Last February I finished illustrating a book by author Lissa Evans called Small Change for Stuart. I drew on A4 drawing paper, a pad of which I bought from Trago Mills (a department shop in Falmouth) about 4 years ago. It was going slightly yellow, and I spilt Ribena on it a while back. I used a pen also bought from the same shop – I stockpiled, as they were going really cheap at the time.
Most of the drawings I did whilst I was working at my part-time job; sat on the roof of the cinema I work at. Or if not there, then it was in the café of the Barbican Centre, where I would make one apple juice seemingly last 6 hours. I started treating the British Library, Kings Place, and the Eat on Tottenham Court Road as my extended living room / studio, and I also got into the truly awful habit of using my laptop’s computer screen as a replacement for a light-box.
When I was studying illustration I used to think of professional illustrators as having large bright studios, a plethora of expensive equipment, surrounded by pens, pigments and instruments of all different sizes. A highly trained breed indeed. But now I’ve come to realise that you can be pretty rock-bottom with your studio and equipment rates, and still work, and even produce stuff that gets published. I wonder if editorial teams ever think of how the drawings they receive get made?
I realise how incredibly lucky I am to be getting illustration work, but I cannot help but be a little smug at times, on reflecting on what it takes to be ‘professional’ in this profession.
Temujin Doran
Small Change for Stuart is published by Doubleday Childrens - an imprint of Random House Group
Related Links:
Talk about Random - Launch at The Owl Book Shop
The Guardian: Children's Books, Lissa Evans - Review My Book & The Guardian Book Shop
Westend Extra - Small Change for Stuart by Lisa Evans
