Picture Book Illustrators

The Artist's Life - The Flip Side

You're right, John. People often have a very skewed idea of our profession. They don't actually see the work part. We make it look effortless.

It's just not true.

We have tight deadlines that we have to pull all-nighters to meet, we often have to compromise our own artistic vision to meet someone else's idea or budget, and we have to put ourselves forward every day to get work. 

Sometimes, we even have to fight for our money.

It's a lot of hard work.

On the other hand, I can work in my pajamas and take a day off without asking. A traffic jam on my commute consists of two dogs trying to beat each other to the treat jar, and I don't have to work in a cube.

Best of all, I have an empathetic and reasonable boss!

Sometimes, even I forget how much work it is. :-)

Janee

The Artist's Life...

Gosh Barb... your working obsessions sound almost exactly like mine! In fact I was just thinking about the difficulties of being an artist and how far they probably are from what most people assume.

I'd guess that most people assume the artist dwells in some enchanted realm of creativity... and spends their days in the studio in a rapture of joyous creation... putting those final dabs of perfection on each perfect piece of art. FAR FROM IT!

For me, I'd say it's a lot closer to alligator wrestling... a highly imperfect struggle where victories are not always clear or satisfying. It ain't easy being an artist, in other words.

I like that story about how a painter was invited by his patron to stay overnight. Around 3 in the morning, the patron heard some noises... and went downstairs. There was the artist, up on a step ladder leaned against the mantel, with his easel and a lantern... working away to put the finishing touches and corrections on a painting he'd finished 30 years ago!

LOL!

John Nez

Chickens on the brain..and horses and cows and pigs, too...

Johansen Newman here: This is an older editorial piece I did some years back. I am posting it for a few reasons. One--I feel like I am getting closer to the age of the woman in the art with every sleep deprived year that goes by. Two--I have chickens on my own brain lately, but also cows and pigs, as I am in the throes of working on my first book as author/illustrator. The story begins out west on the prairie and also on the farm. So I am seeing LOTS of livestock lately.

Working on this book has made me think about how obsessed we become with our projects as book artists. I go to bed thinking about my book and I wake up and it is the first thing on my mind. (Well, maybe the second thing. The first thing is that I do not want to get up and wrestle with my children to get up and get to school. I want to say "wake up" in a pleasant voice and have them jump out of bed and shower and get dressed and be completely cooperative. I want to be able to sleep in late, because I like to go to bed very late.) And so somewhere around 8:30 AM I am in the studio and working away and before I know it the day is done and I do not want to stop. When I close my eyes I see the pictures and rework them in my head.

Like the old woman with her chickens. That is me with my protagonists: Tex Mex Rex and Sugar Lee Snughead and their horses, and cows, and chickens.

How do YOU work? In a frenzied, obsessed and preoccupied state of mind?

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This is the blog for the group of professional children's books authors and illusrtators by the name of Picture Book Illustrators. Our members will be posting their little hearts out when not meeting their tight dealines or not working on their latest manuscripts. Our common love: illustrating and writing books for kids. Check us out to see what we are up to and what we are day dreaming about.