We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Maddie Kimber a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Maddie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

When I was a kid, the first career I humored exploring was being a vet. In retrospect, I think I would make a terrible vet, but the idea of being around animals all day every day was thrilling to me because I’ve always loved animals. Ask my mom, every week I wanted a new pet.

The second career path that ACTUALLY bloomed to fruition for me was as an artist. I have a vivid memory from elementary school, I made an in-depth illustrated infographic about the ins and outs of navigating Webkinz, an online game thriving within my demographic during the early 2000s. It was every kid’s elementary school dream to be singled out as the best at something. Even more so when you’re a little girl with undiagnosed ADHD like I was, who couldn’t remember what an adjective was but somehow internalized any ounce of validation given by any respectable adult. When my teacher did this for my project, it was a pivotal moment for me. I have always enjoyed drawing and doodling, but this first ounce of recognition influenced me to continue working towards my passion for art. I can’t even remember what the actual drawing looked like, but I certainly remember the ambition it fueled me with.

I grew up in the age of unrestricted internet access, where social media was hardly developed and pretty much everything was accessible to anyone anywhere. I watched countless 2007-style Youtube videos on how to draw and mimicked my favorite artists. From the outside, being a “professional artist” seemed like such a rewarding and fulfilling career, and I had not even scratched the surface of where it could take me. I pursued a degree in graphic design as an undergrad, but even then, had no idea where I wanted to take my passion for drawing. After that, I worked full-time as a designer (who would find any chance to throw an illustration into my work) at a small screen printing studio, occasionally making designs for local events such as the farmers market and fundraisers. This is where I realized I wanted to spread my love of art to my community, and that my art had an impact on others. Fresh out of college and working my first big girl job, I realized there was still so much for me to learn about the different creative industries, which led me to pursue my master’s degree in illustration at SCAD, where I fell in love with creating children’s picture books and exploring the many facets of visual storytelling. It’s not an easy journey, but certainly one of the most fun and fulfilling decisions I’ve ever made.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Hi! I am Maddie, I am a 24-year-old illustrator, writer, and designer, specializing in printmaking and children’s books. Primarily, my work is centered around animal characters, using them as a storytelling device to discuss heavy topics in an age-appropriate manner for kids. My most recent project, Bloom, is a children’s book that I developed for my graduate thesis. Bloom is all about impermanence and mindfulness, contextualizing change as a positive experience, and embracing loss as a reflection of humans’ innate capacity to love. Bloom focuses on my lovable, made up creatures called Monzooks…they’re one of my favorite parts of the story!

I am always exploring different ways to teach children valuable lessons about themselves by utilizing aspects of human nature through my animal characters. There is so much that we can learn from animals in their own right, but for children, they really serve as a cushioned force for whimsical, lighthearted storytelling. Perhaps I’m biased because all of my favorite stories growing up involved some sort of protagonist with paws, going on silly adventures that ultimately taught them a big lesson.

That being said, the most vital principle that I hold within my work is always prioritizing speaking to children rather than at them. As adults, without realizing it, we forget that children lack the nuance of lived experience. That often, the illustrations and stories we’re creating for them may be their first exposure to these topics. It is always important to me to both respect young readers and be compassionate towards their experiences. There is a fine line between creating stories that lack substance and stories that are too complex for the developmental stage a child may be in. I value my ability to address issues with empathy. After all, oftentimes the lessons we learn as kids are never an endpoint, they are practices you have to continue throughout your adult life.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

A lesson I had to unlearn is that, as an artist, you have to compromise your ability to create good artwork with your ability to have fun. I understand now that creating art as a professional and creating lighthearted works are not mutually exclusive to one another.

It took me a long time to figure out that ‘sophisticated’ art and ‘playful’ art are just poor uses of semantics. When I was a teenager, I internalized the idea that to make any money off my work, I would have to either have to learn how the world of fine art functions or learn how to commercialize my work in a corporate setting. By pursuing design, I chose the latter. I became very cynical about my role as an artist, with the false belief that I had to channel my passion for art into a commodity. This isn’t to suggest that graphic design lacks nuance, only that I was not a good enough designer to find my creative voice through the medium. I fell in love with graphic design once I started tying it into my illustrations and making it unique to me.

As I branched off and pursued a market that was more aligned with my passion, I realized that the first step to being a thriving artist is to take the leap and create work that makes you happy. Even though I had a passion for storytelling, I chose a route that I believed would offer me more monetary success. As I’ve grown into my passion as a children’s book illustrator, I realize that my drive to create is more important to me than anything else. It feels so freeing to follow my passion, and doing so has made me a better artist.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

What I’ve realized from talking to others and sharing my own story ideas is that the vast majority of people also have some sort of plot for a children’s book that’s been brewing in their minds. I think there are a lot of really brilliant people who just have no idea how to hit the ground running with their ideas, and my best advice is to find an illustrator and start collaborating!

I think art is inherently collaborative, but for a lot of us, there’s always an aspect of ego convinces us that it can all be done by one set of hands, or that it’s too big of an idea to be done at all. I would encourage anyone with an idea to do some research, avoid taking short cuts, and seek out illustrators who are looking for work! There are plenty of us who are looking to make your stories a reality, and the first step to a more creative ecosystem is to form a creative community.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://maddiekimber.art/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mkimberart/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maddiekimberart/

Image Credits

Leslie Osmont, Maria Giron