Interview with Illustrator George Neeb

Today I'd like to welcome George Neeb. Please tell us a little about yourself.

I have taught Elementary school in Canada for over 25 years. I enjoy history, art, travel and spending time at my cabin on a lake in Ontario. I have just written and illustrated my first picture book called, "Pharaoh's Arrow". I could see a need for more historical fiction picture books to help teachers make history more enjoyable for students. So, I wrote this book. I did months of research so the book told a fictional story but included factual information about Egypt. I drew the illustrations in Egyptian style and included authentic hieroglyphics on some pages to reinforce the story. I added a tempera paint wash to give the illustrations the look of papyrus. I wanted my book to look as if ancient tomb paintings had come to life.

George, if there was one thing you wished author’s knew about illustrating what would it be?

That illustrations take a long time to create effectively. There is a lot of thought that goes into telling a story with pictures, just like there is a lot of thought in using words. I think both are equally important.

How do you communicate with the author on a project? Do you like it when the author gives a lot of direction or just lets you have creative license?

I have only illustrated my own books. One is published and two are in the process of being published.

What has been your favorite project to work on so far?

My next book is done using dyed paper for the backgrounds and then I am cutting out the characters and laying them on top of the backgrounds to give a three-dimensional feel. I also glued tissue paper on each character to create texture in their clothing. It is time consuming but fun to see come to life.

What is your preferred method to illustrate in?  Digital? Pencils? Watercolor? 

I do not do anything with digital. I use pencil crayon, water colour, tempera paint, dyed and cut paper. I love experimenting with different media and finding ways to incorporate texture and colour into my work.

Any last words?

I hope people will check out my picture books

Thanks for Sharing with us today!  Don't forget to check out more of George's work.  Happy Reading!!

I have a website that highlights some of my work: https://georgeneeb.ca