Without fail, every time I open a new picture book I immediately look for its unique design elements. Is the dust jacket different than the case cover? Are the endpapers decorative, and do they hint at events in the story? And, of course, what do the illustrations accomplish? To me, it's imperative that the images carry their own unique story apart from the text, and the illustrators who can walk that fine line between staying true to the written text and adding in another layer of story are worthy of praise.
Let's Talk Illustrators is a series that explores the methods, media, and inspiration illustrators use to create visual worlds and narratives in children's picture books. I hope to shine a light on the skillfully conscious and wonderfully accidental details that pull us back to our favorite picture books time and time again.
Here are the illustrators I've had the pleasure of interviewing so far:
Ged Adamson
Basak Agaoglu
Jacqueline Alcántara
Mehrdokht Amini
Chris Appelhans
William Bee
Jonathan Bentley
Galia Bernstein
Thi Bui
Cozbi Cabrera
Ruth Chan
Jean Claverie
Marianna Coppo
Matthew Cordell
Mike Curato
Antje Damm
Suzanne Del Rizzo
Mariachiara di Giorgio
Cori Doerrfeld
Hélène Druvert
Carson Ellis
Leo Espinosa
Jay Fleck
Deborah Freedman
Laura Freeman
Emily Gravett
Rebecca Green
Raúl Nieto Guridi
Rebecca Hahn
Paul Harfleet
Katie Harnett
Shawn Harris
Ryan T Higgins
Janet Hill
Molly Idle
Gordon C James
AN Kang
Aram Kim
Julie Kim
Jon Klassen
Joseph Kuefler
Suzy Lee
Steve Light
David Litchfield
Jessica Love
Corinna Luyken
Elly MacKay
Thao Lam
Deborah Marcero
Juana Martinez-Neal
Tim Miller
Daniel Miyares
Lauren O'Hara
Zachariah OHora
Kelsey Oseid
Kathryn Otoshi
Kenard Pak
LeUyen Pham
Greg Pizzoli
Christian Robinson
Julia Rothman
Alessandro Sanna
Francesca Sanna
Júlia Sardà
Esmé Shapiro
Lane Smith (with Molly Leach)
Sydney Smith
Joe Todd-Stanton
Nazli Tahvili
Evan Turk
Nancy Vo
Anna Walker
Brendan Wenzel
Bethan Woollvin
James Yang
I occasionally chat with authors as well!
Mac Barnett
Ingrid Chabbert
Katey Howes
Natalia O'Hara
Joshua David Stein
Basak Agaoglu
Jacqueline Alcántara
Mehrdokht Amini
Chris Appelhans
William Bee
Jonathan Bentley
Galia Bernstein
Thi Bui
Cozbi Cabrera
Ruth Chan
Jean Claverie
Marianna Coppo
Matthew Cordell
Mike Curato
Antje Damm
Suzanne Del Rizzo
Mariachiara di Giorgio
Cori Doerrfeld
Hélène Druvert
Carson Ellis
Leo Espinosa
Jay Fleck
Deborah Freedman
Laura Freeman
Emily Gravett
Rebecca Green
Raúl Nieto Guridi
Rebecca Hahn
Paul Harfleet
Katie Harnett
Shawn Harris
Ryan T Higgins
Janet Hill
Molly Idle
Gordon C James
AN Kang
Aram Kim
Julie Kim
Jon Klassen
Joseph Kuefler
Suzy Lee
Steve Light
David Litchfield
Jessica Love
Corinna Luyken
Elly MacKay
Thao Lam
Deborah Marcero
Juana Martinez-Neal
Tim Miller
Daniel Miyares
Lauren O'Hara
Zachariah OHora
Kelsey Oseid
Kathryn Otoshi
Kenard Pak
LeUyen Pham
Greg Pizzoli
Christian Robinson
Julia Rothman
Alessandro Sanna
Francesca Sanna
Júlia Sardà
Esmé Shapiro
Lane Smith (with Molly Leach)
Sydney Smith
Joe Todd-Stanton
Nazli Tahvili
Evan Turk
Nancy Vo
Anna Walker
Brendan Wenzel
Bethan Woollvin
James Yang
I occasionally chat with authors as well!
Mac Barnett
Ingrid Chabbert
Katey Howes
Natalia O'Hara
Joshua David Stein
