“I am convinced that the emotions we feel affect us more than words. For this reason, when I begin to illustrate a new story, what I do is let myself be guided by the sensations that the text suggests to me. Then I translate everything into shapes and colors. ” THE VALUE OF IMAGES IN CHILDREN’S BOOKS

To speak is Chiara Gobbo, illustrator for children, who transformed her passion for painting into a profession, now has dozens of publications for various publishing houses. It is fortunate to be able to have a chat with her because it is not every day that we talk to authors of children’s books, and even less to their illustrators; it is a profession that sometimes remains a bit in the shade but should by no means be taken for granted.

“In fact” – continues Chiara – ” even if the parents’ reading remains a very important moment in the relationship with the child, a moment of intimacy and sharing, perhaps before bedtime, it is useful to remember that the child must be able to follow the stories told and develop a personal relationship with books ; this also applies to children who are not yet able to read the alphabet. In this case, the images guide understanding. “

In her works Chiara tries not only to faithfully describe what happens in the text, but above all to give expression to the feelings and emotions that accompany the story. Happiness, lightheartedness, but also anger and fear. Through the comparison with the drawings, children can learn to recognize moods and relate them to their daily experience; Sometimes experiencing them in advance can serve to minimize the insecurity of the first experience. To obtain this result you need less technique and academic precision (which however does not mean not having it) and more creativity: “Usually I proceed by stylization. The figures are all well defined and easily recognizable. The use of color instead of pencil marks helps me to define spaces and atmospheres. But each book is always different and every time I enjoy inventing a new universe. The rainbow may be square, the sky red, and the trees blue, but children have no problem interpreting an unrealistic world. “

Chiara, who is also the mother of a beautiful one and a half year old girl, knows that at every age, I have different tastes and needs. His Moon, like other children between 18 and 24 months, still prefers scenes with concrete objects that he uses in daily life and with recurring characters that he finds in many different adventures with the same characteristics . This repetitiveness, in addition to gratifying for the ease and correctness with which the represented elements are recognized, gives safety and serenity. This explains the success of some series of stories such as that of Giulio Coniglio, La Pimpa, Topo Tip, Winnie the Pooh, Peppa Pig…. Chiara admits a little reluctantly that for the moment Luna prefers the books of others… but she has plenty of time to grow. The pleasure of discovering something unexpected, new and unpredictable belongs to the following years, starting from the pre-school age, in which the child begins to intuitively grasp the symbolic and humorous dimension of the drawings.

Chiara’s illustrations are like this, delicate and dreamy and they know how to make adults travel with the imagination too…. THE VALUE OF IMAGES IN CHILDREN’S BOOKS