FIRST INSPIRATION MONDAY FOR 2008

For those of you who might be new to this segment it's my chance to share with you some of the things that inspire and motivate me to be creative. Please feel free to leave some feedback or a comment, or you can contact me here with any suggestions you may have for me in this segment. Who knows - I might be able to feature YOU!

Today I am looking at some wonderfully creative illustrators both locally and globally, including Patricia Geis, Keri Smith, Odette Ross and more!

PATRICIA GEIS

These books are from my private collection. I first encountered Patricia’s books on a research visit to my local library. I was so impressed with her work that I had to go out and buy these books right away.

There are two more titles in this series:
“Today I am an Apache” and “Today I am a Pirate.” I can’t wait to get them!

Patricia Geis is a Spanish graphic designer and illustrator with at over 40 children’s books to her credit – many of them board books. Her books have been translated into both French and English. Patricia’s simple, graphic style is well suited to the board book market and her strong sense of colour gives these books an element of sophistication.
Her website is currently under construction, (I assume! My Spanish is non-existent!) but no doubt it will be worth checking back in with this one in the future.

KERRY SMITH:
The second I saw these books I had to have them! They are literally “stories in a box”. Once you open the box it becomes a pop out scene (from the included book) where you can play and act out the story. It also comes with little cut out characters and accessories to make play time complete!

This to me is a complete concept! The colours and graphics are irresistible and this whole set is a favourite of mine (and my niece who always gets it out to play when she visits!)
Keri herself is a brilliant and clever artist with a wicked sense of humour! Many of you will no doubt be familiar with her blog and her website which includes some hilarious tips and advice for illustrators including this clever piece entitled “How to be miserable as an artist”. Add this one to your links and spend some time with this unique artist.

ODETTE ROSS:
If you are familiar with my previous “Inspiration Monday’s” you will know that I can not let a post go by without including a local artist.

These books are also in my personal collection and I was introduced to these books by the wonderful illustrator Ann James on a visit to the Melbourne resource centre for kids books Books Illustrated.

Odette is a Melbourne illustrator with a background in design, which is evident in her strong computer based illustrations. The simple clean layout and strong colours always make me want to pick up a pencil and start work on a baby book! With my background in product design I can also see the potential for application to various products. I would to see what she could do with pattern repeats! No website or blog that I could find - sorry.

NOW JUST A COUPLE OF QUICK ONES:
If you really like these you might want to find out some more about these artist at their websites. These books caught my eye on a recent research trip out in the stores.

VALERIA PETRONE:
I was surprised to find this little gem among the Little Golden Books! Are they still around?! I remember having quite a collection of these as a kid. Veleria's website.

ED VERE:
You might have guessed that I love the strong colours in Ed’s art, but I also love the use of black and the expressiveness in his characters! Very cute! Ed's website.

I could really keep going with this topic, but at the risk of bombarding you I will stop there and save the rest for another post! Have a great day and drop by next week for some more Inspiration Monday to start off your week!