A Q&A interview with Bethan Welby
Bethan Welby is a recent graduate of the MA course in Children’s Book Illustration at Anglia Ruskin. Her debut picture book, The After Christmas Tree was longlisted for the Klaus Flugge Prize. She answers our questions about her illustrations for Phyllis and Grace, written by Nigel Gray, a sensitive description of the friendship between a little girl and her elderly neighbour.
Phyllis and Grace focuses very tightly on the characters of the two main protagonists. What was your way in to illustrating these two?
Phyllis was the more complex character to get to know. She has so much going on- a mixture of past and present, childhood memories and old age. I started by drawing Phyllis as a child. I drew her dancing, in her party dress and riding her horse. I even drew her playing with Grace, as I wanted to explore the playful quality of their relationship. When I came to draw Phyllis as she is today I felt like I was drawing the whole person, not just an old lady.
There is a great deal going on in the story emotionally. How did you approach the pacing of the story in the illustrations?
I wanted to reflect the gentle pace of Nigel’s writing and leave space for the readers imagination. So there are moments where we see Phyllis and Grace looking at each other and we can decide for ourselves what is going on between them.
Your first picture book, The After Christmas Tree, was both written and illustrated by you while here you are illustrating Nigel Gray’s text. What are the challenges and pleasures of illustrating someone else’s text?
Illustrating someone else’s text can be a challenge because the writer knows and cares about the characters and I don’t want to disappoint them with my interpretation. However, as soon as I read the text for Phyllis and Grace, I felt like I knew them as well as if I’d written them myself. I hope Nigel agrees!
How did you maintain the balance between humour and poignancy in the book?
There are funny moments in the book, as well as some that broke my heart, just a little. I thought it was important not to overplay either, but to keep the connection between the two characters constant and let Nigel’s words do their work.
What is your favourite illustration in the book and why?
My favourite illustration is actually the first one I completed for this book. It’s the one where Phyllis is sitting with her coat and hat on, suitcase by her side. She is waiting for her husband to come and take her away on honeymoon to Paris. Of course, we know that he is never going to arrive. I tried to put myself in Phyllis’s place (illustrating can be a lot like acting!) I imagined her cheerful anticipation, mixed with an underlying feeling that something isn’t quite right. Grace’s acceptance of the unlikely situation makes it all the more poignant.
Phyllis and Grace is published by Scallywag Press, 978-1912650514, £12.99hbk
