I’m A Star – childrens illustrations

 

I think I’ve always loved figurative art, entranced perhaps by the spells artists cast as they capture aspects of the real world and reposition them in a sphere defined by beauty and the natural flow of colour.

But as we become immersed in a world defined by all things digital, I believe, its the classical approach towards composition and the beautiful lines that can be lost and found in visual arts that ensure I remain loyal to my first love.

Art has always been a part of my life, a former art teacher, I now manage my work as an artist and illustrator with the demands of four fantastic little boys. They have injected a myriad of hues into my life, reigniting my interest in the colourful and imaginative world of children’s fantasy.

I was delighted when the opportunity of a book illustration project emerged. I have had a few commissions in the past to illustrate for children’s magazines or childrens illustrations, but none of them have been as interesting and broad as this project. Enough to say, I was very curious, when Dionne Ormonde and I first met for a chat about her up and coming book I’m A Star. I could never have imagined how exciting this whole project would become.

Dionne is a former BBC Editor and Journalist and now juggles her responsibilities as a mother to two boys with wreative writing workshops, poetry recitals and her work as a writer. I am proud to say, she is a friend of mine and our working relationship is defined by honesty, understanding and respect. When writing for children she loves to write in rhyme and verse and is inspired by the narrative, as well as the abstract.

It’s easy to lose yourself inside Dionne’s world, she has created a domain, where all are welcome, writing stories with clear messages that are accessible to children and parents.
The brief she offered was more than promising: Illustrate a poem dedicated to children of colour, that celebrates parental love, laudable qualities, professional achievements and the power of dreams. She wanted to create a book that left everyone who read it with a very clear message…’everything in life is possible… if you try hard enough.’

 

Another important task was to illustrate the influential Black achievers Dionne referenced in the work, not only in traditional portrait style, but also abstractly. We had to find a way to apply their achievements to the dreams and every day activities of our book’s protagonist. After many discussions we created a framework for illustrations based on Dionne’s poem I’m a Star.

Sometimes you get a special feeling when you’re working on a project and when I look at the illustrations I’ve created for this book, I feel incredibly inspired and excited. The connection we’ve created between words and pictures is exciting and it’s thrilling seeing it develop so organically.

We agreed that a figurative art approach was the best style to adopt for this book. I’m A Star is inspired by Dionne’s sons, their dreams and her desire to inspire them and provide a sense of ‘ambition entitlement’.

There seemed little point, mining our imaginations for the characters, when we had ready made people who perfectly matched our requirements. I decided to closely follow her narrative’s concept and draw real life characters using reference photographs. It made sense therefore to use Dionne, her sons and her husband as the ‘models’ for the work.

Since my middle European cultural background is so different from the Caribbean-British heritage of Dionne and her family, it took time, study and many discussions with the author to embrace the overall feel of the book.

What we’ve created is beautiful. Authenticity is at the heart of this book. I love the work and despite my battle with perfectionism, I have embraced the journey of discovery required to immerse myself in African-Caribbean culture. The challenge really was transforming my new found knowledge into visual solutions that didn’t just look right, they had to feel right too.
I found a few artists inspirational from the start, but I really didn’t not want to appropriate their visual imagery, however subliminally. The lines between inspiration and influence are often blurred as artists develop their own artistic fingerprint.

But I don’t just admire the principles of great artists, I apply them too. It’s those visual tools of the trade that are hard to ignore. Whether its the colours, the shapes and the overall feel, I’ve fallen in love with many artists who instinctively just get it right.

I like the way African-American artist Jean-Michel Basquiat uses his lines, his compositions and the apparent doodle-ish style of his drawing. Black British Turner Prize winner Chris Ofili’s ornamented paintings are a joy and of course the Spanish great Pablo Picasso’s playful and highly creative approach was heavily influenced by West African culture and art.

I love all their work, but I did not want to copy it – I am not even sure if I could – I really wanted to synthesise their style into something new. Rather than approach the impossible, I have chosen to study, soak, transform and apply the lessons I have learnt to my own world; essentially be true to myself.

My style is high in detail, so for the I’m A Star book project I’ve had to simplify my approach a bit, but even so, the works remain incredibly detailed and time consuming to render.

My most important task was to embrace the perceptions of the little readers and the older loved ones that may share the book with the 6-10 year old children its aimed at. I feel like I’ve layered each image with love, the bright yellow star motifs, the vivid rainbows and the rich chocolate and caramel hues reflect the home-made love that has driven this children’s book illustration project.

The artistic result is a trade-off between my old highly detailed drawing style and the colourful and ornamental visuals rooted in African-Caribbean culture. I have created a contemporary ‘coat’, strongly influenced by well known masters of colour – Basquait, Ofili, Picasso et al.

I know the illustrations I have created have brought Dionne’s work alive, she loves the colourful images and constantly tells me we’ve created a prize-winning creation. As we put the finishing touches to this project, I hope she’s right. We can’t wait to publish our book and share our labour of love with the world.

I’ll keep you posted regarding the publication date… but its coming soon.

Please find a couple of illustrations samples here.