Serena Scully talks about staying curious, keeping her eyes open, and the inspiration of the natural world for Under the Covers
What brought you to illustration?
Ultimately, I just love to draw! I loved drawing as a kid and was fortunate to have great support from my parents who never minded the kitchen being turned into a makeshift studio.
An amazing art teacher, Mairead O’Byrne, who instilled a great need for playfulness when creating and had an unbelievable ability to open you up to observing everything around you. I studied Textile Design and later, Education in NCAD and work as a freelance graphic designer/ illustrator and educator now… but no matter what, drawing has always been that constant red thread throughout all phases of my creative career.
What’s the most misunderstood thing about an illustrator’s role?
As with any freelance or commission based work, time always seems to be the most misunderstood element of an illustrator’s or designer’s role. I think it’s common to misunderstand how much time is needed to research and brainstorm ideas, create colour stories, work through a hundred or more bad ideas before you finally settle on a direction that you’re happy to explore.
What gives you a buzz about your work?
I really love experimenting with different techniques and styles. I’m endlessly curious and love nothing more than challenging myself and learning something new. Most recently, I’ve been playing with digital illustration and have really enjoyed the flexibility and speed that it affords you, especially when you’re trying to work through that initial idea generation stage.
It’s almost like learning to draw again? You’re trying to understand how the drawing pen responds to different pressures, nib options and weights, experiment with the different mark making tools that are uploaded into the various programmes and how the screen responds to all of the above.
What do you keep in mind when illustrating for children?
I think it’s important to remember that reading abilities can differ greatly from one child to the next… the beautiful thing about a picture book is that you’re aiming to make the story accessible to all and hopefully expand their imagination.
Illustrations must communicate the story just as clearly as the words, so that children feel included, engaged and empowered as much as possible in their own reading experiences.
What’s the most important lesson you’ve learned as an illustrator?
At the start of a project, I get super excited and have so many ideas. Early on,I didn’t understand how to manage all of the ideas and became stuck and frustrated. Luckily time and experience has shown me that working through heaps of ideas either through sketches or chats with a friend are a key part of my process.
Now I really enjoy that time of initial exploration with any project. Ultimately I’ve learned to lean in to that old cliché and just trust the process!
Are there illustrations that are close to your heart?
Working on An Snag Breac Ildaite was my first foray into children’s book illustration. Jennifer, Clare, and the whole team at COMHAR entrusted me with great freedom to explore the storyline and create an aesthetic that allowed the characters and their world to come to life.
Aa a keen adventurer, the natural environment, and the process of pollination have strong influences over my work both artistically and ethically. In An Snag Breac Ildaite, the exact species of each creature is not specified, so I took the opportunity to make sure each animal and insect featured was a native irish species like the long-eared owl, the blue tit or the peacock butterfly.
I think it’s important to champion native species so that young people have the opportunity to discover and understand the richness of insects and animals we have right here on our island and what measures we can do to help protect them for future generations.
What advice would you give to a budding illustrator?
Keep your eyes open and the ink flowing. Observe everything and keep drawing. It’s a skill and the more you do it the better you get. That counts for generating ideas, exploring colour stories and creating exciting worlds. Believe in yourself and just give it a go! Everyone’s gotta start somewhere.
You can find more of Serena’s work on her website, and follow her on Instagram.
