You are currently browsing the monthly archive for May, 2009.
Jon Gnagy was the first artist to draw pictures on television, and I was there! I mean, in front of the TV screen. I may not have been in school yet.
“We would both watch him and be spellbound,” my mother tells me.
Shadows and shading, the cube, the ball, the cylinder and the cone…
The lessons were simple, though dazzling as magic tricks for the millions of children who watched him.
Andy Warhol learned to draw from him, or so he said.
“Mr. Gnagy, who was self-taught, was an advertising art director in New York before offering weekly art courses on television in 1946. His NBC-TV program was called ”You Are An Artist.” He switched to CBS-TV in 1950,” reported the New York Times in his obituary.
He passed away on March 7, 1981 at the age of 74.
A plain-talking midwesterner, the son of Hungarian – Swiss Mennonites, Gnagy did attend some evening classes at the Kansas City Art Institute as a young man. He became a company art director who won prizes for his paintings and poster designs.
There’s a wonderful (2006) article about him at the Dali House blog by crackerjack arts writer and journalist Paul Dorsey.
Gnagy was not paid anything for the 700 telecasts he did over 14 years at the CBS and NBC networks, Dorsey says. His revenue came from royalties on the sales of millions of his art sets, “The John Gnagy Learn to Draw Outfit.”
I finally became the proud owner of one of these, at the age of six or seven. The kit had gray pastels to go with the black (and white) pastels and charcoal. The gray pastels were for stuff like shadows. That seemed terribly interesting and sophisticated to me.
Alas, I lacked the concentration to stay with most of his exercises. His subjects — barns in the woods and vegetable-filled baskets on toolshed tables — seemed a little overwhelming and hard. (I’d never be as good as him.) But, oh, how the thought of those lessons tantalized.
Maybe I should find another Learn to Draw set. (You can still buy them!)
Really buckle down this time.
Because it’s never too late to ponder the cube, the ball, the cylinder and the cone – ahh, and those marvelous snow shadows.
* * * * *
Mark Mitchell, the host of “How To Be A Children’s Book Illustrator” is blogging tonight because he’s so behind in writing Session #12 of his course.
Karien Naude taught herself to draw, paint and airbrush.
Her native language is the Afrikaans of the Dutch Protestants who settled in southwestern South Africa in the 17th century.
“The wildlife and nature are breathtaking and I love to go camping and take all this splendor in,” she wrote me in an e-mail back in September.
“It’s good for the soul! There are so many different cultures and the people are fantastic. The only thing is we are behind in everything. South Africa is still viewing art as a hobby. But it is changing. There are a lot of different animation programs now available. I’m part of a South African comics group Comicworx Studios, where we try to get the country involved with comics. It’ s very hard work, but every year we can see some progress.
“We have become friends with a few Marvel (Comics) artists and that has given us a huge boost. But my passion is still illustration.”
Fantasy artist Karen Naude of Johannesburg
She has far too many interests to mention in this small space. But I will say they include the fairies, trolls and wizards of the novels of Terry Pratchett and J.R.R. Tolkien (who also was born in South Africa, but moved to England when he was three.)
She also reads Anne Rice and Stephen King, Dean Koontz and J.K.Rowling.
She likes horror movies, Tim Burton movies and Harry Potter movies.
She’s crazy about music. Her tastes range from Counting Crows to Jimi Hendrix to the operas of Richard Wagner.
To the Screeching Weasels.
She answered an online survey question back in the fall and landed in this online course on how to illustrate a children’s book. Originally spurred by a publisher’s contest, she’s been crafting a picture book based on a Zulu folk tale about a supernatural creature, the Tokoloshe. 
She’s completed the manuscript and has revised her thumbnail storyboard. She’s now at the stage of transferring drawings to her watercolor paper. Dismayed by the retail prices of lightboxes in the art supply stores, she built her own.
I’ll stop here, because Karien does a great job of speaking for herself — in her second language, English.
Karien, what sort of art study have you done?
I’m a self-taught artist with God given talents, and proud of it. Ever since I can remember I have been drawing. Since kindergarten I’ve made the cutest drawings in my school books and always gotten a golden star from the teachers and I think that was when I realized I wanted to become an artist. When I got older I started studying every book I could find about Renaissance artists and bought every art book that showed techniques on how to draw and paint. I started out with pencil drawings and got pretty good in it, later I started experimenting with pastels and paints. I sold a few drawings and got praised by an Art Gallery in Melville but decided that it’s not for me and that I would rather do fantasy drawings and illustration work. I have had no formal training or studies.
Can you describe a little about your life in South Africa? Have you ever lived anywhere else? What is school and work like there?
I have been living in South Africa all my life and have not lived anywhere else. I am planning to visit a friend, hopefully this year, in England, but I will always return to my roots. South Africa is a beautiful country, the land and people. I am currently living in a middle class suburban area and the schools in my area are very respectable and up to standard. I am currently working in the central of Johannesburg town. I work for a big law firm and we mainly work with properties. South Africa has 11 official languages and the most difficult system when selling and buying houses. It is stressful and hard work, and because it’s hard to speak all of the languages, we use English to communicate. So Afrikaans people talk, read and use English, although we are very proud of our language. Afrikaans music is big here and even English people listen to it.
Are there any art museums around?
Yes there are two art museums that I know of in Pretoria and Cape Town but sadly non in Johannesburg where I live. There are however thousand of art galleries that you can visit. The well known Goodman Gallery is also in Rosebank, Johannesburg, and sometimes a real treat to visit as they have a variety of art exhibitions.
What other artistic and/or literary interests do you have? (I know you really keep up with all kinds of music!)
I’m very passionate about air brushing and some have even told me I am very good. I love reading (thanks to my mom) and got my own little library of books that I’ve bought over the years, mostly fiction.
Yes, music plays a big role in my life. I play the piano and I’m always listening to all kind of music on my MP3. You will always find me with my earphones on, on my way to work, and I can never draw or paint without music. It inspires me and I get most of my ideas while listening to it.
What has brought you to the world of children’s stories and books?
When I go out I love to stop at the nearest book shops and flipping through children books or any book about illustrations. A few years back I started reading Terry Pratchet’s books about Discworld and always admired the art work on the book covers. Paul Stewart and Chris Riddell books and illustration work always brings a giggle to me. One day on my way to work I started thinking of how much I enjoyed the books and illustration work and that I can do it as well. I started doing research on Children’s books which brought me to your course, Make Your Splashes; Make your Marks!
Your interest in fairies, trolls and elves — how far back in your life does that go? What do you think pulls you to them?
It started with The Hobbit when I was in school and later the Lord of the Rings because the elves where mystical, the hobbits lovable and wizard’s warriors. I also love Terry Pratchett’s books where you read about trolls, witches, wizards and all kinds of fantasy beings (with a twist). I will always have a soft spot for them.
What are you working on now in your illustration?
I’ve just finished my Green fairy but I want to do a humorous illustration about my children (dogs) and what they do at home when I’m at work.
How is it going, developing the Tokoloshe story? You’ve been developing your thumbnail storyboard. Have you run into any roadblocks?
The Tokoloshe is my first story that I’ve written and I guess that’s my first roadblock! But every step I take and roadblock I get I learn a lot. The thumbnail storyboard helps a lot and after my first one (which I wasn’t happy with) I noticed that I was repeating scenes and so I’ve changed it.
I started a second storyboard but a bit bigger and it works like a dream. I can see how my book’s layout would be and if I repeat scenes or if a scene doesn’t fit. I won’t work without it.
Are you starting to develop any of the full drawings? What difficulties are you finding in this process of working a thumbnail “scribble sketch” up to a complete detailed drawing?
I must say its hard work and long hours. Without the thumbnail and little scribble sketches it would’ve taken me a lifetime to complete but working with the thumbnail it’s much easier and faster. I’ve noticed that my scribble sketches are really working for me and it’s basically just putting it over and improving the sketch into a detailed drawing. But it can also bee frustrating to do the detailed drawing as they sometimes takes to long.
Can you describe how you work? What is your creative process like?
First I must put my earphones on for some music. hehe. I first start with the layout of the drawing in H2 pencil and it involves lot of cappuccino and erasing. When I’m done I always ask my sister to have a look at my drawing and comment on it (she is like my personal editor) and then I start going over it with Faber Castell Ecco Pigment marker and erasing the pencil. I will then start painting and when Im done and happy with it I will go over some lines again with the Faber Castell Ecco Pigment marker for more effect.
How did you pull off that cool cover for The Tokoloshe?
When I was writing the story I wanted to look at a picture of the tokoloshe so that it would not slip from my mind and I created the picture. After doing it I decided to make it into a cover just for the fun of it. I was experimenting with paints and colors and I was happy at the time. Now I see mistakes that I didn’t notice before and the Tokoloshe looks very stiff so I’m planning on giving him a make-over.
What challenges do you find yourself repeatedly facing in your paintings or renderings?
Sometimes my pencil drawings are really good but after starting painting them they don’t turn out as what I was hoping for and they don’t look good to me. When I render a piece I sometime mess it up and after spending so much time on the painting I spoiled everything and I have to throw it away and start again, which is upsetting.
What questions do you have about the whole endeavor of children’s book illustration?
When my story and illustrations are done how will I know what publisher to choose and how do I submit it? How will I know if my work is even good enough? If my work is submitted what is the time frame? If it is accepted, what must I look out for in the contract (pitfalls)?
What children’s book publishing opportunities have you uncovered in South Africa or the Afrikaans language?
I’ve read a lot of Afrikaans and English books and I’ve jotted down a few South African publishing companies. There are some famous ones like Random House and Penguin Books, which have branches in South Africa which I’m looking at as well.
Who are your artist muses? Any favorite children’s authors?
People who inspire me are John Howe, Alan Lee, Paul Kidby, Josh Kirby, Paul Stewart, Chris Riddell, Terry Pratchet, J.K .Rowling, Tolkien and Don Seegmiller.
Karien’s art blog, which is on our blogroll , is: http://kariennaude.blogspot.com
We’ll check in with her from time to time to see how she’s progressing on her dummy for “The Tokoloshe.”
Mark Mitchell, who interviewed Karien, hosts the “How Be a Children’s Book Illustrator” blog.
Karien likes to listens to music while she draws.
Could it have been the book trailer that led to the exciting publishers’ auction for the picture book proposal Toast Friday?
Or was it just the exquisite digital and mixed media paintings by illustrator-author and animation concept artist Clint Young.
Young’s imagery for his story of Toast, a sweet pig on a quest for someone to love him has been causing jaws to drop wherever it’s been shown at gatherings and critique groups and Austin chapter meetings of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI.)
Agents and editors first noticed his portfolio at the annual regional conference of Austin SCBWI that was held last May at the University of Texas Club. There Young met Little, Brown and Company Editor Alvina Ling and agent Erin Murphy who both expressed a strong interest in the project.
Over the many months that the work sat at the offices of Little, Brown, Toast portraits began to show up in Young’s art blog, as the former LucasFilm animation concept artist developed and redeveloped his notions and story and talked about his attachment to his character.
Young’s agent Erin Murphy put the project up for auction last week and it wasn’t just publishers bidding, but a film studio, The Weinstein Company.
In the end, Toast went under contract to Feiwel and Friends, an imprint of Macmillan. Liz Szabla will edit.
We’ll have the fun of covering this story as it unfolds in coming months since
Clint is a regular member of our Central Market Cafe Inklings, (picture book author-illustrator critique group.)
* * * * *
More from the amazing Dick Termes. His one-man show, Thinking In the Round will be on display through the end of this in Rapid City, South Dakota.
What can children’s book illustrators learn from his work? I think, that we grasp artistic perspective most easily when we think in a round way.
* * * * *
Austin illustrator and designer Marsha Riti gave a great interview to children’s author and kid lit blogger Tara Lazar, recently (and I’m not just saying that because she mentions me there.) You can read about Marsha’s path into the world of illustration, and the art history that inspires her here.
Marsha has a B.F.A. from the University of Texas at Austin and is active with both the Austin Society of Children’s Book Illustrators and its elite swat team of picture book scribblers, The Inklings.
She also maintains what I would describe as an exemplary illustrator’s blog. I recommend that you check it out — for fun and also if you are looking for ways to do an art blog right. It’s on our blog roll and right here.
* * * * *
Tuesday night we conducted our first group conference call for the
Make Your Splashes; Make Your Marks! children’s book illustration course.
We looked at students’ work and just talked about it as if we were all sitting around in a studio classroom eating pizza — except we were at various points around the country — California, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Texas, as it happens. We had all four directions covered!
And you can be a part of this! Technology has made distance-learning suddenly very, very easy. How easy? Find out for yourself by signing up for the course — and join the meetings.
You can test drive a huges section of the course content for free, while it’s still available, by going here.
* * * * *
And now back to our spherically scheduled programming.
Mark Mitchell hosts the How to be a Children’s Book Illustrator blog.
Recent Comments