Artist Spotlight: Jeanne Conway

     Jeanne Conway joined 4RV Publishing on September 27, 2016. She has created the images for several books since then, several of which have won awards. Her books for 4RV include Louie Finds a Friend - A Louie the Duck Story (2nd in the series) and Wave Excitement - A Louie the Duck Story (1st in the series) by Vivian Zabel; This Isn't My Bed! by Mike McNair;  Storm Sentinel by Tony LoPresti; Merry Tilda: A Winter Fairy Tale and Wild, Wild Wind by Jodi Heaton Hearst; and, her first for the company, Kindertransport: a child's journey Kena Sosa.

     Jeanne, an artist, illustrator, children’s book writer, and art educator lives in St. Louis, Missouri.

She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. The following is a portion of an interview from the Kansas/Missouri SCBWI since she was the featured illustrator, where she talks about two books illustrated for 4RV:

Question: What would be your dream project? Or what was your favorite project?

Reply: Recently I illustrated a children’s book about the wind called The Wild, Wild Wind by Jodi Heaton Hurst.  The main characters are swept up by the wind and this was terrific for me as I could play around with the various figures (human and animal) as they move through the air. The locale was in the country so I could use a palette of daylight colors.  It was so much fun to do that book.

Question: What’s next for you? Any upcoming book releases we should be on the lookout for?

Reply: Louie Finds A Friend (A Louie The Duck Story) by Vivian Zabel is another children’s book featuring the ongoing adventures of Louie the duck and how he finally makes a friend who understands him.

For so many years I’ve loved art in all kinds of medium. I’ve painted in oil and acrylic but found that watercolor was the one I loved the most. As a child in St. Louis, Missouri, my mother would often take all of us to the Art Museum. And I have to thank both of my parents for the endless paper, pencils, and paints which they provided for those of us who loved to draw and paint.

I got a degree in Art Education from Webster University in St. Louis and went on to teach art for 35 years in St. Louis and London, England.  In 2013 I started illustrating children’s books part-time and when I retired from art teaching in 2016 I started full time illustrating.  I’m a member of SCBWI and would highly recommend this organization to anyone who is interested in writing and/or illustrating children’s books.

My husband Tom and I have been blessed with three children: Adam, Julie, and Suzanne. I am so grateful to them for their constant encouragement for my art.

You can view my art on my website, http://www.jeanniespaintings.com or on my portfolio page on the SCBWI website.

     Thank you, Jeanne, for bringing 4RV books to life with your art.

The illustrator's obligation to the author.

by Ginger Nielson

A Picture Book is the world in your lap.  It can be an art gallery within 32 pages.  But it is more than that. It is the love and labor of an author. The words may be few or many but the combination of words and pictures must fit the story.

For example: This page from Caelaach McKinna's book, Little Charley Thornpaws, contains few words.  The illustration has been given the job of defining the action. With only one line of text, the illustrator was given an entire two page spread to show the action.  Ample space above the running cat was left for that one line.

Some chapter books require much more space for text and very little room for illustrations.

Here the illustrator is challenged to create a meaningful image in a much smaller space and often in black and white.

The many words in a chapter book are important to the author and they need their space along with any illustrations that accompany them. Some illustrations may run along the side of a page or be located only in the top third of the page. Those are normally in black and white but could be color.

In some cases there may be so much text per page that the illustrator needs to use space creatively and sparingly.  In the case in a chapter book where only a small portion of a page can be used for an illustration the image need not be more than one single item of importance.

Suspense, mystery, humor, delight, beauty, power, danger, glee and even plain foolishness find their way into an artist's interpretation of the story. But all those emotions are the property of the author first.

An illustrator needs to show respect for the author, the author's vision and the need the author has to create their own world of characters, places, things, adventures.

Painting a two page spread with little regard for the importance of the author's words can lead to a page so filled with images there is little room for text.  It may seem like the most basic of rules; the illustrator must leave room for the text.

In addition to the importance of space for the author's words, the illustrator also needs to think of the reader. Leaving room for the text that accompanies an illustration is important.  Leaving some "resting space for the reader" is equally important.  Not every inch of the page needs paint.  White space creates a place for text as well as a rest for the eye of the beholder.

This "resting" space need not be white, but it should be a clam area with not much going on to be defined as true "resting" space.

A well balanced picture book will have illustrations that compliment the author's vision and enough areas of white space or "resting" areas to allow the reader the most enjoyable experience.

The job of the illustrator is to interpret the author's vision, show respect for the words that have been so carefully chosen, and contribute to the journey a reader is about to begin.

Visit my website *:)