Last year at about this time, we started receiving final art from Wes Thomas. He illustrated four books in our Cloverleaf Books Planet Protectors series. I always enjoy seeing final art up close, but it was especially fun in this case because the art is cut paper collage. It’s fascinating to see all those tiny bits of paper carefully assembled to make each scene. I also love the humor Wes brought to his illustrations. If you take the time to look carefully, you’ll pick up on all sorts of silliness. Wes was kind enough to answer a few of my questions about how he creates his artwork.

Q: How long does it take you to make the illustrations for one page in a book?

A: Some pages take a day, some pages can take up to several days.

Q: Do you ever slip when you’re using the X-acto knife and accidently cut off a character’s sleeve? Or their heads?

A: I’m pretty steady with my X-acto. I’m more worried about cutting fingers then sleeves or heads. (My fingers, that is!) I usually have a bandage or two on my desk ready to go.

Q: What was your favorite part about illustrating the Planet Protectors books?

A: My favorite part had to be the pages that had a lots of activity going on. I enjoy gluing lots of pieces on top of other pieces.

Q: What was the most difficult part?

A: Making pages with lots of activity going on. (I like the challenge!)

Thanks, Wes! For more about how Wes creates his art, check out a recent post on his blog.