From The Tiger Who Came to Tea to Charlie and Lola, the vibrancy and imagination of the best illustrated children’s books almost seems intuitive, but great skill and artistry goes into making them. This course is designed to help you explore how children’s books work, giving you practical tips and ideas to help you develop your own illustrated story and to realise it in book form.
Aims:
The Children’s Book Illustration course will take you through the full process of developing a children’s book, from having an initial idea, to creating a sequence of stylistically related images, to making a dummy book. The course will provide a platform for discussion with other artists and illustrators, opening up topics including how to use visual language to enhance storytelling, and how to approach the publishing industry.
Content:
The course covers key aspects of the field, including idea development, character design, drawing and illustration, and sequential imaging. A significant part of the course will be dedicated to the final project where you will be encouraged to develop one idea into your own ‘dummy’ children’s book, working to professional specifications. The course is taught by published illustrators with wide experience of different facets of the publishing industry, and will suit practicing artists who want to focus on developing new skills as well as candidates with an abiding interest in illustration, storytelling and a love of children’s books.
Outcomes:
The course will give you the opportunity to develop of a portfolio of bespoke illustrations based on your coursework, supported by a sketchbook of ideas and development work. For your final project you will write, illustrate and make your own proposal for a children’s book for inclusion in the School’s Summer Exhibition.