One of my recent art projects is to create illustrations for a unique children’s book series written for new big brothers and new big sisters. Local author and founder of Hello There Books, Brooke Howard, is a delight to work with and her ability to clearly communicate her ideas makes my role as the artist easier.
My primary focus on any illustration commission is to understand the needs of the client. The author who fashions visual aids, written instructions and rough drawings to communicate her ideas to the artist is, in my opinion, well-prepared. Brooke is just this type of communicator and I was pleased to receive her concepts for her books in just this way.
I can build precise sketches from a well-written story-line that work to visually portray the main concept. I have learned through the collaboration process that I may not always understand the clearly written concept in terms of what the writer actually means to say; therefore, we press on together to get it right. We eventually reach our goal by constant communication and through refining visual concepts until we bring the ideas to life.
Brooke’s new book series: Hello There Big Sister and Hello There Big Brother detail the journey of becoming a sibling using sweet rhyme and brightly colored illustrations that both kids and adults enjoy. Her concept of encouraging new siblings includes using diverse illustrations that appeal to our multi-ethnic society.
Check out Brooke Howard’s books today.