WIA2022 Longlist Highlights: New Talent AOI Members

Jess Mahy: Some Boats

Jess’ project was created as part of a Masters Degree project. It is a picture book, featuring illustrations which stretch across double page spreads to create atmosphere. The illustrations are made using collage, paint and coloured pencils, worked in layers on a solid block colour background.

 Jess Mahy is a Yorkshire-based illustrator who is a recent graduate of the Cambridge School of Art.

Bruno Valasse: Shine – a hand screenprinted concertina book

Bruno created Shine as part of a final MA project. It develops storytelling in a way that feels close to his personal experiences. It is based on a childhood memory about the attraction he felt towards stars in rare clear nights in Mexico City. It is a story about empathy, community and overcoming one self’s fears. The book is a three-colour screen-printed book which is made by hand, based on original drawings.

Bruno Valasse born in Mexico City, and is now based in Cambridge, UK. He recently graduated from the Children’s Book Illustration MA at the Cambridge School of Arts.

Lydia Mary: Let’s Find Out About: Cormorants

This project was made as part of Lydia’s final MA project. It is a non-fiction zine for children, inspired by a summer spent in the Scottish highlands and a newfound fascination for coastal birds. The artwork is based on drawings from memory and observation. The final drawings were scanned, enriched with handmade textures and elements, which were digitised and coloured to create the final work.

 Lydia Mary is an illustrator and picturebook maker currently based in Cambridge, UK.

Margarita Louka: Oblivion

Margarita’s project illustrates Alice Munro’s short story, ‘The Bear Came Over The Mountain’, a story about a woman developing dementia, told from the perspective of her husband. Using collected items such as torn pieces of paper and handwritten text to create the digital collages, the images create a feeling of haphazardness.

Margarita Louka is an illustrator from Cyprus, currently based in Dubai.

Qinlin Yang: Loneliness

“As a sensitive person. I often trapped in a sense of loneliness. It feels like walking alone in the dark, couldn’t see the way to go, no one can rely on, only worried and anxious by my side. These negative emotions swallowed me up like a black hole. Based on these feelings, I created my picture book. It’s a story about courage and friendship, which saved me out of loneliness.”

Qinlin Yang’s picture book illustrations use collage and monoprint to create expressive textures that show the feeling of a chaotic world.

Qinlin Yang is currently based in London, UK.

Yo Hosoyamada: The Future of Transport

The illustrations were created for Wired World Annual 2022, commissioned by Wired UK with Art direction by Mary Lees. The illustrations depict the latest trends and topics about the future of our transport systems.

The illustrations were made digitally using Photoshop and a Wacom tablet. Analogue elements such as textures from mono-printing were incorporated as well.

Yo Hosoyamada is a Japanese illustrator based in London. She graduated from the Bartlett School of Architecture (UCL) before attending Camberwell College of Arts.

Cathy Eliot: Blackberry Season

Cathy’s MA picture book project explores the poetic, fragmented experience of losing someone important, and how going into nature can help us heal. The book explores the cyclical rhythm of a garden, showing us that as time moves forward we can learn to cope with great sadness. The images were created by first drawing in Procreate, in three layers, coloured yellow, aqua and green. These were then printed onto watercolour paper with watercolour and acrylic washes added by hand.

Cathy Eliot is an illustrator with a particular love for all things green and growing. She is based in Cambridge, UK.