For centuries, writers have used images in an attempt to stimulate a reader to see the story in a brighter light. From the late 19th century onward, there was an increasing emphasis on illustrations in books, and by the early 20th century, the increasing popularity of such books has driven a wide range of types of illustrations.
For children, picture books provide a stimulating teaching tool that helps connect words with pictures. They also make for great gifts, come holiday season. Recently, we’ve taken to award-winning illustrator, Laura Hughes.
Based in England, Hughes has illustrated many titles for children including There’s a Pig Up My Nose, written by John Dougherty (and the winner of Oscar’s Book Prize 2018); Daddy’s Sandwich by Pip Jones; and Hop Little Bunnies by Martha Mumford.
As part of her work, Hughes visits schools with the aim to encourage children to read, and then read some more. But aside from illustrating books, Hughes also illustrates greeting cards, gift-wrap, packaging, and stationery in countries all over the world, with her clients including brands like Harper Collins, Bloomsbury Books, Anthropologie, and DengDeng Baby.
According to Hughes, it was through her commercial work that she actually stumbled upon picture books: “I guess I never really decided I wanted to illustrate specifically for children,” she admitted in an interview with Kathy Temean. But after creating a lot of animal-based illustrations for greeting cards, the transition into character-led picture books seemed natural.
“Although I’d call myself a children’s illustrator I don’t really like the idea that my work is only for a certain group of people,” says Hughes, “I hope that everyone can enjoy it at any stage in their life.”
So far, Hughes has illustrated 18 published books, with number 19 and 20 poised to come out next year. “I feel very grateful to have been given the opportunity to work alongside some really talented writers, and fantastic publishers over the last few years, and I really hope they will continue to support me and my art,” she writes on her website.
Scroll down to see some of her illustrated work!
