Please
describe your chosen illustration
This
illustration was from Father Koala’s Fables I illustrated way back in the 90’s.
The second book in the series of Father Koala picture books I illustrated for
Scholastic Australia..This illustration has
always been one of my favourites. Old Father Koala (written by Kel Richards)
tells his selection of rhymes ,fairy tales and fables throughout the
series.
~What medium
did you use?
I used pen
and ink and watercolour
~How long
did it take?
It’s a bit
of a way back now. But it would have
taken 2-3 hours to pencil (After having done the thumbnail roughs for the whole
book first)… another 2 or 3 to ink in...then 2 or 3 days to
colour.
~What is it
for?
The opening
page for Father Koala’s Fables (Scholastic)
When did you
know you had a talent for illustration? ~How old were you?
Probably in
my teens. Though I could always draw from a young age. I used to spend lots of
time on weekends drawing and hammering away at things with an old Rapidiograph
pen my Dad gave me ,labouring to get things just right. (still do) Lots of cross
hatching . Not sure why I chose such a laborious technique to try mastering at
the time. I think I had seen some old etchings somewhere in a book perhaps…and I
had the pens and Indian ink to do it with.. I recall having a fascination for
drawing complicated elaborate contraptions and cars and hot rods for years and
persisted until I got the wheels in the right perspective and all of the
ellipses correct. It enabled me to cheat the freehand curves without plotting
them in Geometrical Drawing and Perspective at High School! I had
drawing pads full of intricate pen and ink drawings that I still have buried
away somewhere.
~How did you
know? Did someone encourage
you?
My parents
always encouraged me to draw …as both of my parents were artistic in lots of
ways. My Dad especially always used his pretty vivid imagination to embellish
the Beatrix Potter stories we had as kids I remember. Like the Tales of Peter
Rabbit.. Perhaps this is why most of the animals I draw wear clothes!. I don’t
seem to have the slightest problem tossing a shirt and pair of long pants on a
koala….with a hat for good measure. He used to draw me lots of things in little
notebooks expanding on the stories he’d read.. But do remember asking him could
he draw me something…and him saying on
lots of occasions to try drawing it myself…Maybe he just didn’t feel like
drawing at the time…or perhaps he just wanted me to learn to draw. Suppose all
that practice paid off.
Have you
ever studied your craft at an institution of any sort?
I only made
up my mind to enrol at Queensland College of Art in the last few days of Grade
12 at High School in 1976. I studied
Animation and Illustration there from 1977-1979 graduating with a Diploma of Art
(Vis. Com). That cartoon drawing carried across into the picture books I’ve
illustrated.
~How long
was the course?
Three years
–from 1977 -1979
~How
affordable was the course?
Back in the
Stone Age the course was basically free apart from your art materials, your
lunch …and a $30 office admin fee.
~Would you
recommend it to upcoming artists/illustrators?
If the
course was still around …and for free I think everyone would
enrol!
~Do you run
courses or workshops yourself?
No
What
computer programmes do you use?
~Can you
recommend any?
Most of my
illustrations are still hand drawn but
occasionally use PhotoShop to fiddle with and adjust or drop in mechanical
colour etc. But other than scanning and emailing artwork…it’s all ‘non-digital’
for me. It still works just fine!
Have you
illustrated any books?
~How many
books?
A
few.
FATHER
KOALA’S NURSERY RHYMES-Kel Richards
FATHER
KOALA’S FABLES- Kel Richards
FATHER
KOALA’S FAIRY TALES- Kel Richards
THE GOLDEN
KANGAROO- Garrison Valentine/ John Williamson
JOHN
WILLIAMSON’S CHRISTMAS IN AUSTRALIA- John Williamson
CINDY ELLA-
Tom Champion
THE
LAMINGTON MAN- Kel Richards
AND KANGAROO
PLAYED HIS DIDGERIDOO- Nigel Gray
SANTA KOALA-
Colin Buchanan
TWELVE DAYS
OF AUSSIE CHRISTMAS – Colin Buchanan
1001 COOL
JOKES (Series) Freaky Facts- Magic- Science Experiments- –Hinkler Books
ALL ABOARD
THE NUTMOBILE- Macadamia House –Em Horsfield
THE HARVEST
RACE- Macadamia House –Em Horsfield
SANTA’S
MAGIC BEARD- Macadamia House-Em Horsfield
~Do you have
a favourite?
I like them
all. But THE LAMINGTON MAN (Scholastic) always stands out. I love the
cover.
~How are you
usually commissioned? What is the process?
The editor
from the publishers contacts me to ask if I would be interested in
illustrating a new book. Then they send
the manuscript by email to read over and have a think about it.
~Do you have
contact with the authors?
Some of
them. John Williamson ..Nigel Gray and Tom Champion. All on Facebook these days
mainly. But some I’ve never met (or even spoken to.) But then…I’ve never met any
of the editors either. They are just voices on a phone.
~On average,
how long does a picture book take to illustrate?
8 to 10
weeks or so roughly.So waay longer than what it’s worth to
draw.
~Is it
difficult working to deadlines?
Deadlines
aren’t a real worry. It’s more trying to get it all done in a little time as
possible. Always trying to draw them up to a standard…Not down to a
price.
~Does it
interfere with your creativity?
No..Not
really. I used to draw a lot of illustrations for advertising agencies back when
illustration was popular… so got used to drawing it..fast. They always wanted
everything yesterday.
Who is your
favourite Australian children’s book illustrator and
why?
I like Kerry
Argent’s work… and the late great Greg Rogers. Not just because we all work(ed)
within a few km’s of each other either coincidently…or that Greg and I both went
off together to investigate illustrating children’s books at a weekend workshop
put on by Scholastic in the early 90’s…But I do like the beautiful work they
produce(d)
What’s your
website or blog address (if you have one)?
My website
address is www.glensingleton.com
Would you
like to tell us anything else about yourself and/or your
work?
I cant think
of anything better than sitting at my drawing board in my own little
world…preferably on a rainy cold ‘English weather sort of day’…listening to
music on my internet radio stations from some part of the world ..illustrating
children’s books. I’d draw them til the cows come home. It’s wonderful to be
paid for something you love doing. Great to do a hobby for a job ….unfortunately
it only pays like a hobby a lot of the time! But then we were warned way back at
that weekend seminar in the 90’s that we may need to draw them for the love of
it. That’s what I do.
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