Simona Massa | Italy
'Gino' is the story of a dog whose happiness is suddenly disrupted. His personality and behaviours, humorously depicted in the first part of the book, are based on my own Italian Greyhound. After a tragic turn of events, Gino’s reality changes, the narrating voice is unmasked and its purpose becomes clear. The ending is left open, but with clues to a happy resolution. The picturebook was created for one of the MA modules at Cambridge School of Art (Anglia Ruskin University), where I am currently studying, and it gently tackles themes such as dog ownership, adoption and death. The project currently comprises both colour artwork and black and white roughs. The final illustrations were created by combining emulsion paint, colour and chinagraph pencils with digital alterations. Colour is representative of the time of the year, but it has also a symbolic, deeper meaning, affecting the mood of each spread.
Education:
Cambridge School of Art (Anglia Ruskin University)
Children's Book Illustration MA
Graduation: 2024