Adam Beer

how did you get into book illustration?

I have been working as a storyboard artist in TV & animation since 2000. I was looking for a new artistic challenge and so I joined the Picturebook Summer School in Cambridge (2016) and I loved it! I went on to do the MA Children's Illustration at Anglia Ruskin. At my graduation show I met with some publishers and was lucky to get a contract for my first books.

what do you enjoy most about your process?

what materials do your tend to work with and why?

what's the most challenging part of being a book illustrator?

how do you tend to promote your work?

I followed a very linear path, I studied graphic communication at undergrad that got me interested in children’s book design. I then applied and got into a children’s book illustration MA. From there I entered the macmillan prize and was highly commended which got my name out there. After uni I was offered a couple of book deals based on my uni work and that was it! Nowadays I focus on my design practice as it’s more stable but I’d love to do more illustrations again!

I’ve always been interested in drawing, mostly just for fun. I decided to started putting my work online and selling it on sites like Society6 and Redbubble, and I had people tell me they thought the style would suit children’s books. So I decided to take a part-time course which helped me develop my illustration style, and also an idea for a story (which ended up being my debut published book). From there I applied to publishing agents until I ended up with an offer of representation from the Bright Agency, and it all happened from there really.

I really enjoy the challenge of making narrative images and seeing the finished book in a library or bookshop

I use inks and gouache mostly. Ink especially just makes me happy! And I would be lost without Photoshop.

Juggling projects can be really tricky. I try to fit story-boarding jobs around illustration projects, but it does mean some late nights.

Just my website and Instagram. I've also painted a few bookshop windows to promote books.

being able to play and experiment with my materials. I’m not a big planner so most of my illustrations develop organically as it do them. This means there’s a bunch of error but I’m constantly learning and evolving. It’s also a very mindful practice I try and be intentional with my gestures and compositions. As someone who struggles to focus on one thing at once I find painting really helps focus me

I primarily work with gouache, acrylic ink and pencils. The gouache because you get the best of both worlds of the fluidity of watercolour but the flexibility of acrylic. I love the way that the paints mix with each layer and that unpredictably is fun to play with. The acrylic ink is good as it can resist the gouache but I mostly use it for underpainting. Pencils are for detail but I also add that digitally to stop me overworking things. Also always hot pressed paper. I find overly textured paper can take the focus away from the aspects of my work I really love like the more obvious brushstrokes and colour mixing

the obvious is the uncertainty and stop-start nature of the projects. It’s very easy to feel downtrodden especially when you’re surrounded by so many incredible artists online. I try and create for me but when day jobs take up a chunk of your creativity it can be hard to make time for your practice

to be honest I don’t which is probably a bad thing. I strange am is probably the most I do and unfortunately I don’t have the time to game the algorithm. But as a design manager (my day job) I’m always looking to Instagram to find new talent so I should really be practicing what I preach! The main thing I do is join illustration challenges, mostly because it helps me structure my practice but also because there are some really lovely communities that form around them

I enjoy the exploration phase of the process, particularly designing how characters look. I also love to see the idea come together into a finished piece of artwork.

The most challenging part for me is refining a story idea. I have lots of half-ideas for stories, but turning them into something that works as a complete narrative is definitely challenging!

I have always used pen and ink on paper, and then used Photoshop to bring the full image together. I don't like to rely solely on digital techniques because I feel my work needs the spontaneous and handmade aesthetic that I get from drawing with actual pens on paper.

I rely on instagram, which I know isn’t enough and I should probably expand to other platforms. The publishers and my agents also help to promote my books and work too, which is very important!