams” and “Tripper’s Travels.” And since a children’s show is being developed based on the latter, we can look for the couple’s gadabout pooch to have yet more adventures down the road!

Animals, especially dogs, are central to Lee’s work. “They’re the most wonderful creatures on the face of the earth, so I love painting them, and they’re a natural for children’s books. And although we’ve never had a pig, we think they’re pretty cute, too, so a blue one is the logo for our store, Puerco Azul.”

His whimsical painting, “Galeria,” was chosen as the cover for this magazine’s 2007 Art Issue. Take a second look at it and you’ll notice a trademark dog – in this case his beloved Pinta – woven into the yarn it spins.