Bill Comes to KW|AG!

A full house of grade three and four students from St. Agnes and John Sweeney had a blast with Bill Slavin when he visited us at the Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery on November 1st. Bill entertained the audience with the story Stanley’s Little Sister, accompanied by his original illustrations. He spoke on how he became an illustrator, shared artwork from his early years, and passed around original illustrations from his graphic novel Big City Otto for the kids to see, up close and personal. Bill even gave a live drawing demonstration on light and shading using his beloved character Otto the elephant as an example, which is now on display in our Art Studio! The kids were full of great questions and eager to get their copies of The Farm Team autographed by Bill at the end of his presentation.

Bill Slavin speaking to a captive audience at the Kitchener-Waterloo Art Gallery.

Bill kindly shared with us why he loves his job:

"I was asked the other day what my age was when being interviewed by our local paper for my launch of my new graphic novel, Big City Otto. “What a strange question!” I thought to myself, did the quick math and came up with 52 – going on 14!

So this question got me wondering. “Does the interviewer think I’m too old to be starting comics?” It hadn’t really occurred to me earlier.

I really do have the best job in the world as an illustrator of kids’ books, and there is nothing I would rather be doing. Or at least, that was the case until I began working on my graphic novel – a lifelong dream long postponed. What I love about illustrating in general and comic-making in particular is the opportunity to combine my two favourite things, story-telling and drawing, into a single entity. And in comic-making there is even more drawing, more graphic story-telling than in picture books. Being an illustrator is all I have ever wanted to be – other forms of art have never really appealed. Illustration wasn’t simply a commercially expedient way to make a living from my art. It is my life.

And after more than thirty years of doing it I still roll out of bed each morning and into my work chair excited as the day I was 14 to be putting pencil to paper. I take an unabashed joy in what I do, and I expect I will never reach an age where I have outgrown the pleasure of drawing stories from my imagination."

Bill Slavin's graphic novel Big City Otto.

Bill Slavin and Linda Bailey at WPL

The Farm Team Illustrator Bill Slavin and author Linda Bailey entertained a packed auditorium at the Main Library on November 3rd. Attendees were treated to excerpts from the book, learned more about the creative process and learned how to draw a hockey-playing pig!