Inside the Illustration
Spread 2: Cemetery Scene
Even though this page has lots of sad themes - frowns, a coffin, headstones, black clothes, a dead tree, etc. I think it is one of the most important. This page takes some of those scary themes and brings them up for conversation, hopefully making them less scary. It may also prepare children for what to expect if they have never been to a funeral before. I also tried to instill hints of optimism in the childlike expressions of the people, the roses, and the green grass / blue sky.
I did the initial line drawing with a graphite pencil on white paper. I colored in the drawing with colored pencil, blended slightly with a Q-tip, and finally outlined with a Sharpie fine tip marker. The vertical lines that are present are from the texture of the paper. I scanned the illustration, did a little photoshop / post-processing work, and finally formatted bleeds and copy in Adobe illustrator.
Hardest part: Coffin - I have never drawn one in my life
Easiest part: The people
Favorite part: Facial expressions of the people