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THE ILLUSTRATIONS

I met Gabhor Utomo when I was looking for an illustrator for another book. The author of the book in question was Katrina Salton Currier and she suggested setting up a contest for the students at the Academy of Art College in San Francisco. They were each given the book Kai’s Journey to read and then asked to create an illustration for it. There was a monetary prize for the winner and a contract to illustrate the book. Gabhor’s beautiful watercolor illustration was so poignant, so perfect for the book that he had the unanimous approval of all the judges.

The time I spent working with Gabhor on the illustrations for Kai’s Journey made me aware of his amazing talents. When eventually I wrote my stories, Gabhor was the obvious one to ask to illustrate it. By then he was married and had twin girls. I also had twin girls, so we had yet another connection.

Gabhor always likes to work with models for his sketches.  Luckily I have two granddaughters, India and Annika, who represented the range of ages of the young Surrey in the tales. They looked a little bit like their young grandmother as you will see. Gabhor created the sketches for each tale and I gathered the clothes and props. One day after school I grabbed the two girls and quickly photographed them in their back garden. They, knowing the tales and seeing the sketches, were quickly able to create the faces needed to convey the emotions of each moment.

Here are samples of the sketches, the photographs and the final illustration to show how these perfect images came to life:

 

Evacuation  - Annika
When I was evacuated to a farm near Yatton, Somerset
I had many imaginary friends.

Auntie Rose and the Bomb  - Annika
My Auntie Rose bravely disarmed a German bomb,
saving so many lives and my Grandma’s house.

Tea for the Orphans   - Annika
During the war my mother and her sisters invited
some of the local orphans for a special tea.

General’s Fishpond - Annika
After the War children named their new pets after names they heard on
the radio during the war. I named my goldfish after German generals.

Dry Cleaners – India
My Mother and I did not get along and I often ran away to hide in the air raid shelters in the park. They were a good hiding place, until it got dark.

The Violin Teacher – India
My Mother wanted me to learn the violin and play “Flight of the Bumble Bee” to her. I hated the violin and my teacher. It was destined to end on a bad note.

Christmas at Home - India
I was so sure that I was going to get a puppy for Christmas, that when I got new red fur boots I was not the gracious girl my parents had tried to raise.

Too Many Blackberries - India
Going into the country to pick blackberries was an adventure for two friends, but one came back looking blue, the other just feeling blue.

 

More of Gabhor Utomo's work can be viewed at: www.gabhorutomo.com

 

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