Mulga Bill's Bicycle...Part 4

Here are some more activities to celebrate my long-living Mulga Bill's Bicycle picture book.
Please click on each image to print out the size you require.

One maze is a little more challenging than the other.

Have fun!

Mulga Bill's Bicycle...Part 3

I have been looking through my old sketchbooks and came across this drawing.  It's a study for one of the illustrations my sister and I completed for our picture book Mulga Bill's Bicycle.

In those days I did a lot of sketching with a nib pen and ink or ink wash. The result is a freer expression and a way to capture the essence of a situation or character without a lot of detail.

Preliminary sketch 1972 - Mulga Bill's Bicycle -Deborah Niland

Using this sketch as a base, the following illustration was finished using a fine pen and watercolour.

Published illustration 1973 - Mulga Bill's Bicycle - Kilmeny and Deborah Niland

Mulga Bill's Bicycle...Part 2

In celebration of my sister's and my picture-book version of Mulga Bill's Bicycle's 40th birthday, I'm posting a free activity to download and colour.

The activity below has been adapted from a poster we designed, and had been used to promote the children's book of Mulga Bill's Bicycle, first published in Australia in 1973.

Wouldn't it be fun for kids to design their own hapless Mulga Bill?  Let your imaginations run riot!

More information and activities here in the coming months.

Mulga Bill's Bicycle...Part 1

Mulga Bill's Bicycle 1973.  Illustrations Kilmeny and Deborah Niland

This year, 2013, marks the 40th anniversary (yes 40th! ) of the first publication of my picture book, Mulga Bill's Bicycle.

The amazing thing is that this book has been in continuous print since 1973.  I believe it is quite rare to have a picture book still in print after all these years.

Mulga Bill's Bicycle is the name of a poem written in 1896 by Andrew Barton (Banjo) Paterson.

This picture-book version of  Banjo Paterson's poem was illustrated by my sister Kilmeny and me and first published by William Collins (Australia) Ltd in 1973.

To celebrate this book's long life, I thought I would post, at intervals, various snippets and original sketches which relate to the finished illustrations.  I would also like to make up some activity sheets for kids to download and print.

Mulga Bill's Bicycle 2007.  Illustrations Kilmeny and Deborah Niland

Some Black and White Illustrations

I've been looking through a lot of my older work of late, scanning and sorting. 

The works below are from a title published way back last century, in 1974.
The title of the book is Tell Me A Tale, stories retold and copyrighted by Jean Chapman and illustrations copyrighted by Deborah and Kilmeny Niland.

It's weird looking at your ownl work again after such a long time.  It was gratifying to see that the originals are so much finer and delicate as compared with the printed version.  As an illustrator you tend to forget that the printed work can be quite dissimilar to the original art.

Printing methods today are so much better which means good quality is more easily achievable in book production.

A Niland Art Exhibition

 
I've been busy the last couple of months sorting, painting and framing many of my works to be exhibited alongside my sister Kilmeny's fabulous array of her own paintings from her art collection.

This exhibition is presented as a tribute to Kilmeny's lifelong interest in art and will be held at the Artarmon Galleries in Sydney from the 6th to the 23rd October, 2012.

There will be a wide variety of artwork on show and for sale: original illustrations from books, oil paintings, watercolours, ink, humorous paintings, serious paintings, enigmatic paintings, portraits of people and portraits of fruit. There will be a scattering of hippos, monkeys and cows, dogs and cats, but no pigs.
You'll see big paintings and tiny paintings.

Come and visit the gallery if you are interested in book illustration and painting. Kilmeny has left a beautiful legacy.

Some more paintings on show from the exhibition.

Kilmeny Niland

Deborah Niland

A Favourite Book

I used to love reading this book to my kids when they were little.  They loved it too.

The Fisherman and His Wife is a classic tale and has been illustrated by many artists over the years.  The version I have was illustrated by Mark Southgate in 1987.  It was published by Andersen Press Ltd, London.

Here are some of the quirky pictures from this book. It is still a great favourite.

Jean Chapman

I was very sorry to hear of the loss of Jean Chapman recently.  She was an author who wrote specifically for young people and made a long lasting impact and contribution to the world of children's literature.
She was a lovely person with a lively humorous spirit.

My sister Kilmeny and I were fortunate to have illustrated many of her stories over the years.
Jean compiled various collections of folk tales, poems, activities and songs, retold in her easy going style with close attention to detail.

Her works have been consistently popular, and although the collections I mentioned are now out of print, they are well represented in libraries around Australia.

The illustrations below are from the book, Tell Me Another Tale, a collection written and compiled by Jean Chapman, and first published in 1976.  Kilmeny and I had a great time creating some imaginative illustrations inspired by Jean's writings.

Jean will be sadly missed.

 

 

All illustrations are by Deborah and Kilmeny Niland.

Stuff & Nonsense

These drawings are from a book of humorous poetry which I illustrated way back last century.
The book was published by William Collins Pty Ltd in Sydney, and the poems were compiled by Michael Dugan from various authors.

Each illustration was drawn in black ink.

Illustration by Deborah Niland

Illustration by Deborah Niland

Illustration by Deborah Niland

Illustration by Deborah Niland

Illustration by Deborah Niland

Maurice Sendak

The illustration and children's book world has lost a major figure with the death of Maurice Sendak.
He influenced the techniques of many, many illustrators over the years and his books have been enjoyed by adults and children alike.

I remember the fuss that was made after the publication in 1963 of  his classic Where the Wild Things Are.

'Experts' in child development were adamant that children would be terrified and have recurring nightmares if shown this book. Nearly fifty years later this book is still popular and I'm sure the nightmares have proved to be non-existent.

The beautiful pictures below by Maurice Sendak are from some of his books I still have on my shelves.

Where The Wild Things Are - Maurice Sendak 1963

Where The Wild Things Are - Maurice Sendak 1963

Thr Griffon and the Minor Canon - Maurice Sendak 1963

The Bee-Man of Orn - Maurice Sendak 1964

The Bee-Man of Orn - Maurice Sendak 1964

Outside Over There -Maurice Sendak 1981

A Catty Display

Here are some illustrations from various books of mine featuring the cat.
I've used different techniques for each illustration. Pen and ink, watercolour, and digital.

I'm really a dog person, though.

Annie's Chair

I've recently received copies of my book, Annie's Chair, which has been published in a new Chinese edition.
The publisher is Beijing King Ear Images.  It looks a beautiful production!

I believe this edition is not available in Australia but copies are selling online from here.

Here are some pictures from the book.

Arnold Lobel

I have a small collection of books illustrated by Arnold Lobel.

He was an artist who was an important influence when I was starting out as a book illustrator. I've always admired his work and still do.

Arnold Lobel worked on a wide variety of books and always imbued his illustratrations with warmth and wit.
 He created splendid pigs as in The Book of Pigericks (1983) and of course he was well known for his Frog and Toad series of books (from 1970).

These works below are just some of my favourites.