Previously, I delved into the Cost of Living and the Housing Crisis in Ireland utilising childlike drawings to portray adult themes. My interests last semester lied in social issues and challenges that the Irish society faces today.

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My work for my final year project is an ambitious project revolving around creating a children’s book to bring awareness to the importance of minding the land. Aimed at four to five year olds, the story is stripped back in nature with minimal wording. The characters in the story are two cats: a cat child and cat parent who act as guardians of the land. While, the villain in the story are vultures (developers) trying to take the land for their own use.

 

For this story, I was inspired by Beatrix Potter and her use of her money from her illustrative work (such as Peter Rabbit) to ‘preserve the beautiful countryside of the English Lake District. She bought land and farms to protect them from developers and managed her property herself before leaving it to the National Trust when she died’ (The Beatrix Potter Society, 2024). I see the cats in my story as a parallel to Beatrix Potter protecting the land from those who wish to harm it.

 

While, for this project I was inspired by numerous illustrators such as Oliver Dunrea and the book ‘Goosie’  - a gosling with bright red boots, Quentin Blake’s stylised loose drawings with watercolour, and Theodor Geisel’s use of a limited colour palette. While, I have been inspired by Caroline Magerl’s children’s book ‘Maya and Cat’ for this illustrator’s playful illustrations of cats both on the cover and the opening and closing pages of the book. Additionally, Rebecca Cobb’s use of a limited colour palette and interesting opening and closing pages in ‘Missing Mummy’ have been of great interest.