By Spencer Miller
Pick up a picture book illustrated with paper collage and it’s hard not to be impressed. Through cutting, pasting, and layering paper, illustrators create vibrant, textured, and inviting artwork that brings stories to life, creating an almost tactile reading experience. It’s not unusual to see children (or adults) running their fingers across the pages as they move through a storybook that’s been illustrated with collage.
Picture book illustrators use various types of paper and layering techniques to create a range of textures and capture the right feel for each page. Part of the wonder of paper collage is that for all the time, talent, and technique that goes into it, the final results often appear quite simple (even if they are not). The best illustrations are the ones that make you want to try to recreate them.
It’s easy to be inspired by the work of collage artists. They make art feel familiar and fun. To better understand how (and why) they do what they do, I asked three sensational Canadian illustrators known for their expertise in paper collage—Ashley Barron (Shy Me), Thao Lam (Everybelly), and Kyle Reed (Chomp-O-Rama: The Strange Ways That Animals Eat)—a series of questions about their practice. Here is what they had to share with me.
What drew you to illustrate children’s books with paper collage?
Ashley Barron (AB): I’m a natural collector and have always been drawn to paper ephemera. My studio has two sets of colour-coded drawers crammed to the rim with papers I’ve collected over the years. So, there’s a definite search and find element to my art-making that appeals to me. I also get this warm, familiar feeling whenever I see patterns, colours and textures combined to make a 2D picture (Ezra Jack Keats’ illustrations are a good example). I think it’s because it mimics the wonderful clash of materials we encounter in our everyday lives. The world is one big collage.
Thao Lam (TL): I started when I was studying at Sheridan College. I was looking for a style, trying to find my voice. I started off with fabric, using a sewing machine, hand stitching, or gluing pieces down. But that got really expensive. Being a college student, I needed another material that wasn't so expensive. That’s when I stumbled on The Japanese Paper Place (now The Paper Place) on Queen Street West in Toronto. They had all these beautiful patterns and textures of paper. I could buy a stack of paper with all these different patterns for a reasonable price.
Kyle Reed (KR): It was a project in college. An assignment called for collage or cut paper. I hadn’t ever done anything like it. I found it rewarding and kept experimenting with it on other projects.
What are the first steps you take when starting a new book project?
TL: Most of the time, I start with the feeling or impression I want to create. Then, as I go through the text, I start thinking about the colours and the overall look I want to achieve. With each book, I try to adapt to the story. It’s always my goal to keep things simple. It’s become a running joke with my editors—I say I want to keep it simple, but it always ends up being complicated!
KR: Reading through the manuscript and plotting out thumbnails. Starting with any pages that I’m immediately drawn to and putting down ideas on the page. Then, collecting any research I may need to work out more detailed sketches. I’m pretty fortunate, my wife will help collect references with me.
AB: I go through the manuscript and jot down ideas that come to mind. I turn those ideas into thumbnails, then, after going back and forth with my editor and art director, those eventually become polished sketches. My favourite part is when I can start the final art.
What kind of paper do you use and where do you find it?
KR: In the early days, I used mostly magazines and some found paper, which resulted in a large collection that travelled with me from move to move. That collection has thankfully shrunk. These days, I make a lot of my textures by painting or drawing onto paper.
AB: I’m open to a lot of different papers, but they must pass the Goldilocks test. The paper can’t be too thin and delicate that it ends up ripping easily (think tissue paper), and it can’t be too thick that it’s challenging for me to cut through. It has to be just right. Large sheets of Canson and Murano papers fit the Goldilocks test and are usually my go-to brands.
TL: Scrapbook paper. I change it constantly. Every book gets a new stack of papers. I try not to hoard papers. It actually stresses me out. I always clean out my paper drawers before every new book. I take the papers I don't use anymore and donate them to my daughter's school or an arts centre.
What kind of tools do you use to cut and layer the paper?
AB: I use a No. 11 Excel blade, which is pretty much a slender exacto knife. I buy them in packs of 100 and change my blade often because a dull blade is more dangerous than a sharp one. My hand is so fine-tuned to cutting with a blade that when it comes to using scissors, I can appear a bit clumsy, which can be kind of embarrassing—especially during an art demo in front of a class of kindergarteners!
TL: I started off with scissors. Scissors are still my comfort. Ashley Barron uses an exacto knife (she's like a surgeon!). She suggested I try it. I could picture myself with missing fingers, but I tried it. It wasn't as scary as I thought. Recently, as I ventured into making animated short films, I got a fancy laser cutting machine. It can be very precise. I use it for typography or small details like tiny musical notes. It’s been a blessing for my sanity and my hands.
KR: I started out with an exacto knife and tiny scissors for cutting and matte medium to glue down the layers. Matte medium on the surface of the paper and then another layer of matte medium on top of the pieces to seal it. That method worked well with the number of pieces and layers I was using. Later on, as I tried to limit the number of layers, I moved to Yamato glue sticks.
How do you design and create characters that are so lifelike and full of emotion?
TL: I work hard on facial expressions. Mo Willems’ Elephant and Piggie books have had a big influence on how I draw characters. His expressions are simple. It’s amazing how much he can express with just a line for an eyebrow or a stroke for the mouth. So, that's my ultimate goal, to make it look simple (even if it’s not!).
KR: Reference, lots of sketching, and editing. I study photos of the subject matter first, then put ideas down on paper. Then I break down my favourite sketches and remove any unnecessary details until I find an energetic and efficient solution for the character.
AB: When I first started making picture books, nothing caused me more dread than having to illustrate people. Little by little, project by project, I’ve gotten more comfortable at embracing a more organic approach. I think the ingredient that helped my human characters come alive was the addition of pencil crayon touches (like blushed cheeks, ears, fingertips, and softened eyebrows). My new focus is adding subtle expression in unexpected places, like a character’s fingers and toes. Shout out to Eugenie Fernandes, who is the master of curly, expressive toes!
A splash of water, a beam of sunlight, a slowly falling snowflake, the bend of a leaf—how do you approach capturing the subtle aspects of nature using paper?
KR: Most of the work I do now is digital, so finding the right contrast can really help capture those aspects. It may be in the texture or the right combination of colours—I find the same principles used in hand-made work still apply in digital work.
AB: I spend a lot of time thinking about how best to represent natural elements in my work… Should I cut out each individual leaf or sponge paint the illusion of a leaf cluster? Should I circle-punch each snowflake or simply fill a sheet with pencilled dots and overlay them onto the piece in Photoshop? It varies from project to project. For example, in My Ocean is Blue, I used a painterly brush stroke effect for the ocean, whereas in I, Sea: A Tale Told in Homonyms, I went for a layered theatre-like approach with rows of classic cookie-cutter waves.
TL: If I have to draw a curve, like the water in The Paper Boat, I'm going to draw that curve at least a hundred times until it feels right. Sometimes I feel like a graphic designer more than an illustrator. When something feels off by a degree, I can feel it. When I put a paper down to glue it, I shift it around—almost like a Ouija board—until I feel something “click."
Working with paper requires detail and precision (and time!). What motivates you to be meticulous?
AB: Over the years, my collage work has become more and more detailed, which is frustrating in the sense that it takes me longer and longer to complete a book project. I’m making efforts to find shortcuts where I can, whether that be digital shortcuts or embracing new mediums. All that said, what motivates me, always, is making a really great picture—one that evokes my intended feeling and one that a reader is drawn to again and again.
TL: Over time, I’ve learned to embrace the process. It’s sort of like standing in line at a bank or at the airport. You can’t make things move faster. So, I let my mind wander. Marinate on an idea. Sometimes I’ll work on my next book in my head.
KR: I’m trying to remove the meticulous quality from my work. When I’m less precious and detailed, I find I bring spontaneity and energy, which is something I have lost over the years with digital execution.
Are there disadvantages or limitations to working with paper collage?
TL: Once I glue something, I can't change my mind. Or if I do, I have to completely redo a page. It forces me to accept my mistakes. Can I live with it? Sometimes my publisher can fix a mistake digitally. God bless them for that!
KR: Depending on the size of the image, I find that including too many small details in a collage can take away from the overall impact. Sometimes that means losing out on an aspect of world-building or visually expanding on the story.
AB: The mess! It’s amazing how quickly my desk gets cluttered as I’m working. My tools are constantly getting buried under sheets and scraps of paper to the point where I have to designate clean-up time more often than I’d like. One other disadvantage: this is not an art form you can easily take on the road with you, or even outside, for that matter. Even the gentlest of breezes and paper pieces simply do not mix. I’ve tried.
Illustrating children’s books with paper collage has a rich, decades-long history. Who are some artists or illustrators who have inspired or influenced your craft?
KR: Leo Lionni and Eric Carle are classics. I remember enjoying their books as a kid. I’ve returned to their books as I’ve worked with collage to examine what they include and what they leave out. Oge Mora and Beatrice Alemagna have such rich and tactile styles. You can feel the physical work that has gone into the images, and the energy those details create. I return again and again to David Mackintosh, an illustrator/designer who works traditionally and digitally. There is so much variety and energy in each of his books. Endlessly enjoyable and inspiring.
AB: I really love Lois Ehlert’s picture book art. It’s large-scale, graphic, colour-punched and playful. My dream is to one day make a book like Planting a Rainbow or Eating the Alphabet.
TL: Eric Carle is number one. He does something I can't do. He is able to be spontaneous. He makes paper pages, splattering paint, and he reuses shapes. I always envy anybody who can be spontaneous. And then Barbara Reid. She works with her hands. You can see her fingerprints. I remember in high school, she came in and did a talk for our class—wow! I also look outside of children’s books, to the fine arts for inspiration. Paper collage goes back centuries—it’s amazing what artists can do with paper!
What advice do you have for emerging artists and illustrators interested in paper collage?
AB: Finding a comfortable size to work in is so important. There are physical limits to how small one can cut and paste something without it looking messy and not as precise as the rest of the piece. So if your sketch includes tiny birds and bees and faraway people, it’s better to scale up the entire piece to a manageable size in order to accommodate those elements.
TL: Learn the rules and limitations (so you can push them). In picture books, you’re limited to 24 pages or 32 pages. That's not a bad thing. It forces you to be creative, to think outside the box. What textures or patterns can you create? That's what's lovely about collage, anybody can work with paper. You don't need to buy special paper or paint. You can collect and reuse materials. Just get started!
KR: I guess it’s the same advice most creatives get: Make work. Experiment. Play. Try not to hold onto too many old magazines.
Spencer Miller is a graduate student, the Editorial Coordinator of Top Grade: CanLit for the Classroom, and the Digital Media Coordinator for the CCBC. Find him on Instagram @spencerbmiller.