Illustrator Spotlight: Miranda Barnes

© Miranda Barnes

 Sept. 1, 2024

We are pleased to spotlight illustrator Miranda Barnes and her website banner design for Kidlit411. Welcome!

© Miranda Barnes

Tell us about yourself and how you came to illustrate for children.

 

Hi! I’m Miranda. I've been drawing since I could hold a pen, and reading since I was three (according to my parents). Picture books, then eventually graphic novels—or even regular novels as long as they have a good cover—have always been my comfort and my inspiration. My mom, Michelle Heidenrich Barnes, is sort of a jack of all trades in the creative sense, and I'm fortunate that most of the time I was growing up she was focusing on writing children's poetry. That was definitely a source of inspiration and encouragement as well. My first real illustration job was for her third Today's Little Ditty anthology, and we hope to continue collaborating for years to come.

© Miranda Barnes

Congrats on your banner design or Kidlit411! Tell us how you approached this project.

© Miranda Barnes

Thank you so much! I had a lot of fun making it. My intention with the design was to use the birds on a wire theme to reflect the playful aspect of childhood. Birds and kids can both be very silly—not necessarily as a performance, but just because it's what they do—so the activities of the birds in my banner are the same as what you might see when a classroom of kids is left to play freely. My process involved using acrylic paint and a Gelli plate to print patterns onto colored and recycled papers, then cutting out and collaging tiny bird and book shapes, and finally adding details with gouache and pen. I had my original design in mind while creating, but the final image is also a result of the process; I responded to the material as I went along and I'm happy with where it took me.  The Gelli plate collage technique allowed me to explore and have fun in my own way, and the medium's inherent imperfections give it a childlike feel.

© Miranda Barnes

What is your preferred illustration medium?

Any sort of drawing (pen, pencil, charcoal, colored pencil, etc) is where my heart lies, but I also love handcrafts such as textile work, bookbinding, and making jewelry. I am very detail-oriented, so my favorite mediums are usually ones where I can do a little bit at a time and make everything precise. In any case, I'm a traditional artist through and through, but since I'm a graphic designer by day, I know my way around a laptop as well. Like the mediums I work with, my style can vary pretty widely depending on the project, going from realism to simple cartoons and everything in between. That "in between" is probably where most of my work falls.

© Miranda Barnes

Who or what inspires you?

Definitely other artists, including illustrators, craftspeople, poets, writers, musicians... the list goes on. I get inspiration both through absorbing others' art and through collaboration with friends, family, and colleagues. Another big one is animals and all the silly things they do; I'm constantly personifying the traits and expressions of pets, wild animals, or even plushies, and then I just have to draw them to express the way I see them in my head.

© Miranda Barnes

What projects are you working on now?

Currently I work at M.C. Pressure, a letterpress print studio in St. Augustine, doing illustration, design, and production for in-house products and custom jobs. It's a great place, and I love that I get to make tactile objects, not just sit at a computer. In my free time I still doodle in my sketchbook and work on handcrafts like I mentioned earlier, plus the occasional bigger piece when inspiration strikes. I'm just getting my start in the illustration world, but I look forward to the day my books are on shelves!

What is one thing most people don't know about you?

I collect things—stuffed animals, quarters, tchotchkes, CDs (I pride myself on having a taste for the niche/experimental), books, earrings, handmade art, shells, dried flowers, rocks. Everything has a home on my shelves, and I love turning my house into a museum of small, happy memories. I get it from my maternal grandmother, who once called me a "little old lady in training." I've worn that title proudly ever since.

© Miranda Barnes

Where can people find you online? I recently made a new website, mchbarnes.com, which is the best place to see my work and contact me. I also have an Instagram, @miradrawspictures.

© Miranda Barnes

Miranda Barnes is a 21-year-old artist and designer from Gainesville, Florida. Currently she lives in St. Augustine, having recently earned her graphic design BFA from Flagler College, with minors in fine art and illustration. She now works at M.C. Pressure, a letterpress print studio, where her official job title is Supervisor of Doodling (only because Shop Goblin was vetoed). She lives with her roommate in an old rental house, where they cook and listen to music and take care of a thriving community of stuffed animals, plants, and sourdough starter.