Hi everyone, this week I had the honor of interviewing Lillias Kinsman-Chauvet all about their first book for children Would You Dare Put A Diaper On A Bear? It was such a pleasure to read about Lillias's creative process and have the chance to see original sketches!
Interview
Lillias: Hi, my name is Lillias. I’m an illustrator and picture book author living in Glasgow, Scotland. Before I begin, so we don’t get lost in translation, ‘nappy’ is UK English for ‘diaper’. Too Snappy to Wear a Nappy is the UK title Would You Dare Put A Diaper on A Bear? is the American edition.
Q: Where did the inspiration for Would You Dare Put A Diaper On A Bear? come from?
Lillias: Directly from the mind of my two year old son!
One day he toddles up to me, feet padding on the bare floorboards, clutching a navy blue pillow to his chest, a nappy taped to its middle.
“Look Maman! The penguin’s wearing a nappy!” He chortles with delight.
At the time, nappies and the potty were hot topics in our house so I was unsurprised, if a little amused, at the creative way in which he had woven the subject into his play. Children use play to learn and discover the world, so I rolled with it…
“That’s so funny! A nappy on a penguin?! Have you ever seen a giraffe wearing a nappy?”
“No! Don’t be silly Maman! That’s too funny!”
We sit down together and I start to draw…
The penguin didn’t make the final book but the giraffe did!
Original sketches
Mini dummy book
The giraffe as it appears in the final book! (US edition)
Q: Could you give us some insight regarding your artistic and writing process? Does the art come before the narrative or vice versa?
Lillias: I sketch and/or write nearly every day. I grew up in a family of artists so creating comes as easy as breathing. I have always had a curious nature and everyday life, if you slow down to look, is a well of inspiration. I do not take this for granted though and my ideas radar is always turned on. I am somewhat like a magpie collecting inspiration wherever I go. I also make a conscious effort to feed my sense of wonder through new experiences and ‘artist dates’. Not many people know this about me but I have aphantasia - I do not see pictures in my mind. I follow my ‘pencil’ to make sense of what is going on inside my head and to see my dreams materialize! My imagination is triggered by what I see around me, processed as words inside my head and then brought to life on paper. So yes, to answer your question: the narrative usually comes before the art.
Q: I see in your author biography that you cycled through Cuba to research screen printing techniques. How was that journey and how do you apply the research to your works?
Lillias: This was an amazing experience and introduced me to a slower way of traveling that we have adopted as a family. Every couple of years we take a few months to explore the world by bicycle and have done so since our first child was 3 months old! Before having children I made screen prints. A series that I particularly enjoyed working on was one inspired by a cycle tour we did of southern India and the Jataka tales. Unfortunately I did not find life with young children to be compatible with the lengthy screen printing process which demands substantial chunks of time. This is when I started to sketch and paint as it was a more immediate medium that I could weave into my days in those quiet ‘stolen’ moments while a baby sleeps. My research into Cuban screen printing taught me so much about colour theory which continues to directly influence my picturebook work.
Extracts from my Cuban travel journal
Three screen prints I made in 2016 inspired by the Indian Jataka tales and our Indian cycle tour
Q: Quick this or that:
Coffee OR Tea
Lillias: Coffee
Hardcover OR Paperback
Lillias: Hardback
Night Owl OR Early Bird
Lillias: Early Bird (through necessity!)
Q: Can you give a sneak peak on what projects you're working on next?
Lillias: Yes. I have started work on my second book for Boxer Books/Union Square. I can’t tell you much but I can say it will have lots of animals and laughs and perhaps some ice-cream in it! Like ‘Would you Dare put a Diaper on a Bear?’/‘Too Snappy to Wear a Nappy’ it uses the medium of the picture book to open discussion between child and parent about those more tricky topics which can sometimes turn into unwanted battlegrounds!
A mischievous cat I am currently exploring painting for the roughs of my second book
A resounding thank you to Lillias for this amazing interview! Be sure to keep up to date with all of Lillias's work at:
Substack: @lilliaskinsmanchauvet
ABOUT THE BOOK
Have you ever seen a crocodile wearing a diaper? Or a giraffe? One day, a small child imagines a diaper on giraffe—and it causes lots of laughs! A funny and lighthearted tale about diapers, created to introduce toddlers to using a potty in a gentle, child-friendly way.
So cool! Def need this for my kiddo!