SIX MINUTES WITH STAN FELLOWS:

Today LitPick is excited to have Stan Fellows join us for a Six Minutes with an Illustrator interview. Two of the books Stan illustrated are The Tale of Rescue and The Cuckoo’s Haiku: and Other Birding Poems by Michael Rosen.

In addition to illustrating books, Stan has painted for magazines and corporate clients. He has taught watercolor and illustration and teaches a workshop on mindfulness designed for non-artists titled, Drawing in Stillness.

How did you get started as an illustrator?

My illustration career began in an era when there were illustration studios, which meant that right out of school I had two enormous advantages that no longer exist: experienced professionals on hand who could give advice, and a torrent of assignments. In a typical week one would complete between three and five assignments, and that pace continued for years.

Who influenced you?

The watercolors of Andrew Wyeth were my early inspiration, and I did my best to copy his style. I'd encourage anyone starting out to do the same - find someone whose work you admire and try to copy that style. There is a ton of learning that takes place in this process. Don't be in a hurry to find your own voice. That will come naturally in due course.

Do you have a favorite artist/subject/medium?

My current favorite artists do work that is nothing like my own. I'm partial to abstracts and folk art.

What advice do you have for someone who wants to be an illustrator?

When I began as an illustrator it was a viable career decision, like deciding to be a dentist or attorney. Those days are gone. The only advice I'd have presently is to pursue it out of passion. 

Where is your favorite place to work?

In an effort to simplify life, I have reduced the scale of the work to 9x12" (with very rare exceptions, such as when doing a book). This allows me to do everything in a sketchbook and work wherever I happen to be. Recently, my son and I took a few days to go to Big Bend National Park and camp for a few days. While there, I did a magazine assignment and some work for galleries. It's been very liberating to no longer need a studio.

What else would you like to tell us?

On average, I make three paintings a day (some are very simple studies, but still...) which adds up to roughly 1,000 a year, and I've been doing this professionally for 37 years. That's 37,000 paintings. Two points here: You will improve with dedicated practice. And I'm still learning new things. 

I’d like to clarify one thing and that would be about the volume of work produced - my comment about 37,000 paintings, and bringing work on a vacation, causes people to imagine a workaholic. Nothing could be further from the truth. I paint at this same pace whether for work or pleasure, and a typical painting takes less than an hour. Two or three hours a day of actual painting time would be average, and on vacation I find myself painting for an hour here, an hour there, simply because I enjoy it. My point in mentioning doing an assignment on our Big Bend trip was in the context of saying I'm untethered.

Stan, thank you for joining LitPick for six minutes! It was extremely interesting to hear what it was like when you started out as an artist. It’s wonderful that you can take your work with you wherever you are. Your volume of work is very impressive!