Interview by 2DCloud
I first “met” Emma Reynolds online through seeing each others art years ago. Her work and her interests stuck with me when looking for artists to be in Little Heart and as such, I am grateful that she agreed to be in it.
Could you tell us a little about yourself and your general interests as a cartoonist/artist/creative person?
ER: I am a freelance illustrator from Manchester in England. I grew up in Devon in the South West, and moved to Manchester to study Illustration with Animation at Manchester School of Art. I have an inbuilt passion for narrative and storytelling, and enjoy creating characters and producing original and whimsical illustrations. I tend to mix reality with the fantastical to create worlds with a sense of wonder and magic about them, even in the most unexpected places. I like to surprise people with my work, and my illustrations often include a lot of detail, allowing people to continue to discover new things each time they look at them.
I gather my visual research from drawing outside, and visiting museums, libraries and art galleries. I then combine this research and the things that sink in more slowly with my imagination.
Was there something in particular that interested you enough to be involved in the comic anthology Little Heart?
ER: I’ve known Raighne from 2D Cloud for years now through the Internet, and I’ve been a great admirer of his personal work for a long time, as well owning some of the innovative and wonderfully produced comics he’s collaborated with and published, so I knew that the book was in good hands. I was really thrilled to be asked to be part of such an exciting project, and I felt really proud that it would be in aid of such an important cause.
Why is marriage equality important to you?
ER: It is one of those issues that, in the time we live in now, I almost can’t believe still exists. It does baffle me that there are boundaries stopping what is essentially two humans making a commitment to each other. But unfortunately, it is still a big issue, and we have to do all we can to raise awareness and help fight for this cause.
Are there any non-profit fueled anthologies of note that have sparked your interest in the past?
ER: I haven’t come across any actually! I would be interested to see how they tackled their project and how successful it was in increasing awareness.
Could you tell us a bit about your comic, how you approached the project, the tools or medium used in its creation, or what it means to you?
ER: The brief was to capture fragments of intimacy and closeness, and for the work to read genuinely for both children and adults. I didn’t want to use humans for the project, so instead I chose to create a series of anthropomorphic, mostly androgynous characters, all responding to the question ‘What does marriage mean to you?’. I wanted to show that the meaningful moments in relationships transcend gender, that it is simply the relationships and partnerships themselves that are important. The comic pages are captured through the eyes and camera of a dog director, whose own life we glimpse into at the end.
I rendered my comic in pen and ink, using a pilot g-tec-c4, my favourite pen to draw with.
Should Little Heart be successfully funded via Kickstarter, do you plan to be in attendance at TCAF for it’s debut?
ER: I would absolutely love to visit Canada and America, they are next on my list! I will not be able to make it this time, but hopefully next year.
Finally, what are you working on now (comics or otherwise)? Anything readers can look forward to?
ER: I have been working on a series of pieces based on my story ‘Reynard, The Fox Detective’! Which will be winging its way to publishers very soon.
Website (http://www.emmareynoldsillustration.com),
Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/emmareynoldsillustration),
Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/emmaillustrate)