Illustrator Spotlight: Holly Stone-Barker

© Holly Stone-Barker

 

April 1, 2022

We are pleased to feature illustrator Holly Stone-Barker and her Kidlit411 website banner design! She placed in our recent contest.

Tell us about yourself and how you came to illustrate for children.

 

I earned a BFA in Graphic Design from Pratt Institute. I enjoy graphics, but always wanted to illustrate and thought my style would be suited for picture books. The opportunity to illustrate my first picture book titled Mama’s Bayou came to me when I was approached by an author. It was such a great experience and I was able to work with the same author and publisher on several more books.

 

© Holly Stone-Barker

Congrats on the banner design! How did you approach this project?

When approaching the Kidlit411 banner design I had two things in mind. First, I wanted to create burrowing animals popping up from the ground. The second thing I wanted was to work with textures I created and scanned into Photoshop. I usually work with paper, so this was a good opportunity to experiment digitally.

© Holly Stone-Barker

 

What projects are you working on these days?

 

I have a few things I am currently working on in my studio. The first is a series of board books that I have created with an author. Our initial collaboration has been submitted to a publisher. The second is creating art for the licensing market and reaching out to potential art directors. The third is teaching classes to adults and children. 

© Holly Stone-Barker

 

What is you illustration process? What are your favorite mediums?

My favorite medium has always been collage. I enjoy collage because of the variety of textures that I can create with paints, rubbings, and found papers. It makes my heart sing when I piece together an illustration.

© Holly Stone-Barker

 

My process may seem effortless but takes time. I start with drawings and then I will paint papers or find the “perfect” paper in my stash. The next step is to cut and glue with my x-acto and tweezers. I like this process because there is an element of surprise when choosing paper to see what works, it’s the fun to explore options.

© Holly Stone-Barker

© Holly Stone-Barker

 

What is one thing most people don’t know about you?

I was recently invited to be a guest artist for a Louisiana Public Broadcasting Series called Ziggy’s Art Adventures. It was so much fun to spend the day hanging out with puppets.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2WJtqd2oDs