The Org in the News!

Our artists do get about a bit you know! This week we have no less than 3 artists chosen to appear in Childrensillustrators.com website's featured news, 4 more are Talent Pool Sponsors this month and Gareth Lucas is today's Featured Illustrator!! Phew - such a gifted bunch!

A Merit for Shane's Marvellous Mouse!

Huge congratulations to the wonderful Shane McGowan whose adorable series of images called 'Bronwyn' won a Merit award at the latest 3x3 Magazine Picture Book Show No. 15! Check out all the winners here!

David Dean's Indian Inspiration!

Fleeing from their burnt-out village in the Punjab, Marvinder and Jaspal are separated from their mother and now face a daily fight for survival as they escape across India. David’s instinctive use of light and colour infuses this peaceful scene, but the lengthening evening shadows and circling birds subtly hint at what the dawn will bring as civil war tears a country apart and tests friendships to their limit against the backdrop of Indian independence and the Partition of India and Pakistan. Out now from Egmont! 

Sophie's Bold Bountiful Bible!

Turning her hand to illustrating children’s bible stories for the first time this month is Sophie Rohrbach! ‘I Discover the Bible’ contains 14 flaps to lift, telling stories from the creation of the world to the resurrection of Jesus in a simple and captivating way! Sophie’s playful and absorbing landscapes lend themselves perfectly to this unique format where an entire story unfolds in each captivating spread! Out now from Hachette France!

Ollie's Dramatic Debut!

In a place all about survival, Ella has joined the seamstresses of Birkenau-Auschwitz and every dress she makes could mean the difference between life and death. This is Oliver Averill’s first commission and we think he has done an amazing job with this atmospheric cover, capturing these women with a brave sense of optimism even in the bleakest of settings. His uniquely expressive style lends itself perfectly to this complex tale where the one thing that weaves through the colours of couture gowns and camp mud is a red ribbon, given to Ella as a symbol of hope. Ollie says of this exciting opportunity: "This was my first commission and I was extremely excited about it, but at the same time really nervous due to the fact the project was a book cover - something I’ve wanted to be able to do for a while! It was a pretty fast turnaround for the cover so I was working very quickly to get the right atmosphere they wanted. As soon as I saw the final design with the title I was thrilled with how it turned out and hopefully this is the first of many!" His main inspiration comes from history, particularly enjoying working from historical information and depicting real life events. ‘The Red Ribbon’ is out now from Bonnier Zaffre. To see more of Ollie’s stunning portfolio click here.

Please keep showing us your boat-iful work!

Why are pirates interested in data privacy? Because they GDPRrrrrrrr! If you are all at sea about how the new legislation affects communicating with The Org, then fear not! We still welcome submissions from artists with open arms and would love to hear from you lovely people who think you have what it takes to join our happy crew! Simply drop us a line at info@organisart.co.uk with a few samples of your work and a link to your website and we will let you know if we take a fancy to your treasures!

Richard's Beautiful Bible Board Books!

Experience the awesome world of ‘Creation’ and ‘Noah’s Ark’ together with Mr. Panda, Mr. Bear and all your other new furry friends! Curious, little fingers will enjoy exploring the textures of the adorable animals in this charming new board-book series for their first library! Richard Merritt’s marvellous menagerie includes everything from bunnies to buffalo, monkeys to mice and pairs of parrots to packs of ponies! Look out for those extra little details that make Richard’s work so special and keep toddlers returning to his books time and time again to spot something new! Out now from Scandinavia Publishing House!

Laure Fournier Illustrates for All!

Everyone is welcome at the ‘Church for All’ and the etherial quality of Laure’s glowing illustrations perfectly capture the serenity of a community coming together one Sunday morning. This simple, lyrical story celebrates an inclusive church that embraces all people regardless of age, class, race, gender identity, and sexual orientation. Laure is truly in her element bringing to life these beautifully diverse characters and creating wonderfully intimate tableaus that give us a glimpse of their daily lives before gathering to worship and says of the project: 'For this book I decided to distance myself from my computer and reconnect with paper and brushes and it was a real pleasure! I really enjoyed imagining this crowd of eccentric and original characters and to paint the joy of living in their faces!' A Church for All is out from Albert Whitman and Company next month!

Positively Potty about Pets!

To celebrate Positively Woof's 'Pet Appreciation Week' we have a copy of Tony Robinson's brilliant brand new pets book illustrated by the fabulous Del Thorpe to give away! Simply pop on over to our Twitter page, follow us and retweet for you chance to win!