Ja sam autor i ilustrator knjiga za djecu. Ponekad radim naslovnice za knjige za osnovnoškolce i mlade. Također sam i tata pod stresom i netko tko pokušava doći u formu (to mi trenutno baš i ne ide).
How would you describe yourself in a few words, or sentences?
I am an author and illustrator of books for children. I also sometimes draw book covers for Middle Grade and Young Adult novels. I am also a stressed out dad and someone who is trying to get fit (failing a bit at that one at the moment).
Prvo ste bili samo ilustrator, a potom i autor. Možete li nam reći što je teže? Ilustrirati ili pisati za djecu? Ili možda uopće nije teško 🙂
Pa zapravo, moj prvi posao u izdavaštvu je bila slikovnica Medo i klavir, koja je moja autorska slikovnica. Odmah nakon toga sam počeo ilustrirati knjigu 'The Building Boy' autora Rossa Montgomeryja. Tako da sam u vrlo kratkom razdoblju iskusio oba načina rada. Rekao bih da je rad s autorima drukčiji jer oni obično već imaju ideju kako izgleda svijet koji su stvorili. Tako da je tu važan kompromis između njihovih vlastitih i mojih ideja. Oba načina rada su zabavna i svaki nosi svoje male vesele izazove.
First you were just an illustrator and then the author too. Can you tell us what's more difficult? To illustrate or to write for children? Or maybe it's not difficult at all 🙂
Well, actually my first job in publishing was The Bear & The Piano which is my own book. Straight after that I started drawing a book called 'The Building Boy' for an author called Ross Montgomery. So in quite a short
period of time I got to experience both ways of working. I would say working with an author is different as they generally have an idea of how the world they have created looks like. So that is far more about finding a middle ground of their own ideas and my ideas. They are both fun though and each way of working has its own happy little challenges.
Koje ste slikovnice i dječje knjige voljeli kad ste bili dijete?
Asterix Gal mi je životna opsesija. Umjetnost Alberta Uderza me inspirira otkad sam imao 5 godina. Također se dobro sjećam da sam bio oduševljen slikovnicom 'Tamo gdje su divlji stvori' Mauricea Sendaka. Učitelj nam ju je pokazao u školi i jasno se sjećam kako sam zapitkivao o ilustracijama i izgubio se u njima. Savršena knjiga.
What picturebooks and books for children did you like when you were a kid?
Asterix the Gaul has been a life long obsession for me. The art of Albert Uderzo has inspired me since the age of 5. I also really remember being entranced by 'Where the Wild Things Are' by Maurice Sendak. A teacher showed it to us in lower school and I distinctly remember asking questions about the artwork and getting lost in it. A perfect book.
Asterix the Gaul has been a life long obsession for me. The art of Albert Uderzo has inspired me since the age of 5. I also really remember being entranced by 'Where the Wild Things Are' by Maurice Sendak. A teacher showed it to us in lower school and I distinctly remember asking questions about the artwork and getting lost in it. A perfect book.
Dobitnik ste mnogih nagrada i kao ilustrator i kao autor. Imate li najdražu nagradu, onu koja ima posebno mjesto u Vašem srcu?
Nagrada Waterstones Children's Book Prize za slikovnicu Medo i klavir će uvijek biti vrlo posebna za mene. To je bila moja prva nagrada ikad i nisam mogao vjerovati da sam ju dobio. Iskreno, mislio sam da je najavljivač na dodjeli pogriješio. Mnogo toga dugujem toj nagradi. Zaista je bila odskočna daska za tu slikovnicu i moju karijeru.
You are a multi-award winning illustrator and author, there are so many awards that you got for your work. Do you have a favourite one, the one that has a special place in your heart?
The Waterstones Children's Book Prize for The Bear & The Piano will always be special to me. It was my first award for anything ever and I couldn't believe I had won. I honestly thought the announcer at the event had made a mistake. I owe that award so much. It really was a springboard for that book and for my career really.
Gdje pronalazite inspiraciju, motive i ideje za Vaše slikovnice?
Nalazim ih svugdje. Glazba, film, knjige. Ali i samo gledajući svijet kako prolazi. Važno je uzeti si vremena za sjedenje na klupi negdje i samo promatrati ljude, prirodu i svjetlo.
Where do you find an inspiration, motives and ideas for your picturebooks?
I find them from everywhere. Music, film, books. But just watching the world go by. It's important to take some time to sit on a bench somewhere and just observe people, nature and light.
Koja Vam je najdraža tehnika i zašto?
I find them from everywhere. Music, film, books. But just watching the world go by. It's important to take some time to sit on a bench somewhere and just observe people, nature and light.
Koja Vam je najdraža tehnika i zašto?
Volim koristiti različite medije u svom radu. Započnem sa slikanjem vodenim bojama i skiciram stranice u moj blok za crtanje. Sakupljam različite teksture gdje god ih mogu pronaći. Sve to skeniram u svoje računalo i igram se s tim u Photoshopu. Nakon nekog vremena i eksperimentiranja, počnu nastajati slike za knjigu.
What's your favourite technique and why?
I like using all kinds of media in my work. I start with making lots of water colour washes and sketch the pages out in to my sketchbook. I collect textures from anywhere I can find them. I scan all of this into my computer and play around with them on Photoshop. After a while of experimenting the images for the book start to form.
Možete li nam reći nešto o svojim budućim projektima i slikovnicama, što možemo očekivati? Ovdje u Hrvatskoj čekamo prijevod slikovnice Lights On Cotton Rock (stiže uskoro) i jako joj se veselimo.
I like using all kinds of media in my work. I start with making lots of water colour washes and sketch the pages out in to my sketchbook. I collect textures from anywhere I can find them. I scan all of this into my computer and play around with them on Photoshop. After a while of experimenting the images for the book start to form.
Možete li nam reći nešto o svojim budućim projektima i slikovnicama, što možemo očekivati? Ovdje u Hrvatskoj čekamo prijevod slikovnice Lights On Cotton Rock (stiže uskoro) i jako joj se veselimo.
Lights On Cotton Rock je jedna od mojih najdražih slikovnica dosad. Ona spaja moju ljubav prema SF filmovima 80-ih s vrlo osobnom pričom s kojom se mogu poistovjetiti. Zapravo, kada zanemarite NLO, svemirce i raznobojna svjetla, to je vjerojatno moja najosobnija priča.
Can you tell us something about your future projects and picturebooks, what can we expect? Here in Croatia we're waiting a translation of Lights On Cotton Rock (it's coming soon) and we're really looking forward to it.
Lights On Cotton Rock is one of my favourites so far. It combines my love for Sci-Fi Films from the 1980's with a very personal story that I really identify with. In fact once you look past the U.F.O.'s, aliens and colourful lights it probably is my most personal story.
Lights On Cotton Rock is one of my favourites so far. It combines my love for Sci-Fi Films from the 1980's with a very personal story that I really identify with. In fact once you look past the U.F.O.'s, aliens and colourful lights it probably is my most personal story.
Imate li poruku za roditelje o čitanju i važnosti čitanja djeci od najranije dobi?
Svi ponekad trebamo odmak od stvarnosti, a mislim da djeca to posebno trebaju. Knjige nam pružaju taj odmak. Čitanje s djecom, ne samo da pomaže razvoju njihove mašte i znatiželje, već očito pomaže razviti njihove vještine pismenosti. Ali još važnije, priče ih nose na maleno putovanje i imaju priliku upoznati novu stranu svijeta i stvoriti novi pogled na život. Uvjeren sam da je čitanje s djetetom dobro za njihovo mentalno stanje kao i za vaše.
Do you have a message for parents about reading and importance of reading with children from an early age?
We all need to escape from reality once in a while, and children especially need this I think. Books allow us to do that. Reading with children not only boosts their imagination and their curiosity it also obviously helps
develop their literacy skills. But more importantly every story does take them on a little journey and they get see a new side of the world and a new viewpoint on life. I am convinced that reading with a child is good for their mental wellbeing and for yours too.
We all need to escape from reality once in a while, and children especially need this I think. Books allow us to do that. Reading with children not only boosts their imagination and their curiosity it also obviously helps
develop their literacy skills. But more importantly every story does take them on a little journey and they get see a new side of the world and a new viewpoint on life. I am convinced that reading with a child is good for their mental wellbeing and for yours too.
Hvala Davidu na ovom divnom razgovoru.
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