Isabelle Arsenault

Isabelle Arseanault photographed in Montréal, Québec, Canada at the Salon du livre de Montréal 2017. Isabelle Arsenault (born 1978) is a Canadian award winning illustrator living in Montreal, Quebec. She is known for her elaborate yet simplified artwork in children's literature.

Early life and education Born in Sept-Îles, Quebec, Arsenault and her family moved to Île-Bizard and lived there much of her adolescent life. As a child Arsenault took part in a contest for illustration, that her local newspaper was holding at the time for Christmas. It was at this stage in her life that she had realized her passion for artistic endeavors, and this was made more apparent by her winning the contest. She notes "I understood that I really enjoyed drawing, and I could use my ability to create something unique".

Career In 2005, she won the Governor General's Award for French-language children's illustration for Le Coeur de Monsieur Gauguin; the text was by Marie-Danielle Croteau. She won the same award in 2013 for her illustration of the graphic novel Jane, le renard et moi with text by Fanny Britt; this book also won the Joe Shuster Award for outstanding artist, the and the and the English translation Jane, the fox and me was named to the New York Times list of the ten best illustrated books for children for 2013. Migrant, illustrated by Arsenault, was named to the New York Times' list for 2011. In 2012, she won the Governor General's Award for English-language children's illustration for Virginia Wolf; Kyo Maclear provided the text.

Approach to illustrations

Visual style Arsenault's art style is often described as minimalist in nature, and for the most part very colorful. Instead of opting for hard lines and detailed backgrounds and characters, she often illustrates with an ease of hand, but conveys emotion through these simple images and their text. Much of Arsenault's art attempts to evoke emotions in the reader, with more interest in showcasing the character's state of mind, and less the external causes for their state of mind. In her seminal work for Maxine Trottier's Migrant we see this at work, as much of the environment is less focused upon; when in contrast the young Mennonite farmer's child envisions herself and others visually as jackrabbits and kittens.

Planning

Arsenault attributes her style to doodling early drafts as rough as possible, so to understand the overall visual story she wishes to produce. Arsenault explains in her blog that it grants her a level of freedom that allows for her emotions at the time of finalization to be expressed through her art. Much of her style is derived from her experimental improvisational approach, filled with potential mistakes.

Publication MigrantIsabelle ArsenaultKids Can Press Jane, le renard & moiIsabelle ArsenaultGroundwood Books You Belong Here

Cloth Lullaby, The woven life of Louise BourgeoisIsabelle ArsenaultPASTEQUE Compendium Inc

The Honey BeeIsabelle ArsenaultCandlewick Albert's Quiet QuestIsabelle ArsenaultCandlewick