new book beginnings ~ db

2010/09/212014/11/08 | kirsti

rough, spread 2 (detail) | pencil on tracing paper

final | work in progress | spread 2 (detail) | pencil & charcoal on vellum

I got some lovely new drawing things the other day to add to my collection. It can be a bit disheartening to exit the art supply store $80 poorer but richer in a small collection of burnt wood and graphite. But it’s all worth it. I picked up a charcoal/lead holder (the wooden thing in the middle), it hold nice thick pieces of graphite and charcoal and it’s perfect for this project. Also, some more willow charcoal – I love that stuff in combination with vellum, it slips and slides over the surface, makes really interesting marks and can be lifted off with a kneadable eraser.

The Lost Thing Animated Short

2010/09/192010/09/19 | kirsti

Back in 2008, I attended an illustrator breakfast hosted by the Vancouver Children’s Literature Roundtable. The guest speaker was Shaun Tan, one of my favourite contemporary illustrators. At that point, The Lost Thing was undergoing a transformation into an animated short. Now, 2 years later, I have come across a post on the Lines and Colours blog about the completion of the short.

It’s lovely to see all of Shaun Tan’s fantastic textures and colours translated so well into animation. And the slouchy movement of the main character feels exactly right. But wow – several years to produce a 15 minute short! Looking at the production drawings it’s easy to see why. I’m looking forward to seeing the whole thing.

View the trailer, more info on the book and a bunch of production drawings on The Lost Thing website. http://www.thelostthing.com/

And since I’m here, I should mention that if you’re in Vancouver this October 16, 2010, are a fan of children’s literature, and would like to spend a morning listening to an extremely talented children’s book illustrator, The VCLR is hosting another illustrator breakfast. This time the guest is Pierre Pratt.

For more info, here’s a direct link to the registration form (pdf) or visit the VCLR website (unfortunately no direct link to the event info, but the flyer is currently at the top of their home page).

new book beginnings ~ db

2010/09/162014/11/08 | kirsti

Pushing Off from Shore | (detail) pencil on vellum

This marks the beginning of the final drawings in this process and I thought this spread would be a fitting start. While the end is not yet clearly in sight, it’s getting closer.

In anticipation of the task ahead, I’ve doubled my caffeine consumption from 2 mugs of coffee in the morning, to 2 mugs of coffee in the morning plus 2 mugs of earl grey tea in the afternoon.

I underexposed the photo of the illustration a bit – it’s actually less contrasty than it appears above.