KOCHI: Emmanuelle Houssais’s world is a splash of colours filled with birds, animals, dragonflies, and more. Hailing from Nantes in France, the graphic designer and children’s book illustrator is exploring those subjects that fascinate her through crafts and paintings. As part of the ABC program of Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Emmanuelle came down to Fort Kochi and conducted the workshop My Incredible Journey at the Art Room in Cabral Yard, Aspinwall. Around 25 children participated in the workshop.
The children were introduced to Emmanuelle’s illustration through the story books and together they created innovative artworks. “Children here are amazing. I was fascinated to know that they are aware of nature and the other living beings around them,” she says
The French artist’s works mostly revolve around ecological themes, such as the evolution of the universe or the life cycle of an insect or bird. In her latest book ‘The Wild Forest’, she introduces several nuances of forest to children. “I work on the details. Indian children’s books open to a lot of imagination and those illustrations accentuate the creativity of children. Through this workshop I got a better idea of India and the artistic expressions,” she says. To create vibrant and upbeat artwork, Emmanuelle works with an array of materials including acrylic paint, coloured pencils, and collages. However, her way of working is with stencils mostly. She paints on paper and prints them.
Her line of work includes books that have themes like soil diversity, climate change, health and macrobiotics, done in acrylic paints, stencils, colour pencils and sketches. Her book ‘Mon grand voyage’ talks about a girl who imagines herself floating on a feather and discussing the planet’s ecosystem. The book served as an inspiration for the workshop. The bestseller “Avant Moi,” focuses on the birth of the planet, ocean life, animals, and humans. Whereas ‘Sous mes pieds’ (Under my Feet), discusses the biodiversity of the soil.
Students from various schools in Kochi were part of the event. “It was a new experience. With the stencils of different animals we could paint anything we wanted,” says a student from Choice School.“Working with children is special to me as it is always simple. They are imaginative and come up with brilliant ideas. My future goal is to explore and develop a new poetic universe for children,” says Emmanuelle.
The artist has plans to take her workshop to other parts of India and overseas for children. “Interacting with kids teaches me a lot and improves everything I do. In Kochi, the children were enthusiastic and curious to learn new things,” she adds.