Category: Artists’ Insights
8/29/23
| Welcome to A Day In The Life of our stellar artist, Tequitia Andrews. Take a look into her life as a full-time illustrator. |
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| Tequitia Andrews (pronounced ta-key-ta) is an artist and illustrator from Richmond, Virginia.
A graduate of Virginia State University, Tequitia didn’t pursue a career as an artist until her 30’s.
Starting off primarily as a painter, Tequitia took an independent learning journey in all the different facets of art making. She found her voice in the world of illustration. |
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| A typical day for me looks like…I’m a night owl, but I try to start my day around 10 a.m. It’s summer right now, but usually homeschooling lessons are at the start of the day and then I start work in the afternoon until dinner.
If I am on a deadline, after dinner I’ll work until my eyes become blurry. Otherwise, I may play around in my sketchbook. To help me unwind from the day, I play endless games of Solitaire while watching TV or listening to an audiobook. |
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| My favorite project so far…An Earth Song by Langston Hughes, published by Cameron Books.
Langston Hughes is one of my favorite poets, so it was an honor. Also, this was the first book where I came up with concept completely on my own.
It was wonderful, (and also intimidating) to be given the assignment with confidence that what I came up with would be great. |
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| Above: Artwork from An Earth Song (Cameron Books)
Buy it here. |
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| My favorite art tools are…Pen and paper. And it’s funny because I am an art supply junkie. I have all these paints, pencils, markers, crayons, etc. yet I normally default to a good pen and plain sketchbook. My favorite pens are microns and brush pens. |
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| I’m looking forward to…Getting back into traditional painting. I’ve been working digitally (iPad and Photoshop) for the past few years and while it has made some aspects of art making easier and transportable, I really miss creating on canvas. |
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| In my free time I like to…Spend time with my husband and children. I consider myself somewhat of a crafter, but the truth is I have a closet and a table full of unfinished projects. So my free time is spent playing Solitaire. |
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| Thanks Tequitia!
You can see more of Tequitia’s beautiful illustration work here. |
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5/16/23
Thank you for signing up for the morning tour of Mara Penny’s creative nest in Oakland, CA. Please keep all limbs inside the vehicle at all times and do not feed the animals.
Take it away, Mara!
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Hello! My name is Mara Penny. I would like to formally introduce myself and give you a little peek behind the curtain.
I live in a small house in Oakland, CA with my husband, our two teens, our cat and our sweet dog, Lucy.
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Left: Illustration of my Oakland home
Above: Oakland map
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I work from home at a little desk tucked in a corner of my living room. I primarily work on my iPad and computer these days, it suits me just fine. I spend most of my time here.
Right: My cozy desk space
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I love science and all things transcendental.
I was raised on astrology. I am a mother nature super fan.
I love the night sky! I try to find ways to sneak stars into my work.
I am definitely a space girl and not an ocean girl. Although, I do love drawing fish and sea monsters.
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My latest pastime with my husband is gardening. We are not great at it and I honestly cannot believe that human beings figured out how to plant seeds and consistently have enough food to live. Like, what?!
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Above: This flowering plant is nearly nine feet tall! It’s called the Tower of Jewels and it just began blooming. This has caused much wonder and delight in our house. #nerds
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Although I am not the best gardener, I do love to draw flora and fauna. They’re my favorite. Here’s a recent collection I made based on the plants and creatures living in the forest. It’s called Evergreen.
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That concludes our tour for the day. Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks Mara! You can see more of Mara’s beautiful illustrations here.
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My Kid Book Pitch, my one-of-a-kind picture book writing course is specially designed for creative people just like you!
Magic Cards (pictured above) are my secret weapon for helping you to unlock your magic imagination and come up with unique characters and a dreamy story idea.
By the end of this incredible four week course, you could have your own children’s book pitch ready to send(along with suggestions on who to send it to).
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9/9/21
We’re excited to invite you to join us TODAY at 12:00 PM ET for the next in our series of WebinARTs with our newest artist Ruth Burrows. We JUST took her on and already her vivid color and lively imagery has pulled a variety of illustration projects for clients like Crocodile Creek, Penguin Random House, The Washington Post, and more.
Click here to join our free public WebinART on Zoom with our artist Ruth today at 12:00 PM ET. Password: Ruth99
–> I’ll show you the stunning mini portfolio that Ruth sent us some time ago in hopes of securing representation. You won’t want to miss this.
I’ll chat about why we took her on and I’ll ask Ruth about how and why she went from her previous successful non-illustration 20-year career to illustration. You’ll swoon at her gorgeous work in her slideshow on screen. Plus we’ll take a few questions live, and we’ll have a giveaway of Ruth’s gorgeous art!
–>No worries. You won’t be on camera. It’s a webinar; not a meeting.
We can’t wait to see you there!
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Ruth Burrows, illustrator
Lincoln, UK
Clients:
The Washington Post
Penguin Random House UK
Crocodile Creek
Owlet Press
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I hope you enjoyed the show! Check out
our site to see more.
Want great art for your project? Don’t hesitate to
contact us. We’d be delighted to assist you with any of your art needs.
xo
Lilla
Agent, Artist, Author
Founder, Lilla Rogers Studio
Co-Founder, Make Art That Sells
12/29/20
We were just discussing our enthusiasm for 2021. A new year, a new vaccine, a new president, a new beginning. Here’s hoping your holidays are a time to refresh and reboot.
Today, we’d like to feature the magical and dramatic work of our artist, Jennifer M Potter. You can see how her background in video production, comics and storyboarding influences her illustrative cinematic angles and lighting. Enjoy!
Animation by Jennifer M Potter
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“I’m always exploring. Travel is very inspiring, and being part of a community of creators is an endless source of inspiration.”
–– Jennifer M Potter
(San Francisco)
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Voices of Justice (Henry Holt Books for Young Readers)
Right: Portrait of Jeannette Rankin
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Claude: The True Story of a White Alligator has been getting rave reviews!
(Sasquatch Books)
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Above: Staying Cozy in the Winter
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Left and above: For an article on moving during a pandemic
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Above: Jennifer’s personal piece was chosen for The Washington Post’s “Art During the Pandemic” feature
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Above: Article on Relationships in Middle School
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The Star Tribune (Minneapolis)
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Above: Article on Camp Legends and Storytelling
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Pop-up card for Up With Paper
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Personal piece for Folktale Week
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Personal piece available for license as of this writing.
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I hope you enjoyed the show! Check out
our site to see more.
Want great art for your project? Don’t hesitate to
contact us. We’d be delighted to assist you with any of your art needs.
xo
Lilla
Agent, Artist, Author
Founder, Lilla Rogers Studio
Co-Founder, Make Art That Sells
11/30/20
Hope you’re staying sane, safe, and creative!
Here’s a great way to make your 2021 be the most creative yet: Today is the very last day of my course Cybersale, offering the best prices on my courses for the year. Jump in here.
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Join me today as I chat with my Illustrating Children’s Books co-teacher, art director and children’s book author Zoë Tucker, in a Zoom today at 10:30AM ET. We’ll answer any questions you have about this booming industry and our popular course.
Lilla and Zoë Tucker
Live Zoom
TODAY at 10.30AM ET
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Above, from left: Me, and Zoë Tucker, respected children’s book art director, author, and my co-teacher of one of our most popular courses, Illustrating Children’s Books.
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Above: Our artist, Anke Rega’s illustration for
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“I have a big love for illustrating products from stationery to pattern to home decor. I use watercolor, and sometimes gouache and colored pencils.
I‘m a color lover and I really like to do light and playful illustrations. I like seeing all the little big things in life. They make me smile and open my heart. And that‘s exactly the feeling i want to give back to you with my art.”
—Anke Rega
Berlin, Germany
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Soon after signing with LRS, Anke landed a fantastic ongoing editorial job with Better Homes & Gardens for their
“Miss Fix It” column.
Anke writes:
“It’s the perfect job for me. I did set design years ago and I love tools.
Also my mum has always done all the handy things at home and I thought this was really cool as a role model.”
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Greeting card available at your favorite specialty grocery store
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Greeting card for Calypso Cards
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Anke illustrated The Extraordinary Life of Anne Frank (Puffin)
Full color cover and 80 mono interior illustrations.
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More amazing illustrations by Anke
available for licensing
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I hope you enjoyed the show! Check out
our site to see more.
Want great art for your project? Don’t hesitate to
contact us. We’d be delighted to assist you with any of your art needs.
xo
Lilla
Agent, Artist, Author
Founder, Lilla Rogers Studio
Co-Founder, Make Art That Sells
9/17/20
What makes magical Marenthe tick? How does she come up with such dreamy, other-worldly images, painted so lushly? Is she from another planet? We’ll find out TODAY at 12:30 PM ET for the next in our series of WebinARTs with our artist Marenthe, who has worked on a variety of illustration projects for Amber Lotus Publishing, Elle Magazine, Flow Magazine, Hallmark, Quarto Publishing, Roger La Borde, and more.
Click here to join our free public WebinART on Zoom with our artist Marenthe today at 12:30 PM ET. Password: Marenthe77
I’ll ask Marenthe to share with us her various creative projects, her dream illustration project she’d love to manifest, her tips on working from home with two kids, a book that most influenced her, plus enjoy her gorgeous work in a slideshow. We’ll take a few questions live.
We’ll do a random giveaway one of Marenthe’s products. Join us!
We can’t wait to see you there!
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Marenthe, illustrator
The Hague, Netherlands
“I dream of my own Pippi Longstocking castle in France near Paris. With lots of whispering trees, animals and flowers where I can stare out of my window and I make art all day!”
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Above: Contact us about licensing availability of the above artwork.
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A Few of Marenthe’s Commissions
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Lettering and illustration for a spread for Flow Magazine
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Lucky Elephant character and packaging (Running Press)
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Scratch and Reveal 78 Original Magical Tarot Cards (Quarto)
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Gorgeous art by Marenthe
available for licensing
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8/20/20
We’re excited to invite you to join us TODAY at 12:30 PM ET for the next in our series of WebinARTs with our artist Jennifer M Potter, who has worked on a variety of incredible illustration projects for clients such as The American Library Association, The Boston Children’s Museum, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, Nosy Crow, Running Press, Sasquatch Books, The Washington Post, Up With Paper, and more.
Click here to join our free public WebinART on Zoom with our artist
Jennifer M Potter today at 12:30 PM ET.
Password: Jennifer77
I’ll ask her how she transitioned to a full-time career as a freelance illustrator, how she creates such dramatic cinematic pieces (hint: she studied animation, comics and storyboarding at SCAD), what her very favorite illustration project was and why, and how she stays organized. If nothing else, come for the gorgeous work in the slideshow. Plus we’ll take a few questions live.
One lucky participant will win Jennifer Potter’s lushly, fully illustrated book,
Voices of Justice.
We can’t wait to see you there!
Jennifer M Potter, illustrator
San Francisco, USA
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Above and Left: Voices of Justice
(Henry Holt Books for Young Readers)
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Cover of Songbird Dreams of Singing (Running Press)
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Illustrations for The Washington Post
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Above, left: Local Living Section cover, article on Middle School friendships
Above, right: Real estate section, article on moving during a pandemic
Below: Weekend/Going out section, article on Hygge
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7/23/20
I’m excited to invite you to join me TODAY at 12:30 PM ET for the next in our series of WebinARTs as I chat with our witty and charming artist Julia Christians, (‘memorizing song lyrics is my useless superpower’). She’s worked on a variety of fantastic book projects for Nosy Crow, Oxford University Press, Scholastic, and more. You’ll see why she is kept so busy with work commissioned by top publishers.
to join our FREE WebinART on Zoom
with our artist Julia Christians today at 12:30 PM ET.
Join me as I ask Julia about her process (“the three P’s: Photoshop, Pencils and Procreate”) her tips on working from home with two kids, how she stays sane, and we’ll view her gorgeous work. We’ll do a random giveaway of one of Julia’s fully-illustrated books for one of the viewers.
“I worked with Julia on a children’s book series and I am blown away with how well she captured the characters’ humor and all the energy she injects in the stories! Julia is an amazingly talented illustrator!”
Elisabetta Barbazza, Senior Fiction Designer, Nosy Crow
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Julia Christians
Harz Mountains, Germany
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Above: Magnificent Mabel series covers
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What’s That In Dog Years
(Oxford University Press)
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Lilla: What question would you most like to be asked?
Julia: Do you really want all these puppies?
When I saw this brilliant piece by Julia, I immediately knew that I had to represent her. What I saw was hilarious and expressive characters, the ability to depict cinematic views (close-ups, medium shots, wide angles), rich textures and charming lettering (not to mention the hilarious text she wrote!) This is still one of my all-time Julia Christians favorites.
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Lilla: If you weren’t an illustrator, what would you be?
Julia: I would be a dog trainer!
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Julia’s art for an assignment for
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Available for licensing as of this writing.
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I hope you enjoyed the show! Check out
our site to see more.
Want great art for your project? Don’t hesitate to
contact us. We’d be delighted to assist you with any of your art needs.
xo
Lilla
Agent, Artist, Author
Founder, Lilla Rogers Studio
Co-Founder, Make Art That Sells
7/20/20
Above: Cover for The Soup Movement (Oxford University Press)
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Join me Thursday for our WebinART #9 as I chat with the lively and hilarious
This Thursday,July 23rd at 12.30 PM ET.
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We’ll be broadcasting live on Zoom here on Thursday. See you then! Password: Julia77
Last week’s WebinART and portfolio showcase with Sarah Papworth was a blast! You can catch the replay here; Password: 8R?K4=+9 Find links to our entire WebinART series HERE.
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“An artist and an activist are not so far apart.”
— Ava DuVernay, award-winning writer, producer and film director ( New York Times)
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I’m loving our WebinARTs over here at my agency Lilla Rogers Studio where, as you probably know, I interview our fascinating artists and we chat about their work and careers, most Thursdays.
As of this writing, I’ve done eight WebinARTS, and I’ve found that I enjoy them so much that we dreamed up “Live with Lilla”, where I’ll be interviewing artists, art directors, editors, and more, over at my school site, Make Art That Sells. I’m thrilled that my very first Live with Lilla interview starts today with someone I’m crazy about, the QUEEN, Vanessa Brantley-Newton, beloved and highly-regarded author-illustrator of over 40 children’s books and diversity expert. We’ll chat about increasing diversity in our industry, what agents and art directors can do, and more.
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Here’s the fabulous Vanessa Brantley-Newton with her newest book of poems for little girls, “Just Like Me”(Knopf/Random House). Available here.
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Huge congratulations, Daniel!
Published by Simon & Schuster
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You get to customize your wall art with Katie’s people and icons! How cool is that? Check it out at Uncommon Goods.
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Zoë Ingram
Available for licensing as of this writing.
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Tara is available for Bolt Fabric commissions!
Left: Available for license
Below, left: Fabric for Robert Kaufman
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Woodland Tattoos (Petit Monkey)
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Available for licensing as of this writing.
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Available for license as of this writing.
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I hope you enjoyed the show! Check out
our site to see more.
Want great art for your project? Don’t hesitate to
contact us. We’d be delighted to assist you with any of your art needs.
xo
Lilla
Agent, Artist, Author
Founder, Lilla Rogers Studio
Co-Founder, Make Art That Sells
7/9/20
We’re excited to invite you to join us TODAY at 12:30 PM ET for the next in our series of WebinARTs with Guest Artist Sarah Papworth, who has worked on a variety of illustration projects for HarperCollins, Quarto Group UK, L’Oreal Paris, Workman Publishing and tons more. Her luscious and varied color palettes and distinctive portraiture have garnered a number of rich book projects.
Click here to join our free public WebinART on Zoom with Guest artist Sarah Papworth today at 12:30 PM ET.
Password: Sarah77
I’ll ask Sarah how she begins an illustration, how she hones in on a particular color palette, tips on portraiture, what makes a great art director, what she’s reading right now. She’ll show us a number of her favorite images in a gorgeous slideshow.
We can’t wait to see you there as we put some goodness out into the world, and we’ll do a giveaway of Sarah’s stunningly illustrated Rainbow Revolutionaries book (HarperCollins).
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Above: Greeting card for
American Greetings
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Above: Fifty LGBTQ+ People Who Made History, fully illustrated by Sarah Papworth (HarperCollins)
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From I Know An Artist (Quarto)
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From I Know A Woman (Quarto)
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Illustrations for The Washington Post
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I hope you enjoyed the show! Check out
our site to see more.
Want great art for your project? Don’t hesitate to
contact us. We’d be delighted to assist you with any of your art needs.
xo
Lilla
Agent, Artist, Author
Founder, Lilla Rogers Studio
Co-Founder, Make Art That Sells
