Highlights Foundation Workshop with Kate Gunther '22

1. What were some of your goals headed into the workshop?
   Heading into the workshop I was hoping to gain insight into the realities of children's book illustration, and the process of taking an idea from concept to final printing while working with an editor or publisher.  I was very excited to learn from the experiences of our teachers James Ransome and Anna Raff, both children's book illustrators and artists who have a wealth of knowledge in terms of the industry and regarding the creation of narrative illustration.  I was eager to get their feedback on my work, and to learn about their practices.  Additionally I wanted any advice that might help a new illustrator navigate the market and what publishers and editors are looking for in submissions from new talent.
2. What did your average day look like during the workshop?
   The workshop spanned 2 weeks, and is described as a deep dive into children's book illustration. Within that deep dive was a lot of information, and a lot of work time dedicated to a fairly intensive exploration of a narrative theme.  On the weekends we would do several hour group zoom meetings that consisted of presentations from our instructors revolving around their practices, as well as guest presentations from visiting illustrators, Ruth Chan and G. Brian Karas. We had two major assignments, one presented each weekend.  The first was to develop a series of illustrations showing two animals or insects exploring a room, inspired by Chris Van Allsburg's 'Two Bad Ants'.  This involved character sketches, thumbnails, writing about the characters, and demonstration of visual narrative with changing perspectives and scale.  The second assignment followed a series of demo videos that explained how to use digital collage to add color and texture to our illustrations and explore new ways to approach layering and character building.  We were also encouraged to make revisions to our original illustrations during this time based on the notes we had received, much like we would if working with an editor on a dummy book. During the week we had group check ins and critiques to share our progress and get feedback from Anna and James.  Intermittently we had group panels for questions about the industry and our assignments. The two weeks concluded with a one on one session with Anna and James.
3. What were your takeaways about your work, career, or practice?
   My big takeaways are about the process.  We learned so much about revisions, taking notes, making edits, creating thumbnails, exploring different ways to tell a story, changing perspective, and how to present our drawings in the most effective way to tell a story.  This workshop has totally changed my approach to book making and has really instilled how important thumbnails, dummy books, edits, and sketching are to the process.  It was a great practice of what it would be like to work with an editor, and be able to take a note and be flexible in the creation of a book.  I will also certainly keep using the technical processes we learned for our digital approach to color and layering.
4. What would you say to a future Launch Program participant who is considering applying?
   If you are interested in creating children's books, or illustrating for a children's book author, this workshop offers so much insight as to what that process is actually like, and what simple things might help you to present your work in the best possible way to enter that industry.  The workshop is intense and a lot of work, but it can be really rewarding and introduces you to some great artists who know what they are talking about when it comes to this facet of illustration.  I learned so much about how to approach this kind of work,  was introduced to great networking opportunities like the SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators), and found mentors in both James and Anna.

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