In addition to being one of the newest Girllustrators (she hadn’t yet joined our group when she answered our questions), Divya Srinivasan is an amazingly talented illustrator and animator. She has worked for illustration clients such as the New Yorker, This American Life and They Might Be Giants, and she was an animator on the film Waking Life. Divya recently released her first picture book, Little Owl’s Night, the illustrations of which are the perfect blend of simplicity and sophistication, darkness and color, intrigue and calm. It’s been getting rave reviews, and for good reason! Check her out…we’re sure you’ll be seeing more from Divya soon!
What percentage of your illustration process relies on technology? For the past few years, I’ve used only computer for most of my projects. Sometimes, I draw or paint elements on paper, scan them in, and do compositing on the computer. I’d like to do more of that.
What applications do you use? I use Photoshop for illustration.
What digital tool would you never want to do without? For years I’ve done all my illustration and animation on an Apple laptop using a Wacom tablet, which allows me to work from anywhere. Working alone from home can get monotonous. To shake things up, I sometimes visit my sister in the Bay Area. While she’s working during the day, I am too, and then we get to hang out in the evenings. I’m extremely grateful for my portable workspace!
What is your favorite aspect of using technology in illustration? I can play around with colors, composition, and style so easily on the computer. When a deadline is tight and revisions are called for—moving elements around, changing colors, redrawing a face—I can do that relatively quickly on the computer. And it’s easy for me to show the art director multiple possibilities. Because I do all my animation on the computer, it’s convenient having the source artwork in digital form, in layers. For instance, I made the trailer for Little Owl’s Night using elements straight from my Photoshop files for the book illustrations. Little Owl’s eyes, head, wings and body were already on separate layers so I could bring them straight into After Effects and animate.
What projects in the children’s market are you currently working on and how do you plan to incorporate technology? I’m about to start illustrating my second picture book, and plan to use Photoshop. Over the past few years, I’ve done the artwork for three educational children’s apps (Peekaboo Barn, Peekaboo Wild, and Splish Splash Inn). Right now, I’m in the very early stages of planning my own app. Integrating illustration, animation, sound, and storytelling with some level of interactivity, all in one project, could be really fun for me.
