Cover Art for Quill & Quire’s October 2021 Kidlit Special Issue

AD: Adrian Doran

*This cover has won a Merit Award from The Society of Publication Designers. (SPD 57)

A bit about the cover:

I’ve been a subscriber to Quill & Quire for a number of years now. So was delighted when AD Adrian Doran asked if I would illustrate the cover for the October KidLit Special.

I took a little deep dive into the authors that were going to be featured in this issue, and in the process I was deeply moved and motivated by what I'd found. (The NFB film "Now is the Time" (a 50th anniversary retrospect on Robert Davidson's pole raising), and Khodi Dill's recent interview with Annick Press (where he compared a cypher to a building stormcloud), both really influenced the outcome of this piece.)

I wanted the cover to have a lot of movement, to convey that flow state we all get when we're fully absorbed in an activity. The hardest part was narrowing down the colour scheme, and placing just the right hits of punchy colours in "just so" places. The art was cut from paper and assembled with tape and gluestick. I slid pieces of cardboard under the areas I wanted to raise, which pronounces their shadow when it comes to scanning or photographing the artwork. Some details were made with pencil crayon, and the patterned papers were hand-printed using acrylics. The only part added digitally was the eagle's eye.

I'm pretty sure I entered the flow state while making this piece, and I'm really happy with how everything turned out.

The 3 books that inspired this piece:

‘Lessons in Fusion’ by Primrose Madayag Knazan

‘Welcome to the Cypher’ by Khodi Dill, art by Awuradwoa Afful

‘Jigging for Halibut with Tsinii ‘ by Robert Davidson and Sara Florence Davidson, art by Janine Gibbons

Part of an ongoing series combining paper-cut puppetry with photography.

(Photo by Kevin C. W. Wong)

Personal Piece of the CN Tower at night.

I was playing around with some paper gourds from an old project — rearranging and giving them cute little faces. Well, one thing led to another and then poof! little zodiac gourds were asking to be made.

My apologies in advance, for I didn’t consult the sun, moon or planets to make these forecasts.

No, instead, I stared down at the celestial dirt beneath my feet, dissecting the clay from the sand and the mulch from the mycelium to complete my research.

That is where pumpkins, squash and gourds come from after all.

Fundraising initiative for the Sydenham River Nature Reserve, protecting vulnerable Carolinian forest habitat.

AD: John Lepp (Agents of Good)

The following native plant and animal species are woven into the scene: Red Headed Wood Pecker, Cerulean Warbler, Butternut Tree, Kentucky Coffee Tree, Climbing Prairie Rose, Green Dragon Plant, Map Turtle, Bald Eagle, White Tailed Deer, Striped Cream Violet.

The newest picture book I’ve illustrated with Owlkids is out in the world.

Chaiwala!, written by Priti Birla Maheshwari, is a story about tea, and the joys that accompany the making and enjoyment of it.

The setting takes place at a train stop in Jaipur, where a mother and daughter have just enough time to order a much needed cup of chai from the Chaiwala.

What is a Chaiwala?

A Chaiwala is a street side tea seller; someone who prepares and serves tea from a kiosk or shop. Chai is the Hindi word for tea and Wala refers to the person tasked with making it. The Chaiwala in this story serves chai from a wheeled cart on a station platform.

Chaiwala! is available everywhere books are sold or borrowed.

An ongoing personal project that combines photography with tiny paper sculptures of bugs.

Grasshopper skating in a frozen birdbath.

Wolly Aphids floating like fairies.

Bumblebee bundling up for its winter hibernation.

A look inside my recent book, My Ocean is Blue.

Written by Darren Lebeuf, Illustrated by Ashley Barron

Published by Kids Can Press (March 2020)

A young girl's poetic exploration of the enchanting ocean she loves.

Go to my ‘Books’ page to learn more.

Pine Marten illustration for WILD Magazine’s Hinterland’s Who’s Who.

A selection of Hinterland Who’s Who spreads for Wild Magazine.

Client: Canadian Wildlife Federation

Art Director: Steven Balaban

Hinterland Who’s Who spread for Wild Magazine.

Client: Canadian Wildlife Federation

Art Director: Steven Balaban

A behind the scenes look at the art for Pretty Tricky.

Written by Etta Kaner, Illustrated by Ashley Barron

Published by Owlkids Books (Sept 2020)

Have you ever thought of plants as tricky? Probably not. But in this nonfiction book, readers are introduced to the tricky techniques some plants use to defend themselves, reproduce, or acquire food. From the copycat Boquila vine that changes shape to match its host plant, to the pungent carrion flower that lures pollinating flies with the scent of rotten meat, plants across the globe have adapted to survive all kinds of threatening fauna.

Go to my ‘Books’ page for more interior spreads.

WILD Magazine Project Pages are fun little how-to spreads for kids. All of the activities are eco-friendly and encourage children to engage with the outdoors.

Client: Canadian Wildlife Federation

Art Director: Steven Balaban

One of three scenes created for the dating app Paird.

This campaign featured three common food pairings (Bacon & Eggs, Burger & Fries, and Peanut Butter & Jam) in different settings and stages of a relationship.

Subtle background details play into each food pairing. For instance, the Mondrianesqe abstract art on the wall uses bread tags, and the lampshade base is a peanut. What other hidden “Easter eggs” do you notice?

Agency: FUSE Create

DOP: Kevin C. W. Wong

One of three scenes created for the dating app Paird.

This campaign featured three common food pairings (Bacon & Eggs, Burger & Fries, and Peanut Butter & Jam) in different settings and stages of a relationship.

Subtle background details play into each food pairing. For instance, the fireplace flag stones in this scene were created using actual egg cartons, and the piled logs are shaped like loaves of bread. What other hidden “Easter eggs” do you notice?

Agency: FUSE Create

DOP: Kevin C. W. Wong

One of three scenes created for the dating app Paird.

This campaign featured three common food pairings (Bacon & Eggs, Burger & Fries, and Peanut Butter & Jam) in different settings and stages of a relationship.

Subtle background details play into each food pairing. For instance, the clock on the back wall is a pickle, and the guitarist in the photo is a hotdog. What other hidden “Easter eggs” do you notice?

Agency: FUSE Create

DOP: Kevin C. W. Wong

Last year, I was selected as IBBY Canada’s 2017 Joanne Fitzgerald Illustrator in Residence at the Toronto Public Library’s Northern District Branch.

For the month of October, I presented art activities for visiting school children and lead evening workshops and portfolio reviews for adults and teens. All the while, 19 of my original children’s book illustrations hung alongside Joanne Fitzgerald’s work in the bright, Guggenheim-like second floor gallery space. 

Posters featuring this bear illustration were hung in all of Toronto Public Library’s 100 branches to advertise our free workshops.

The Joanne Fitzgerald Illustrator in Residence Program offers a published children’s book illustrator a month-long residency in a Canadian public library. The program honours the life of Joanne Fitzgerald (1956–2011), whose children’s books include Plain Noodles, Emily’s House, and Doctor Kiss Says Yes, winner of the Governor General’s Literary Award.  The Program is a joint project of IBBY Canada, Toronto Public Library, the Canadian Urban Libraries Council, and the Young family.

IBBY, the International Board on Books for Young People (www.ibby.org), founded in 1953, is an network of organizations in over 70 countries, committed to bringing books and children together. IBBY Canada (www.ibby-canada.org) promotes quality French and English Canadian children’s literature nationally and internationally.

Personal work of my cut-paper floral designs.

Grey Wolf illustration for WILD Magazine’s Hinterland’s Who’s Who.

A look inside ‘Love You Head to Toe’, my first authored/illustrated book.

Written & Illustrated by Ashley Barron

Published by Owlkids Books (March 2019)

Pairing creative rhyming similes with cut-paper collage art, Love You Head to Toe is an adorable book that compares newborn babies to baby animals on every page. Bright, playful illustrations show a different baby and a different species of animal, both engaged in similar behavior: babies stretch their limbs like sea stars, splash in the water like ducklings, toddle around like bear cubs, and fill their chubby cheeks like chipmunks.

"Night & Day" themed illustrations for Kashi's Fall 2015 Overnight Muesli web campaign.

Illustrated elements for a public awareness video on the Asian Carp invasion, in partnership with the ROM and The Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

Art direction: Steven Balaban

Animation: Alan Osborne

Agency: Evermaven

To see full video, use this link.

Here's a link to my blog post: Asian Carp

Sometimes you like an image so much that you feel the need to replicate it. I think the indigo paper might be to blame. It's just so stunning to see in person. In total there are three Icebergs: two belong to collectors and one hangs on my bathroom wall.

Personal piece titled: Otter Love

Limited edition print for La Carnita’s pop up taco event, March 2012.

Click here to view all of the La Carnita prints to date.

A window into my process.