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This week I would like to introduce you to Illustrator Louise Catherine Bergeron. Louise sent me a couple of pieces of her artwork at the end of last year. What she sent was perfect for New Year’s Eve and New Years Day. I got busy and she sent another one for this month and I immediately recognized her style and asked myself why hadn’t I featured her before this. So persistence pays off. Keep that in mind when you assume someone isn’t interested when you do not hear back from them right away. Keep trying – Timing is everything! Here’s Louise:

In my life, illustration came as a second career, even though it was my first love. Life led me through a different path that took a slow turn back to art, in 1999. As a child, I would draw and make storybooks for my mom. Later, throughout my life as a project manager, I handled small illustration contracts on the side. I would also draw greeting cards for friends. After a few years, I had made close to 100 different models of greeting cards that I sold in a few stores. In 2007, I was offered to provide illustrations for some enterprises’ new web site and that is when I decided to join Illustration Québec (IQ), the illustrators’ society here in Quebec.

Here is the project that Louise worked on for the Illustrator Intensive being held at the June Conference with Lucy Cummins .  Louise walks you through the steps taken.

This work is the sketch I presented as my piece for critique by an AD at the upcoming NJ conference. The piece measures 11 x 17 inches and is from one of my ongoing personal projects. The comments from Art Director Lucy Cummins were positive and she made some very appreciated critique: She thought the hen’s face was a bit lost against the basket and suggested to raise the hen a little higher. She also recommended that the farmer peddling be moved away from the gutter and suggested to add some slack between the bicycle and the cart. She also wondered if the piece could benefit from removing the farm at left.

I proceeded with the changes in Photoshop (so much quicker). I switched the hen around and made it pop out of the rubble a bit. I was afraid it would be too close to the top of the page if raised higher. I also (easily) moved the cart to the left (thank you Photoshop!!) thus losing the farm. I spin the image horizontally to make sure everything holds out ok. I learned this the hard way and now, I don’t dare send out anything without proceeding with this precious step.

Then I spin it back to the original side and proceed with the clean up. I remove all confusing lines and define the ones that are too weak. With this amount of line work in some areas and because I am a messy illustrator – I can easily get confused when tracing as to which is a good line or not. I will also do some minor adjustments to the drawing. When I am satisfied, I print my image on 11 x 17 regular paper, which I will use as my base for the tracing.

3 Comments on Illustrator Saturday – Louise C. Bergeron, last added: 5/27/2012