A Second Life for My Illustrations
Colouring Pages
I've been giving some of my illustrations a bit of a makeover recently. Or perhaps un-making them would be a better description!
Over the years I've created quite a collection of characters, creatures and curious little worlds. Some are wonderfully detailed, full-colour pieces, but I've always loved the drawing underneath all that colour and texture, the real bones of the illustration.
So I started experimenting with stripping a few illustrations back to their original linework, turning them into printable colouring pages.
And actually, some of them work surprisingly well!
Back to the Drawing Board
It's been interesting revisiting older pieces and looking at them in a completely different way. What works beautifully as a finished illustration doesn't always translate into a colouring page.
Some areas need simplifying, others need a little more breathing room, and occasionally I discover details I'd almost forgotten I'd drawn.
The challenge is keeping the character of the original artwork while leaving enough space for someone else to bring their own ideas and colours to it.
Owls, Ravens and Other Curious Characters
I've started with a selection of illustrations featuring woodland creatures, ravens, owls and a few slightly more unusual characters.
There's a little bit of fantasy, a touch of gothic and plenty of intricate detail to get stuck into. They're probably not your average colouring pages, but then I've never been particularly interested in drawing average things!
One of the nicest things about this project is the idea of someone taking an illustration I've created and making it entirely their own.
Bright colours, muted tones, something completely unexpected, I'm excited to see what people come up with!
A Little Time to Switch Off
There's something rather lovely about sitting down with a set of pencils and spending an hour colouring. No screens, no rush, just a bit of time to yourself.
The pages are available as digital downloads, so you can print them at home and colour them however you fancy.
And if you do finish one, please send me a photograph! I would love to see how my characters look through someone else's eyes.