Meet the Author: Kadir Nelson

• Meet the Author • Nick Glass of TeachingBooks.net interviewed Grades Kadir Nelson Kadir Nelson at his San Diego County studio, K–2, 3–5 Colorado. every day—all the way through There were a number of elementary school, junior high, children’s book illustrators and high school. at Pratt. Did any of them My uncle, who’s an art influence you? teacher, took me under his wing KN: No, I didn’t even think and gave me a really strong about children’s book illustra- foundation in art. I spent sum- tion when I was in school. I mers with him, and he taught wanted to be either a gallery art- me how to draw, how to see, ist or just a freelance artist doing how to mix colors, how to use editorial, CD covers, advertising, different mediums and perspec- and stuff like that. tive, and so forth. He really gave www.kadirnelson.com What kind of jobs did you Photo from me a head start on my peers. I have while you were in ended up getting a scholarship school? to study art at Pratt Institute. KN: I paid for my tuition by You hold multiple awards What did you like to selling paintings and drawings, for your books for children, draw? and I got a big job doing some specifically for your illus- KN: As a kid, I drew cartoon T-shirt designs for Nike. Right trations: the Coretta Scott characters and comic book after I graduated, I got a big job King Illustrator Award, the heroes. Spiderman and the X- for and with Caldecott Honor Award Sports Illustrated and the NAACP Image Men were my favorites. DreamWorks on the movie Award among many. How did your art focus Amistad. Please share what your change as you grew up? What did you do for childhood was like; have KN: My first year of college, Amistad? you always been an artist? I went to architecture school KN: I did concept work called KN: I have two sisters and a because people had always said “visual development,” which brother, and we all were into that it’s hard to make a living means I was illustrating key our own things. I was a kid that as an artist, and you won’t be scenes from the movie. It’s dif- liked to draw more than any- able to provide for yourself or ferent from storyboard, which is body else, and I really wanted to have any notoriety until you’re shot-by-shot illustration. I illus- get better. I also loved the atten- dead. I didn’t like that scenario, trated specific scenes to estab- tion I got from drawing. It’s nice so I thought that I would study lish a tone, a look, a palette, and to be good at something. architecture and get a “real” a mood for each scene during We moved around a lot when job. the movie. I was a kid, so whenever I’d go But the only thing I liked They hired a number of to a new class, I’d start drawing about studying architecture was African American artists to tell or ask someone if they liked to design. I didn’t enjoy anything the story of Amistad for Steven draw, and that kind of broke the else about it, so after a semester Spielberg in order to convince ice. I switched over to illustration him to take on the movie. My mother made sure I always and decided that I really wanted Steven wasn’t really sure if he had art supplies, and I drew to make a serious go at art. was the right director, because December 2010 Web Resources • LibrarySparks • 1 Meet the Author he isn’t an African American, I was a good student. I got fortunate because my wife and and he wanted to make sure really good grades, and I was I were expecting, and I didn’t that he could tell it in a confi- very proud that I stayed on have a job. dent way. top of my work. As a result You succeeded because Over the course of six of my hard work in school, I you worked hard in school months, we did tons of work, got an internship at Society of and people were inter- and, using our illustrations, Illustrators in New York, and ested in your work. they walked Steven through the I interned there for a month. KN: I think it was a combina- movie so he could see what it As a result of doing that, they tion of hard work, willpower, could look like and could be gave me a ticket to one of their and also preparing myself for able to tell the story with confi- shows. any opportunity that might dence. I went to the show, and I met cross my path. All students When did your art begin a young lady there who had just know what it feels like not to to take on its very strong graduated. I was passing out my be prepared for a big test or not African American themes? new business cards, and I gave doing your homework and then KN: I think it was in high one to her. A week or two later, realizing that you could have school—in the early 1990s. she called and told me she had really taken advantage of it if There were a lot of very strong, this job she couldn’t do. She you would have just done the positive images of African thought she wasn’t the right per- groundwork. Americans that were prevalent son for it, and she thought I was I knew that I was doing the in music and film and television a better fit. I took the job, which groundwork. My mother had at that time. needed to be done in maybe always talked about the power Spike Lee was doing his thing three days. of visualization and self-realiza- with movies, and there were a I met with the guy regarding tion—that if you want to be lot of hip-hop groups that had that job, and he liked my work, successful at something, you that very strong theme of posi- so I did the job for him and should imagine yourself doing tive affirmation of identifying got him out of that pinch. He it and prepare yourself for it. with your African ancestry and liked me and my work so much That’s what I was doing. It’s kind roots. There were also a number that he wanted to help me get of like blind faith, but I believed of television shows featuring started in my career. I gave him very strongly that I was going strong African American char- a portfolio of my work, and he to succeed at whatever it was acters. The idea of embracing sent a few pages around. One that I was going to do—if just African American culture was of them ended up at a record given the opportunity. For some blossoming, and I became company in Los Angeles, and reason, I knew that something attracted to it and wanted to someone at the record company was coming, because I wanted it become part of it and contribute knew about this film in the so badly. works at DreamWorks—which to it. You worked in illustration was a brand-new studio at that Is that how you came to and on some incredible time. get the Amistad work? professional jobs, and then They passed my work on KN: A lot of the work that I made yourself a niche in to the production designer at was doing when I was in col- children’s book art. How DreamWorks, whose name was lege had to do with my African did that prepare you for Rick Carter. He liked it, and American ancestry. I loved work in children’s books? they called me. I had just got- doing historical artwork, so KN: When doing artwork for ten married, and I was on my serendipitously, the Amistad film, a lot of the skills that are honeymoon when I get this call project appeared right after I necessary for that type of work from DreamWorks as well as graduated from college. There lend themselves very well to from Sports Illustrated about two was a lot of momentum that doing children’s book art. You really big projects. I was very made that happen. have to learn how to do char- 2 • LibrarySparks • December 2010 Web Resources Meet the Author painting over the photocopy. ies of what people think art is When I had this book to do, I or should be, and that’s how realized I didn’t have that much they’ve made their work rel- time, so I just photocopied all evant. That’s what I’m trying to of my sketches and painted figure out for myself. over the photocopies, and that What was it like to be worked out pretty well. I was asked to illustrate a book able to meet my deadline and about Michael Jordan? please the art directors and the KN: Oh, that was really cool, editors, so that’s the style that I because I was a Michael Jordan used to work in for some of my nut when I was a kid. He was acter design and environmental earlier books like Brothers of the my hero: my whole bedroom design, and you have to tell Knight, Big Jabe, Salt in His Shoes, wall was plastered with Michael stories with your artwork using Dancing in the Wings.

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