author/illustrator — Blog — Mikela Prevost Illustration

There are just some books that resonate with you on so many levels...

Interrupting Chicken

by David Ezra Stein is just one of those books. I have read this book and reread this book to my kids so many times and with each time the volume level gets louder. The fighting also increases on who gets to be "Interrupting Chicken". How could a book about the telling of quiet bedtime fairy tales from a Papa Chicken to his daughter lead to such uncontrolled chaos? I'm partly to blame because I love it so much and have a hard time restraining my enthusiasm.

I'm also beyond enthusiastic presenting to you David's answers for the latest Mini Interview.

Please describe your career as an author-illustrator in 5 words:

Injecting fresh air into books.

Which books, that were your favorite when you were little, have had the greatest influence on your work?

Hmm….I have been influenced by everything interesting I've ever seen. But here are a few: Dr. Seuss books, for love of language and wonky world design. Calvin & Hobbes, for its philosophical perspective, sophisticated silliness, and dynamic drawings. Tintin comics, for bright colors, colorful characters, and international adventure. And so many more books, commercials, movies, TV shows, textiles, paintings, and musicals.

Please share an instance in which you had an idea or experience that started out small, but took root and grew to become a book.One of my latest books, Ol' Mama Squirrel, was a combination of a squirrel scolding me in the park near my house, and the Occupy movement being in the news. Squirrel protecting her babies + outraged activists = picture book? It does if you're me.

Do you ever hide little images, names or personal details in your illustrations?

Please give us a peek...

In my 2012 book, Because Amelia Smiled, I was able to put lots of people I know in as extras. My children's book illustration teacher, Pat Cummings, is seated in the subway scene, at the right hand side, looking at the viewer. My sister and her husband are walking a dog outside in the pizzeria scene, which also features my son's face on the soda machine. My son is also in Ol' Mama Squirrel, which is dedicated to him.

Daily routines are important for both writers and illustrators. Could you describe your typical work day, and tell us the one little thing you absolutely cannot begin your day without (besides caffeine)?

There's not a lot typical about my days. I feel like I'm always trying to manage my creativity better. It's a full-time job to provide outlets for all my inspirations and interests. I'm constantly trying new schedules to harness the day in a more productive way.

I do like to write and storyboard in my local cafe, where I have written and sketched out all of my 11 books. Then I end up in the studio for making my finished art. One thing I almost never skip is Morning Pages, which I got into by reading The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. It's part of the spiritual practice of being an artist.

Tomie dePaola once told me that Ben Shahn told him that being an artist isn't what you do, it's how you live your life. So I tend to see it that way as well: an ongoing daily practice that is punctuated by published works.

Being an admitted "space cadet" do you find that state of mind helpful or harmful to completing a book? (from one space cadet to another)

I would not be able to listen to my inner voice and honor it if I didn't have the power of daydreaming. It's essential to me. Winnie-the-Pooh called it a "hummy" sort of feeling when he was getting an idea. That's how I experience it as well.

On the flip side, when a deadline comes along I have to be a professional. I have to sit down and work even when I don't feel like it. Sometimes I even have to do a book idea I am not crazy about, and I have to find a way to become crazy about it.

As a young child, David started out drawing on Post-It note pads his mother, an editor, left around the house. An admitted “space cadet,” he showed an early knack for daydreaming and doodling. His parents and grandparents read him lots of books, which fed his imagination and became a touchstone for his love of imagery and storytelling later in life. David went on to become a voracious reader and made up stories of his own. Near the end of his time at Parsons School of Design in Manhattan, encouraged by beloved author and teacher Pat Cummings, he decided to pursue children’s books as a career. After graduation, he was briefly a window display artist, puppeteer and puppet builder, interior and set-design illustrator, and New Yorker cartoonist. In 2006, his first book,Cowboy Ned & Andy, was published by Simon & Schuster. Since then he has published eleven picture books. David lives in Kew Gardens, NY with wife, Miriam, and son, Sam. When he’s not working on new stories and pictures, he enjoys making music, cooking, running, hiking, and talking with kids and grown-ups about books!

If you'd like to see more of David's work make sure to check out his site and Facebook page!

If you can't get enough of this talent, make sure to check out David's latest book Dinosaur Kisses!

The first time I came in contact with the work of Sean Qualls was during SCBWI's summer conference in 2011 where Art Director for Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers Laurent Linn explained the process of directing artists through the many twists and turns of picture book illustration. I learned two things from the presentation:

1. Laurent Linn's job seemed too large and overwhelming for my little mind to comprehend.

2. When Laurent Linn showed us the work of Sean Qualls, I immediately scribbled his name down and circled it repeatedly. His work was so rich in texture and had such graphic shapes, I couldn't resist it.

Not only is Sean gifted in illustration but also as an upcoming author/illustrator! He has been so kind as to share his process in my first "Mini-Interview".

Mini Interview with Sean Qualls - Mikela Prevost

Please describe your career as an author-illustrator in 5 words:

Work, work, play, play, work.

Which books, that were your favorite when you were little, have had the greatest influence on your work? In terms of themes, Golden's illustrated Bible for Children and D'aulaires Book of Greek Mythology. As for art, I like the comic book art of Bill Sienkiwicz.

Please share an instance in which you had an idea or experience that started out small, but took root and grew to become a book.

My first book as author/artist (pub date to be determined.) A while ago I did a color sketch of a jazz singer. I kept it on my art table for a long time. My agent helped me to create a manuscript based on that sketch.

Do you ever hide little images, names or personal details in your illustrations? Please give us a peek...

In the beginning of Dizzy there's a scene where Dizzy is being bullied by two other boys. Since that was a reality for me when I was a kid I used the name of street I grew up on in the art.

Often times I'll use my home as inspiration for interior scenes. For instance, I used my kids room in the opening pages of Lullaby. Sometimes a self-portrait may show up.

After getting my kids off to school, I spend some time (usually in cafes) journaling/self reflecting. I also use that time to figure out what projects to spend my time on that day/week. Green tea is my drink of choice.

Your work seems to have a definite love of texture and color-do you build up abstract layers until you feel you've achieved the right color/texture combination for that particular illustration?

Yes. It can be a very fulfilling process getting the color and texture just right - other times more challenging. Recently, I've been changing my approach at least for some of my work. I'm always trying to find new ways to keep making art fun and interesting. Most of the art I love combines a strong graphic sensibility mixed with abstraction and textural elements.

Mini Interview with Sean Qualls - Mikela Prevost

Sean Qualls is an award winning, Brooklyn-based, children’s book illustrator, artist and author. He has illustrated a number of celebrated books for children, including Giant Steps to Change The World by Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis-Lee, Little Cloud and Lady Wind by Toni Morrison and her son Slade and Before John Was a Jazz Giant, for which he received a Coretta Scott King Illustration Honor. Sean also created the art for Dizzy by Jonah Winter and most recently Freedom Song (The Story of Henry “Box” Brown) by Sally Walker. His work has received two Blue Ribbon citations from the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books where he was also cited for his “serious craftsmanship” and an “original style.” Qualls has created illustrations for magazines, newspapers, and advertisements. His work has been shown in galleries in New York and across the country. Sean draws inspiration from an array of influences such as movies, television, childhood memories, aging and decaying surfaces, architecture, old buildings, nature, folk art, fairy tales, Americana, black memorabilia, outsider art, cave paintings, collectibles, African art, golden books, vintage advertisement graphics, psychology, mythology, science fiction, music, and literature. He lives in lives in Brooklyn (where you can find him DJing on occasion) with his wife, illustrator/author Selina Alko and their two children Ginger and Isaiah.

Make sure to see even more beautiful illustrations at his site: http://seanqualls.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SeanQuallsArtist

Instagram: http://instagram.com/sean_qualls