Michael Mrak

FromThe Illustration Department Podcast

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Michael Mrak

FromThe Illustration Department Podcast

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Length:

51 minutes

Released:

Jul 2, 2024

Format:

Podcast episode

Description

Giuseppe Castellano talks to Michael Mrak, Creative Director for Scientific American, about how often (and where) he looks for illustrators; why he chooses not to not use AI for SciAm’s illustration needs; why the need for good, smart, human-made illustration isn’t going away anytime soon; and more.

Released:

Jul 2, 2024

Format:

Podcast episode

Titles in the series (100)

Giuseppe Castellano talks to folks in illustration, graphic design, publishing, animation, and other creative fields about the ups and downs of their careers.

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Erin Hunting: Erin talks about 1980’s cartoons; online piracy; and why fan art is art. by The Illustration Department Podcast
46 min listen
Kelly Light, Part 2 of 2: Kelly talks about character design; and why publishing is a big gamble. by The Illustration Department Podcast
46 min listen
Will Terry: Will talks about working as an illustrator; and how the Society of Visual Storytelling got its start. by The Illustration Department Podcast
70 min listen
Leonard S. Marcus: Leonard covers 150 years of children’s book history—from the Puritans to Ezra Jack Keats. by The Illustration Department Podcast
90 min listen
Ben Zhu: Ben talks about Gallery Nucleus’s past, present, and future. by The Illustration Department Podcast
49 min listen
Kayla Wasil: Kayla talks about working with Giuseppe; and she answers questions from illustrators about postcards, process, mistakes, and trends. by The Illustration Department Podcast
64 min listen
Krystal Lauk: Krystal talks about the art boom in Tech; and how illustration can inspire empathy. by The Illustration Department Podcast
43 min listen
Peter Jaszi: Peter talks about Little Golden Books legend—and his step-grandfather—Tibor Gergely; the legality of fan art; and why and how illustrators should legally protect their work. by The Illustration Department Podcast
66 min listen
Yuko Shimizu by The Illustration Department Podcast
58 min listen
Mohamed Danawi: Mohamed talks about running an art agency; and what illustrators need to do to be successful. by The Illustration Department Podcast
69 min listen
Mark Mills: Mark talks about his illustration agency, how art schools and agencies “rob” artists, and why every submission to Plum Pudding receives a reply. “Every one.” by The Illustration Department Podcast
51 min listen
Javaka Steptoe: Javaka talks about his father, John Steptoe; getting the 3:00 AM phone call from the Caldecott committee; and the life and work of Jean-Michel Basquiat. by The Illustration Department Podcast
50 min listen
Dave McKean: Dave talks about meeting Neil Gaiman; his dislike for the word “artist”; his views on drawing, jazz, Paul Nash, and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
63 min listen
Leila Sales: Leila talks about editing and writing children’s books; and cancelling cancel culture. by The Illustration Department Podcast
60 min listen
Floyd Cooper: Floyd talks about how he started his illustration career; and why we all need someone to believe in us. by The Illustration Department Podcast
44 min listen
Seymour Chwast: Seymour talks about forming Push Pin Studios with Ed Sorel, and Milton Glaser; hanging out with Ezra Jack Keats; and what his thoughts are on Comic Sans. by The Illustration Department Podcast
33 min listen
Kelly Light, Part 1 of 2: Kelly talks about Chuck Jones, the beauty of a line, and a certain art director who almost ended her career. by The Illustration Department Podcast
43 min listen
Emily Keyes: Emily talks about contracts; submitting to agents; and how anxiety lies to you. by The Illustration Department Podcast
51 min listen
Lisa Brown: Lisa talks about Edward Gorey, digital vs. traditional media, and the revolution in children’s book illustration. by The Illustration Department Podcast
43 min listen
Francesca Gambatesa: Francesca talks about finding a literary agent; the value of good character design; and why a career in children’s publishing is a challenge. by The Illustration Department Podcast
51 min listen
Jeremy Wortsman: Jeremy talks about founding The Jacky Winter Group; what he looks for in artist portfolios; and how illustration can help us find the good in troubled times. by The Illustration Department Podcast
55 min listen
Jim Hoover, Part 1 of 2: Art director, Jim Hoover, talks about chatting with Maurice Sendak and Hilary Knight; how he finds illustrators; and why he never wants to hear, “Are we married to this illustrator”. by The Illustration Department Podcast
52 min listen
Jim Hoover, Part 2 of 2: Art director, Jim Hoover, answers illustrators’ questions. by The Illustration Department Podcast
31 min listen
Olimpia Zagnoli: Olimpia talks about Bruno Munari; her career and process; and what she thinks illustrators should think about when they stare at a blank page. by The Illustration Department Podcast
56 min listen
Jess Brallier: Jess talks about being a publisher of kids’ books; and how he and Jeff Kinney launched the Wimpy Kid series. by The Illustration Department Podcast
53 min listen
Kevin Eastman: Kevin talks about how a “dumb” drawing sparked Turtles Mania; why he and Peter Laird self-published the first TMNT comics; what he sees in the current Turtles renaissance; and what his one big regret has been since the first comic published in 1984. by The Illustration Department Podcast
39 min listen
Peter Glassman: Peter talks about Books of Wonder; coming out to his parents in the late 1970’s; the genius and heart of Maurice Sendak; and much, much more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
68 min listen
Leo Espinosa: Leo talks about Bogotá, Colombia; the importance of a pencil; and the influence of immigrants (and their children) in publishing. by The Illustration Department Podcast
56 min listen
Stephen Kroninger: Stephen talks about 1980’s New York, exhibiting at the MOMA, and the art of collage. by The Illustration Department Podcast
29 min listen
Anna Goodson: Anna talks about her illustration agency; the top 5 mistakes illustrators make; and COVID-19’s affect on the illustration community. by The Illustration Department Podcast
47 min listen

More Episodes from The Illustration Department Podcast

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Chris Van Dusen: Chris talks about the pros and cons of using gouache—and why spittle is a problem; why calling an illustrator’s work “old-fashioned” is not a productive critique; how children’s book writers can spend their time if they want to rhyme; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
44 min listen
Erika Gaffney: Erika talks about why everyone should brush up on their art herstory; why the “merit over gender” argument does not apply; why art, or the study of its entire history, doesn’t have to be intimidating; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
45 min listen
Hope Christofferson: Hope talks about why a lot of what you see on social media is fantasy (and not in a good way); why illustrators should be wary of the siren call of creative influences; and why, if you’re going to believe in magic and lore, you should first believe in yourself. by The Illustration Department Podcast
67 min listen
Emily Kleinman: Emily talks about her role as an art director at Mudpuppy; where she goes first to look for illustrators; what she looks for in illustrators’ portfolios, and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
43 min listen
Hana Nakamura: Hana talks about how she finds and keeps track of illustrators; how she art directs a children’s book; why a big key to being an illustrator is… to illustrate; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
44 min listen
Timothy Travaglini: Tim talks about how illustrators and writers aren’t the only ones who experience rejection in publishing; why being open to the editorial process is almost always a good thing; why it’s important to find joy in creating art; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
56 min listen
Toby Fox: This episode is sponsored by Agency Access. Toby talks about what A.I. imagery really is (it’s not art); how stylistically open the field of editorial illustration is—for the print or digital space; how creative inspiration can come from anywhere; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
51 min listen
Semadar Megged: Semadar talks about her approach to art direction; what makes good illustrators good; why it’s important to not just look at art, but to be curious about it; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
61 min listen
Jill Pratzon: Jill talks about what it takes to restore the work of Winsor McCay, George Herriman, and other llustration giants; what she learns about artists’ lives through examining their art; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
69 min listen
Daniel Liévano: Daniel talks about the job of an editorial illustrator; how he connects philosophy and illustration; how illustrators are “traitors”; and more… by The Illustration Department Podcast
59 min listen
Naomi Kirsten: Sponsored by Agency Access. Naomi talks about what it means to create children’s books with heart and a “felt sense”; what role “the market” and “trends” play in her acquisition process; why the term “kid-friendly” has no place in kids’ books; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
67 min listen
Antonia Markiet: Antonia talks about her early days as an editor at Harper & Row; what illustrators should do if they want to be great; why Maurice Sendak’s newest book, Ten Little Rabbits, was published more than a decade after his passing; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
61 min listen
Philip Palmer: Philip talks about the behind-the-scenes decisions that went into curating Beatrix Potter: Drawn to Nature; how she left behind many legacies; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
32 min listen
Skye Kelly-Barrett: Skye talks about the psychology of parting ways with an illustrator; what “visual voice” is and isn’t; how illustration (and illustration work) is everywhere; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
54 min listen
Hervé Tullet: Hervé talks about the beginning of his children’s book career; how a children’s book illustrator’s creativity comes from within, and not from a bookstore; why you have to act like an adult, if you want to create books for children; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
37 min listen
Bob Shea: Bob talks about how a logo and Lane Smith helped him launch his children’s book career; what ADHD is and isn’t, especially for creatives (or loved ones); what illustrators should let go to enjoy being an illustrator; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
59 min listen
Scott McCloud: This episode is sponsored by Agency Access. Scott talks about the very real problem of poor visual communication in our society; what comics are and could be; why living in a phenomenal world isn’t as great as it sounds; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
55 min listen
Yas Imamura: Yas talks about how establishing a stationary shop led her to a children’s book career; why it is a mistake to paint all publishers with the same brush; why it’s a good idea for artists to create in different ways; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
46 min listen
Helen Stephens: Helen talks about the rules she ignored in the early days of her career; why “have fun” might be the most no-nonsense piece of advice illustrators will ever hear; why an illustrator’s work should not be called “imaginative”; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
51 min listen
Nathaniel Mell: Nathaniel talks about the founding of his Philadelphia-based ceramic design studio; what “working hard” really means for artists; why demand for hand-made art and craft is as hot as ever; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
40 min listen
Mary GrandPré: Mary talks about why she left her career in illustration; what she likes most about her art for Harry Potter; why it’s important for artists to keep exploring; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
52 min listen
Janelle Washington: Janelle talks about the unexpected, multi-award winning beginning of her children’s book career; what she’s learned, through cut paper, about mental health; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
41 min listen
Holly Hoover: Holly talks about what she looks for in an illustrator’s portfolio; why an illustrator would decline a publisher’s book offer; how to have a positive art director/illustrator relationship; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
38 min listen
Sara Frazetta: Sara talks about her relationship with her grandpa; what Frazetta influenced, and who influenced him; what illustrators today can learn from Frazetta; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
58 min listen
Liza Donnelly: Liza talks about her early days as a cartoonist; what James Thurber has meant to her, personally and professionally; how illustration—cartoons or otherwise— is the greatest form of communication; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
46 min listen
Erica Rand Silverman: Erica talks about what she expects from a creative for a positive working relationship; and what it means to approach one’s art from a place of play. She also answers questions from podcast patrons about creating a book dummy; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
61 min listen
Stephanie Alexander-Jinks: Stephanie talks about her transition from illustrator to agent; what stands out to her—positively and negatively—in portfolios; what illustrators can do to increase their chances for success; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
46 min listen
Craig Frazier: Craig talks about his newest monograph, Drawn, and what he hopes the book can do for illustrators; how our time is precious—especially with the ones we love; what illustrators can do that AI and its prompters can never do; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
67 min listen
Don Tate: Don talks about the reasons Black children’s book illustrators, historically, chose to or had to illustrate representationally; why physical fitness is vital for active creativity; why illustrators don’t have to draw every day; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
40 min listen
Vanessa Dina: Vanessa talks about some of Chronicle’s historical milestones, including how the iconic glasses logo came to be; how she finds and works with illustrators; why emailing art directors is easier than some illustrators think; and more. by The Illustration Department Podcast
41 min listen

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Michael Mrak

Michael Mrak

Description

Titles in the series (100)

More Episodes from The Illustration Department Podcast

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