We're excited to take you behind the scenes of Jez Tuya's first trade picture book, The Treasure of Pirate Frank, published this month by Nosy Crow in the UK. Pirate Frank was one of the last picture books penned by Mal Peet and Elspeth Graham, so it was quite a special book for all involved. Scroll down to see some development work for the illustrations as well as insight into what it was like working on the book from the artist.
Back in 2015 this was the initial sample artwork that won Jez the commission to illustrate the book. The character then went through several revisions before arriving at the final boy you see on the cover...
Another interesting aspect of this particular project was how the story evolved as the artwork came to life. Originally Pirate Frank was a rather traditional character, however this was later changed, as you'll see below, creating an amusing plot twist in the story.
'I had a LOT of fun Illustrating The Treasure of Pirate Frank. One of the things that stood out to me from the manuscript was how the story unfolded in layers. Each block of text described a new location, as our hero and his canine companion travel through the story. Each location was described in such atmospheric detail - from snowy hills, to lush, swampy forests, to cold, snow volcanic mountains. I thought it'd be fitting to attempt to do the same visually - with each spread showing hints of the route travelled previously in the distance. I also tried to make use of textures to help evoke the lush atmosphere of the book. In a way, the "island of spice and gold" itself is one of the main characters in the story.
Designing the boy character was also quite fun. One key element I kept in mind during the design process was the idea of contrast. The environment had lots of earthy tones - lots of greens and browns, with sweeping, organic lines (like the trees in the forest) and the hard edges of the island's mountains. Alternatively for the characters, I tried to use quite rounded shapes for the hero and his dog, and incorporate bright, bold colours and patterns so that they stood out. I put myself in the boy's shoes, and imagined how he would have felt as he travelled the island in search of Pirate Frank's treasure.
When Nosy Crow first approached me with the manuscript, I knew immediately after reading it that it was going to be a really fun book to illustrate, and boy was it fun! The Treasure of Pirate Frank was the last picture book Mal Peet penned before his passing in 2015, so it's been such a great honour illustrating this book for him.'
Jez Tuya.
Designing the boy character was also quite fun. One key element I kept in mind during the design process was the idea of contrast. The environment had lots of earthy tones - lots of greens and browns, with sweeping, organic lines (like the trees in the forest) and the hard edges of the island's mountains. Alternatively for the characters, I tried to use quite rounded shapes for the hero and his dog, and incorporate bright, bold colours and patterns so that they stood out. I put myself in the boy's shoes, and imagined how he would have felt as he travelled the island in search of Pirate Frank's treasure.
When Nosy Crow first approached me with the manuscript, I knew immediately after reading it that it was going to be a really fun book to illustrate, and boy was it fun! The Treasure of Pirate Frank was the last picture book Mal Peet penned before his passing in 2015, so it's been such a great honour illustrating this book for him.'
Jez Tuya.
