IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: CLOSURE OF OUR ILLUSTRATION AGENCY

Children’s illustration agency The Organisation is to close after more than 30 years in the business due to the ill health of its owner and director.

Lorraine Owen, who has been battling a life-threatening illness, said the decision had been taken “with great sadness” to shut down permanently on 28th February.

The Organisation has built up a specialism in children’s illustrations and is highly respected by artists and clients. Scholastic art director Strawberrie Donnelly has described the agency as “publishing royalty” while Gareth Lucas, who has been on the books since 2008 and has worked with Usborne, Little Tiger Press and others has praised its agents for their “approachable and understanding” style.

Owen, who has a background in publishing as an art director, set up the agency in 1986, keen to work “on the other side of the desk”. Starting with 16 artists, The Organisation had 60 illustrators at its peak. It now represents 45 artists and employs three people alongside Owen.

She told The Bookseller one of her proudest moments was when artist Alison Jay was invited to exhibit some of her work by world-renowned Japanese animators Studio Ghibli. Other clients won numerous awards from the Association of Illustrators while Peek-A-Boo A-Z by Lucas (Little Tiger Press) won the Baby and Toddler prize in the 2016 Sainsbury’s Children’s Book Awards.

Owen said of the closure: “Our artists have been very sad but very supportive. Obviously it’s come as a huge blow to them as many have been with me for years and years. But I’ve had some lovely feedback from clients and colleagues who are also agents.”

The Organisation said in a statement: “We have been serving a huge range of clients for over the past 30 years and we are very proud of all we have accomplished during this time and we could not be more thankful to those who have believed in us and supported our business, both clients and artists. We have been lucky enough to work on some amazing projects and share in their success.

“The artists currently represented by The Organisation should be contacted via their own websites for further commissions.”

A Spring in Our Step!

With the weather turning decidedly warmer this week, we are all feeling very spring-like here at The Org so here is some brand new gorgeous sunny work from our super-talented bunch! Thanks to Clementine Derodit, Katie Mazeika, Gareth Lucas and Alberta Torres!

Oh my Cod!

There's something fishy going on at Aga Kowalska Studio Lincoln this weekend! Why not pop along to her collage workshop in Sam Scorer Gallery in Lincoln on Saturday (16th, 10-3p.m). Working with hand painted backgrounds (watercolour inks) create amazing textures all for just 30 Pounds (all materials included)!

Ella's Awesome Amulet Adventure!

When Cyril, Anthea, Robert and Jane find their old friend the Psammead in a pet shop in London, they have no idea that they are about to embark on their greatest escapade yet - chasing a magical Egyptian amulet that could grant them their hearts’ desires!

Once again, Ella Okstad has worked her own magic on this, the third thrilling E. Nesbit title she has illustrated for Alma Books, capturing beautifully the mysteries of Ancient Egypt in a bold cover bursting with wonder and intrigue and a series of adorable black and white vignettes that beautifully encapsulate the mood of each chapter.

You’d have to travel a ‘pharaoh’ way to find a more exhilarating read to kick off the new year! ‘The Story of the Amulet’ is out now!

Sophie's Two Dads!

We are over the moon that Sophie Keen's gorgeous work will be proudly on show when the wonderful Will Young reads the book 'Two Dads: A book about adoption', written by Caroyln Robertson on the BBC's CBBC children's channel this Saturday! 

It's a huge honour to be selected and another leap forward for LGBTQ+ recognition! Congratulations to Sophie and we can't wait to tune in to watch at 6.50pm - so make sure you do too! Here's a little sneaky peek at some of her glorious illustrations!

And if you don't catch it tonight, you can watch it here as many times as you want!!

New Direction for Gareth Lucas!

Over the past few weeks, Gareth Lucas has been experimenting with an exciting new illustration style and we are very excited to share these gorgeous examples featuring a deliciously muted colour palette, pleasing geometric backgrounds and striking composition! If you think his mature new lino print inspired work would be the perfect match for a future project, please do get in touch and we will be thrilled to show you more!

Don’t worry though, his trademark adorable technicolour animals will still be bouncing from a bookshelf near you with some exciting high profile releases in 2019! Watch this space!

Carol's Foxy Fable!

Heinemann Publishing's new Guided Reading Programme has already been wonderfully received by teachers and pupils alike, and, at the risk of being accused of blowing our own trumpet, we feel not in any small part due to our fabulous artists’ talent and creativity in bringing this diverse group of tales to life! This month we are thrilled to share with you Carol Liddiment's comical take on the origin of the expression ‘sour grapes’!

Fox has his eye on some juicy grapes but discovers that it is easier to say you don’t want something if you can’t have it! We can’t help but sympathise with Carol’s hapless and characterful fox as he runs the gamut of emotions in his quest for the elusive grapes!

Sophie's Not so Tall Tale!

In this, her 4th gorgeous title in the ‘My Very First Story Time’ series for Pat-a-Cake books, Sophie Rohrbach’s spellbinding artwork brings to life the classic characters of Snow White and her new dwarf friends giving them a subtle but distinctly Scandinavian twist! Proving that it's never too early to introduce children to the magic and wonder of fairy tales, a profusely illustrated visual glossary at the beginning introduces new vocabulary and promotes understanding whilst the lively activity populated with Sophie’s compelling little characters at the end invites discussion and will make even the very youngest children want to return to this romantic tale again and again! Out on the 7th February - just in time for a cute Valentine’s gift for the child (or big soppy kid!) in your life!

Amberin's Fabulous February Feature!

Great news for our new artist Amberin Huq who has been awarded illustrator of the month on the Children's Illustrators.com website! She'll be featured on the site throughout February, and of course as always, you can see her fabulous folio here on our site! Get in touch with your enquires should you wish to commission her!

Alison Jay takes the Floor!

We are pleased to announce that the Amelia Bloomer Project has selected 'A Lady Has the Floor: Belva Lockwood Speaks Out for Women’s Rights' as one of the titles to be honoured this year on the Amelia Bloomer List! Beautifully illustrated by the sublime Alison Jay, it fully deserves this wonderful recognition!

Each year the Amelia Bloomer List recommends recent books with significant feminist content for readers from birth to 18 years old. To see the full list click here!