Illustrator Spotlight: Angela Marise Johnson

© Angela Marise Johnson

 May 1, 2025

We are pleased to welcome Angela Marise Johnson in our Illustrator Spotlight. Check out her awesome illustrations and her website banner design for Kidlit411.

© Angela Marise Johnson

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

I’m a writer and illustrator from Los Angeles, California, living on the Big Island of Hawai’i. I’ve been making art my whole life, always trying to find the right form to hold the kinds of ideas and feelings I wanted to express.

© Angela Marise Johnson

 

As a child, I loved drawing and writing stories, usually about tiny people who lived under trees. I always knew I would study art but didn’t know which path to take. While in art school, I initially studied illustration but didn’t yet see myself as an illustrator. I was more interested in exploring how ideas could move through different forms, so I switched to fine art, where I could experiment freely with materials, space, and concept. I was making sculpture, painting, photography—and in the background, still drawing, still pairing images with words. I didn’t realize it then, but I was already leaning towards visual storytelling, even as I explored different mediums.

 

It wasn’t until I had my daughter in 2016 that I realized I’d always wanted to create books. We were spending so much time reading beautiful, contemporary children’s books and revisiting books from my childhood. At first, I struggled to balance being an artist and being a parent. But I started to notice similarities between the way children create and the way fine artists work: both are driven by curiosity and a willingness to experiment. What stood out most was how easily children create without worrying about the outcome. That really shifted something for me. Listening to my daughter talk and watching how she played gave me new ideas and helped me find a way to combine my artistic background with a more playful, open approach to making work.

© Angela Marise Johnson

 

When my daughter was three, she was taking a nap while it was thundering in the distance. When she woke up, she came over to my desk where I was writing and said, “I hear a little thunder in my ears / on a mountain, rumbling / the thunder will go away in a minute.” Her phrasing and imagination inspired me so much, I began creating illustrations based on the things she said and called it “Little Wild Poet”, a project that continues to shape the art and stories I create today. 

 

I love children’s illustration because I can combine so many things I love: memories from childhood and growing up in a city, a love for fine art, my current experiences living in nature, and inspiration from watching my daughter explore and discover the world. 

 

© Angela Marise Johnson

Congrats on your website design for Kidlit411! How did you approach this project?

Thank you so much for having me here. When I created this illustration, I wanted to capture the enthusiasm of being a kid, the feeling of exploring the world of a story, and a sense of inclusiveness and joy. I also wanted to push myself out of my comfort zone by creating an illustration with a diverse group of children, each with their own unique style and way of expressing themselves. I had a lot of fun making it.

What is your preferred medium and style?

My preferred medium is pencil, ink pen, markers and watercolor. I love using simple and accessible materials, but also using photoshop to combine and collage things together. I love the feeling of drawing with my hands but also knowing I can make mistakes and create several iterations while putting things together digitally. My style is whimsical, dreamy, inspired by nature, imagination, and hidden worlds. 

© Angela Marise Johnson

 

What projects are you working on now?

I’m currently developing a story that combines my love of tiny things, exploring nature, and the quiet magic of land art. It’s a story about finding inspiration, creating something from it, and a desire to share that vision with others. 

© Angela Marise Johnson

 

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

I used to make a lot of little songs and post them here: https://soundcloud.com/stolons/tracks 

For me, making music has always been purely a hobby—something that relaxes me, allows me to play and experiment, and helps me to feel happier.

© Angela Marise Johnson

 

Where can people find you online?

 

You can find me online at angelamarise.com 

 

 

Angela Marise Johnson is an illustrator and writer from Los Angeles, currently living on the Big Island of Hawai'i among the trees. Her work explores themes of creativity, magical realism, and the connection between art and nature. Angela holds a BFA from Otis College of Art and Design, where she studied a range of fine art disciplines, including photography, painting, sculpture, and performance art. She draws inspiration from land art, observing plants in her garden, listening to music, and making art with her daughter. Angela's work is featured in a forthcoming anthology with HarperCollins.