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 the previous session of the Illustrating Children’s Books class. View more student showcase posts here.

Camille Medina

I created this cover for the fifth and last week of the course. It shows the main character of the story as well as the shadows of three other major characters without unveiling what they look like. I just love this image! It combines a lot of the things I like (minimalism, rough-ish lines, pencil texture, hand lettering, block colours) and I feel that it is very ‘me’. I also had a lot of fun creating the artwork that week so whenever I look at this image it brings back good memories and a feeling of excitement and positive energy.

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

The ICB class is so full of industry insight and useful information! Not to mention the support you get coming from all directions: Lilla, Zoe, the Facebook community, the MATS team,… You get the sort of information that you can’t really find anywhere else and I feel that understanding the industry better and what art directors are looking for helped me focus on the right things. Thanks to the kind of transparency we got during the course I feel less intimidated now. Also, my portfolio got better; my website (that I redid as a result of the class) got more like me; my artwork in general is feeling more like me; seeing so much beautiful work and so much talent (in the various class posts as well as the artwork produced by the other students) really pushed me to up my game, and seeing so much diversity of styles was very inspirational and showed me that it was okay to be me. Since the class I have also been experimenting more, sketching more, not worrying as much about the outcome and generally having more fun.

What did you discover about yourself?

As obvious as it may sound, I discovered that it was absolutely fine to be me and that there was room for my style in the industry. It was a real eye-opener because my illustration style is so different from a lot of the things I see and that are ‘trendy’ at the moment that I felt like an outsider and that maybe I wouldn’t make it in the illustration world for that reason. Accepting myself for who I am and my illustration style for what it is, and getting rid of the ‘shame’ that came with being different was tremendously liberating and it’s had an impact on various aspects of my life!

How would you describe the course to a friend?

If you’re thinking about getting into the children’s book industry this is a great place to start! You won’t find the kind of insights or advice that you get in this course anywhere else and to be honest, I wish I had found this course a lot sooner!

See more work here: Website | Instagram | Facebook

Fia Kilbourn

This was my second time taking the Illustrating Children’s Books class and this time, I really enjoyed drawing poses. After a recent portfolio critique where I was encouraged to put more emphases on the narrative elements and relationships in my illustrations, it was great to have the opportunity to push myself in that way. I had pages and pages of sketches for this week. The lovely text that Zoe Tucker wrote gave me so much inspiration for poses. It was hard to narrow down which poses to include in the final submission for the assignment, but I was really pleased with what I came up with and could see growth in this area.

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

Since this was my second time to take the class, I knew what the pace would be like and while it was intense, knowing that I managed it last time helped me to tackle it little by little. Learning about how to send promo material was super useful this time around, because I was currently in the process of putting together a promo package. It’s also just really great to have the encouragement from Lilla and Zoe and the other classmates. To be going through this together and discovering things together. To learn from the feedback you are given, but also the feedback other students are given helps you to look at your own work and take that feedback to heart.

What did you discover about yourself?

That I can do this! It’s something that I really want to do and even though it can be stressful and scary to put myself out there, I have skills that I learned from this class that will help me get the jobs I want.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

You will have five weeks of intense drawing and creating, but you will also find a warm and supportive environment where you can grow. You will find that the pace puts a little fire under your feet that will push you forward to the next level in your illustration. You will be proud of the work you created and the connections you made with other artists. And the cherry on the top is having a lot of background information on how the industry works, how to get noticed, and the process of a book from start to finish. This last information might not be useful at first, but it’s yours to keep and you can go back to it at different points in your career when it is more relevant to review it.

See more work here: Website | Instagram

Andrea Stegmaier

This image shows Eleanor, a girl who really wants a pet and has a lot of fantasy. I loved thinking about the main character of the story and the accessories which could describe her personality.

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

I learned so much about the children’s book industry, about the whole process and about the work as an illustrator, that I feel well prepared to jump right into contacting publishing houses. Now I feel more confident and professional.

What did you discover about yourself?
I discovered my love for colors. Drawing is a lot of fun, but when I start with the colors it’s joy.

How would you describe the course to a friend?
This class is a boost for you if you are willing to work hard. You will get a ton of information from lovely experienced teachers and you will meet a bunch of creative supportive people! It’s worth the effort!

See more work here: Instagram

Annelies Diks-Krijgsman | Studio ZooLies

This is the cover illustration I made for Illustrating Childrens Books Oct 2017. I chose the story Pet Problems, written by Zoë Tucker.

It is made in watercolour and pencils and digitally put together. All the weeks were great and had its own challenges. I chose this one, because I have been working on it a long time and finally finished it in a way I am pleased with it. I had to overcome a lot of mountains to get this piece together. So I am very proud of it!

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

It helped me grow in different ways. By taking this course I learned a lot from my fellow classmates regarding techniques but also learning that there is a huge amount of different approaches you can take to do an assignment. It really sparked my creativity! And of course the wonderfull Lilla and her great team who helped structure and guide us through. The course is very well set up and gave me insight and guidance in how to approach future drawings. The mini’s and bonusses really loosen you up and prepare you for the main assignment. And the constant positive affirmations Lilla and Zoë gave us, was really inspiring and a gamechanger! I use them in my personal life too now! By taking this course I also grew a very great, rich, supporting and inspiring network of beautiful artist. I am very thankful and gratef to have met them. And the most important thing I learned is: have fun! It’s not about what you make but how you make it!

What did you discover about yourself?

I learned that it is only the beginning for me :)
I still struggle with my perfectionism and the idea that I have to perform and make a great piece every time. But I am training myself to let that go and make sure I have fun doing what I do. So courages showing my mistakes now and sharing my artistic journey without worrying if it will look good. And something else I discovered is that I am not as bad as I thought I was. All these great artist I met make beautiful things, but it turnes out we all have things we are good at. So we all can learn from eachother.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

This course is the greatest gift you can give yourself if you really enjoy creating art and want to make more of it! Wether you are a beginner or a pro. It will guide you, nurse you, stretch you, challenge you, learn you to keep making art and will let you grow personally and artistically. The courses of Lilla are very well set up and full of valuable information and therefor worth every euro. The set up takes you step by step further into the professional world of making art and lets you grow and come out of your comfortzone to stretch yourself in ways you could not have done on your own. But the positive energy Lilla and her team put in make it a warm and encouraging environment like a warm bath, so you feel safe to get out of your comfortzone to reach new heights. She also gives you entrance to a lovely and very valuable community of artist. Oh and the classes are addictive ;)

See more work here: Website | Instagram

Marieke de Beurs | MÅKE

For me week 3 (poses) was the week that my characters came to life. Because you see them moving and the have different emotions so as if you can get to know the character.

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

For me this was the first time I illustrated a human character. The way Lilla and Zoe teach gives you great confidence. Nothing is wrong and you start at the point where you are in your career. I learned to trust again on my pencil and that you need to practice and have fun while doing it. I never realised that to draw a child you have different proportions (big head, big eyes) and it was great to experiment with all the emotions a character has. It really gives an emotional depth to the character and to the story you are trying to tell.

What did you discover about yourself?

I learned that I really enjoy drawing and don’t to stop. And I want to explore how I can make a living as an illustrator. (That’s why I signed up for My Year of Art School) A great wish is to illustrate a childrens book in the future.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

It is a great course where you have great assignments, great fellow students, and the best Facebook lives to learn from each others work. It is wonderful to be in class again. A really inspiring course which gives you help how to make a great book pitch and what it takes to make a children’s book. You get drip fed with information so it is not overwhelming but step by step guidance.

See more work here: Website | Instagram

Devon Holzwarth

Mats ICB class the third time around was just as great for me as the first two rounds! The story really spoke to me and for those 5 weeks I made Leonard the sea turtle a major part of my life. I included this image of Leonard from week one because I so enjoyed the process of diving in and getting to know who this character is and what might live in his world.

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

I spent a good day drawing and painting little objects and words and other details (some very farfetched but they can lead to great ideas!) and drew several variations of turtles – elderly turtles, turtles buying groceries, turtles trying to turn over, etc. I painted some loose landscapes with one of my favorite dark blue gouaches and then picked a color pencil that really popped against it to draw a turtle in the scene – and that’s how the orangey-red Leonard the turtle came to be. After that I used the character sheet as a guide for the rest of my color choices and the story vibe.

What did you discover about yourself?

I think after taking ICB twice before I understood how the course would flow and how important it was to trust my initial thoughts and embrace them. That’s definitely spilled over into my work and also somewhat personally – trusting my intuition in one realm of life makes it easier to do so in the big picture.

How would you describe the course to a friend?

ICB is not only a super fun course, it’s also a fabulously friendly group and a place where you’re guaranteed to grow creatively when you throw yourself in. Zoe & Lilla are a dream team!

See more work here: Website | Instagram