Let's Talk Illustrators #372: Hyewon Kyung

I hope everyone enjoyed the retrospective I ran in August! Today we're back to our usually scheduled program with Hyewon Kyung, author-illustrator of I Am a Lioness, This book caught my eye the moment I saw it, and I'm excited to share the process behind creating it with you all! I'll let Hyewon take it from here!

About the book:

Lion communities (known as prides) are often misperceived as being led by a male lion. But in this honest, unfiltered portrayal of savanna life, we learn that lionesses are the pride's true leaders! Discover how these majestic females nurture young cubs and prepare them for life in the wild, all while making their own vital contributions to the success of the pride.

Let's talk Hyewon Kyung!

LTPB: Where did the idea for I Am a Lioness come from?

HK: The initial idea was to write a picture book about feminism. As I brainstormed, I realized that when people think of a lion, they almost always picture a male lion with a magnificent mane. If you ask people to close their eyes and imagine a lion, almost everyone will picture a big male lion.

In reality, however, the lionesses in a pride handle almost every aspect of life: hunting, caring for cubs, and teaching them. While a male lion's leadership can be temporary—he must leave the pride if he loses a fight—lionesses rarely leave. They are the ones who truly ensure the pride's survival.

This inspired me to create a book that portrays the strength and beauty of the lioness. I wanted to make a book that would encourage readers to think of lionesses whenever they pictured a lion.

LTPB: Can you talk about your research process for this book? How did your research inform your illustrations?

HK: While it would have been ideal to go to Africa and study lionesses in person, I was unable to, so I relied on books, internet resources, and documentaries.

LTPB: What did you find most difficult in creating this book? What did you find most rewarding?

HK: In my previous books, I had created cute, character-like versions of animals, especially dinosaurs. However, for this book, the lioness had to represent all lionesses, so I wanted to draw her as realistically as possible. The challenge was finding a balance—drawing the lioness realistically while still incorporating my own style to capture her beauty. I didn’t want to simply create a drawing that looked like a photograph.

As I studied videos and photos of lions, I discovered the powerful and beautiful physique of the lioness. Unlike male lions, whose bodies are hidden by their manes, a lioness's lack of a mane reveals her strong muscles when she moves and runs. I found this to be incredibly beautiful, and it became a key focus for my illustrations.

LTPB: What did you use to create the illustrations in this book? Is this your preferred medium? How does your process change from book to book?

HK: I did the sketches digitally because I made many revisions. However, when I tried to color digitally, the images looked cold, and I felt I couldn't capture the lioness’s powerful yet warm, maternal side.

So, I decided to work with a medium I was more familiar with: hanji, a traditional Korean paper. I drew and colored the lionesses on hanji and then attached them to the backgrounds. The backgrounds were done with a pencil and conte crayons. I chose to use color only for the lionesses to emphasize that they are the central focus of the book, not the natural environment. Also, to prevent the hunting scenes from seeming too cruel, I avoided adding color to the prey, which helped prevent readers from empathizing with them too much.

Hanji absorbs color, which requires applying multiple layers to achieve the desired shade. It's a time-consuming process, but it creates a deep, rich color. To emphasize the lioness's strong muscles and physique, I used bold black lines. After the drawings were finished, I scanned them, but the color became muted, so I digitally retouched them to correct the lost color.

My process for this book was complex: I first drew all the scenes digitally, and then I used those digital drawings as a guide to create the final art by hand. I drew the lionesses separately as a collage, scanned them, and scanned the backgrounds separately. Then, I combined and color-corrected both elements digitally.

• To summarize, my process was: Digital sketching
• Drawing the lioness on hanji
• Drawing the background on paper
• Separately scanning each element
• Combining them and color-correcting them digitally

This was the first book where I combined hand-drawn art with digital work. I used to primarily create hanji collages, but recently I've been working mostly digitally. My process changes for each book depending on the subject matter.

LTPB: What are you working on now? Anything you can show us?

HK: I am currently preparing a revised edition of my earlier book, "Elevator." I'm also working on a new interactive book for young children who are increasingly exposed to video content. I want to create a book that highlights the unique benefits of reading and encourages the act of turning a page.

In this book, turning the pages allows the reader to interact with the story—for example, rescuing an animal from a shark's mouth or feeding a crocodile. Readers can choose to turn the pages forward or backward, which in the crocodile's case, allows them to save the animals that were eaten. I want to create a book that uses the unique physical nature of the medium to connect with readers.

LTPB: If you got the chance to write your own picture book autobiography, who (dead or alive!) would you want to illustrate it, and why?

HK: I respect people who do their work diligently without seeking fame or grand achievements. I often think about the people whose voices are overshadowed by powerful individuals or major events. So, I would like to write about my friends who live their lives faithfully (with their permission, of course).

I'd also like to add some imagination to the stories of unnamed women who appear in the background of biblical narratives, such as Job's daughters, who were killed to test him, or the women of Shiloh who were kidnapped by the Benjaminites. I would give these women names and tell their stories, which are often hidden between the lines of scripture.

A pride-sized thanks to Hyewon for taking time to answer some questions! I Am a Lioness publishes this fall from Peter Pauper Press!

Special thanks to Hyewon and Peter Pauper Press for use of these images!

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