Skillshare Classes For Children’s Book Illustration: Top 3
I’m a Skillshare Top Teacher. However, long before I started teaching on this platform, I was a student myself. Throughout the years, I found my favorite children’s picture book illustrators who are teaching on Skillshare. Today I’m sharing some of the fun courses that you can take today if you’d like to practice kidlit art (gestures, poses and character design).
If you don’t have Skillshare but you’d like to try it out, I offer a 1 MONTH FREE trial link HERE. Let’s dive in!
Sarah’s classes are a real treat for picture book illustrators. In this gestures and poses class, she covers:
creating expressive character poses from imagination
drawing hand gestures
illustrating facial expressions
communicating character relationships and interactions
illustrating an emotive, stylised scene from start to finish.
You can see Sarah’s beautiful illustration portfolio HERE or follow her on Instagram.
2. Lisa Glanz - How to Draw Cute Characters With Simple Shapes: Let's Draw Bears
I really enjoyed Lisa’s "Let's Draw Series" where she teaches you how to use simple shapes to draw and develop adorable bear characters. She will walk you through how you can plan your final character and think about those extra special details that add magic to your work. It’s perfect for beginners or anyone who wants to play with shapes to create cute characters. This is what Lisa is covering:
using simple organic shapes to create adorable animal characters
planning your character to inject more personality and magic into your work
applying all you've learnt to sketch and add colour to your final character
Check out Lisa’s Instagram and her website portfolio.
3. The Artmother (Alexandra Finta) - Character Design for Beginners - Create Your First Character
Alexandra has a whole bunch of useful courses that will help you practise your character design for picture books. I’d recommend to start with this class first. This is what she’s covering in this course:
coming up with your own characters
creating powerful silhouettes
adding eye-catching features
using harmonious colors
setting mood with light and shadow
telling a story through your illustrations
You can connect with her on Instagram or check out her website.
