Who’s afraid of the big bad wolf? Visual design of characters in a picturebook from the perspective of an illustrator

This paper presents a practice-led examination of the process of designing depictions of characters in a picturebook, from the perspective of the illustrator. The focus explores the extent to which character, emotion and personality can be depicted using formal arrangements of shapes on the page. In formalist discussions of picturebooks the focus is mainly on the finished picturebook. The development of the imagery from the perspective of the illustrator has largely been left unexplored. Based on the fairy tale ‘The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids’ by the Grimm Brothers, I made a book which references formalist structures of picturebook design. From an analysis of my ap-proach to this book in conjunction with a discussion of the relevant background literature, an examination of the structures of a children’s picturebook and ways in which an illustrator can depict atmosphere and characters emerged. A key outcome of this research has been a discussion from the perspective of the illustrator of the process of creating characters using formal shapes in a children’s picturebook. This discussion, based on an analysis of my practical work has demonstrated the possibilities of a variety of methods involving the use of shape and abstract backgrounds in the creation of atmosphere and the depiction of characters’ emotions and personalities in a picturebook.