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Illustrating Children’s Books Student Showcase part 10 {Oct 2016 class}

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We are so proud of our wonderful Make Art That Sells alumni and are pleased to showcase a series of gorgeous student work that was produced in our first session of Illustrating Children’s Books. Here is part 10 in the showcase series.

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Alexandra Thompson

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Alexandra ThompsonprofileMy favorite week was the week of poses. I just loved getting to know all of my characters. The more I drew each one, the better I got to know them and learn a little bit more about their personalities.

How did the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class help you grow?

I learned so much through this class. From the business side of things, like how to submit my work to agents and what they are looking for – to working on character development and drawing techniques. Most of all, it was seeing the kind of personal growth that I was capable of if I just dedicated the time each and every day to work on my art.

What did you discover about yourself?

I learned that the more I draw, the more I’m able to see my own personal style evolve and take shape. It’s always been a struggle to define my own personal “style” and this course has been a huge help.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

This course is intense, inspiring, packed with amazing information, and worth every penny.

See more work here: Website

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Annie Gillaume-Gantz

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How did the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class help you grow?

‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ course helped me to begin to rediscover who I am and want to be as an Illustrator after a long period not pursuing my Illustration career.

What did you discover about yourself?

It helped me rediscovered my love of childrens book illustrations that I once knew in college and helped me to let go of some of my formal college art school training and be free to be me.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

An amazing and intense experience, that I signed up for again, that pushed me to thrive as an artist in an enjoyable format.

See more work here: Website | Instagram

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Erica De Chavez | PandaErica

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PandaErica_ProfilePhoto_72dpiThis is my finished book cover assignment from the 5th and last week of class. This assignment is my favorite piece that I completed out of the whole course. It really encapsulates all of the elements I learned from the class: good composition, hand lettering, strong character design and environment all into one. Each week I learned more and more about my main character and all of the secondary characters too and had a really good idea of what kind of environment I wanted them all to exist in. All of the exploration and experimentation I did in the weeks culminating to this assignment also helped me establish the final style I wanted to illustrate the cover in too!

How did the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class help you grow?

The ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class helped me grow by giving me a comfortable space to explore and create my art in with the support of a community of artists who were taking the class alongside me. Lilla and Zoe’s PDFs of cheat sheets, tell alls, industry interviews and overall positive can-do attitude helped me stay motivated and focused on creating art that was the best I could produce in such a short amount of time. Not only was all of the information and content of the class insightful and fun, it’s also readily downloadable so that I can always go back and re-read and go over all of the amazing tips and tricks that will help make all of my illustrations in the future better.

What did you discover about yourself?

During the course of the class, I discovered that by exploring and pushing myself outside of my comfort box of how I normally illustrate helped me find what I truly like and dislike creating. The quick turnarounds and mini assignments helped me stretch my imagination muscles and in the end helped me discover quicker techniques and ways of creating art that I normally would not try on my own. Also, with Lilla’s clever worksheets that helped break down and analyze the story texts, I learned what kind of art and stories my individual style and personality are naturally drawn to.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

This course is motivating, supporting, informative, eye-opening, and totally worth the price of the class! I got so much great feedback on my own art, learned a ton about the industry and what art directors/agents really look for in a children’s book illustrator. I also learned how I can apply those qualities into my own art and portfolio.

See more work here: Website | Facebook

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Arpi Krikorian

Arpi Krikorian Ada.spread.3.1.forweb
Arpi KrikorianprofileThis was part of the “spread” assignment. I love that I went outside my comfort zone and changed my usual color scheme. It describes the part as Ada as an infant.

How did the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class help you grow?

This class helped break down all the steps of developing a character which is what I struggled with the most.

What did you discover about yourself?

I discovered that I can actually draw a cohesive story and develop believable, animated characters.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

This course is the perfect class to take to make your dream of developing a children’s book a reality. You discover the truth in “you had it in you all along”. It was absolutely my favorite class I have ever taken, anywhere!

See more work here: Website | Instagram

 

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Angeli Rafer

AngeliRafer_StudentShowCaseEntryThe image is from Week 4, Environment, which challenged me to consider not only the character design, but how they fit in with the background and props to help bring the story to life.

How did the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class help you grow?

Seeing other wonderful interpretations of the same text has inspired me to continue to pursue and develop my own style; there’s literally a niche for everyone! This course has given me the confidence to feel proud about my art’s unique look and to begin to strategically market it, instead of trying to pigeon-hole my style into something it’s not.

What did you discover about yourself?

That I’m a bit impatient and eager to move on to the final art when really I should slow down and take as much time as possible to develop an idea before even considering the final.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

An exhilarating crash course in children’s illustration that also gives you room to slow down and reexamine where you are now as an artist, and how to grow to reach your future goals.

See more work here: Website | Instagram | Facebook

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Violet Agg

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Violet Agg_Profile Picture finalThe image I choose is my cover proposal for the traditional russian tale “The Gigantic Turnip”. My goal was to showcase important elements of the plot, from the moment the character of the grandad plants the turnip and cares for it to grow, to the moment the turnip gets gigantic and it needs to be pulled out of the ground. While developing the characters for this story I started to notice the character of grandad had a very sweet and caring personality, he was nurturing the Turnip with fatherly love. So for that reason, I wanted to show that special bond between them and thats how I decided I would compose the scene. It’s my favorite week as it implemented and connected everything that we learned during the course (poses, character design and environment to name a few). By the time we were given this assignment I had a very clear vision of the overall aesthetics of the world I wanted to create for this story and therefor the design of the cover was a very smooth process and enjoyable process.
How did the ‘Illustrating Children’s Book’ class help you grow?

The course allowed me to grow in confidence by sharing my work with others in various stages of their illustration careers as well as sharing my work with an agent and an art director.

Regardless of what level you are currently at, you have to show the work, which is a positive as putting your work out there is the first step you have to take for things to start happening.

What did you discover about yourself?

I discovered the following about myself during the course:

*I discovered that by adding a bit of texture to your image it can bring it to life, its the subtleties that define the personality of your style.

*I really like the craftsmanship behind traditional looking illustrations, but I also love unusual compositions. For me is important to respect the line that forms a particular anatomy of an animal or a person of a certain age. I don’t like drawings that are forced to be something they are not.

*Illustrating makes me happy , I don’t need approval from others to feel happy about my work
I can be self critical and implement changes without comparing my work to others

*I will always be original by listening to my own unique voice.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

I would describe the course as an opportunity to infiltrate the world of a professional children’s books illustrator. You get the chance to learn from multiple perspectives (agent , art director , illustrator) taught in such a way that it feels like you are working on commissioned pieces, it simulates what it would be like to do this for a living.

Its encouraging to listen to the interviews of professional children’s books illustrators, because they have the same struggles and doubts that you may feel while working in your own illustrations, you know then that is ok if you don’t have all the answers in one go, everything eventually will unravel if you are willing to put in the work.

Lilla and Zoe break down all the elements that make a picture book successful in a class filled with invaluable material, lots of fun and words of encouragement.

See more work here: Website

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Do you dream of illustrating a children’s book?  Would you love to create a magical world with characters that you’ve designed? Do you love the magic of children’s books and feel that you have something to offer? Then this course is for you.matsD-banner-h02650

In five weeks, you’ll create a brilliant children’s book pitch to help you land your dream children’s book gig. You’ll get over 20 videos, weekly assignments, live weekly video reviews, interviews with publishers and illustrators and more. Co-taught by top art agent Lilla Rogers and highly-respected children’s book art director Zoe Tucker.

Spaces are limited! Don’t miss out. REGISTER HERE

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