Interview with Illustrator
Agnès Ernoult
What led you to become an illustrator?
As far as I can remember, it has always been the job of my dreams. From the youngest age, I would tell everyone I wanted to be an illustrator, but it hasn’t always been an easy path. I almost became an English teacher at the age of 21, then realized that would probably make me a very unhappy adult and switched at the very last moment to study Illustration, although my parents were a bit scared it wouldn’t work out!
Did you study illustration in college?
I studied Illustration for four years at Ecole Pivaut, in France. I remember these years as times of hard, committed and passionate work, but I also had so many laughs and made wonderful friends here. This school was like an artist version of Hogwarts to me! We were all so impressed by the skills of our teachers, and so eager to learn everything about drawing and painting! This school was all about traditional and academic techniques and I loved this so much.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Rennes, Brittany, France, with the famous Galettes Saucisses (a pork sausage wrapped in a buckwheat crêpe. Our local specialty). I also lived in Nantes, Paris and Lille and have a deep love for England, in which I lived for a year and went to on holidays many times as a kid.
Where do you live now and what drew you there?
I came back to Rennes three years ago and I sort of feel like a migrating animal who would have finally come back to where she belongs: After giving birth to two little girls in Lille between 2017 and 2019, I really felt that I wanted a strong connection to happen with the rest of their family, who still live there. We now live in a former farm with my family-in-law. We’re neighbors and it feels like Astérix’s village here, it’s so special!
Do you have a childhood memory relating to art that you hold dear?
There is an object I hold dearly and still have with me in the studio: when I was 5, my father had already noticed I had a special interest in drawing, and he bought me an amazing professional Stabilo color pencil box in order to encourage me! It had two big rows of wonderful colors, they were so smooth and vibrant! I only used these pencils from then on, (but sadly they are no longer available for sale), and my father would give me tips as I drew characters and landscapes with these tools: ?why not add a bit of shadow here and there? Why not take it a bit further, add some more details?? This pencil box made me legitimate and played a strong role in the amount of time I’d spend drawing in my room.
Describe your studio for us
Erm, pile of sketches, paperwork, drawings from the kids, waiting to be put away….! I’m joking, there’s more than that: lots of watercolor pans on my desk, my favorite objects and gifts given by my family standing on a shelf behind me…I have a tiny 17th-century gardening book my grandmother gave me in her last years. Funny little artworks done by my kids at school, and plants. There is a wall where I pin some interesting color palettes, and my favorite postcards. Overall it’s not what you could call a highly Instagram-like, shiny neat place, but I love it here. This room makes me feel good and productive.
Do you have a studio pet?
Absolutely, I’ve got two cats, Marcel and Maskit. Marcel is 13 Y.O, so he’s been here since the very beginning of my professional drawing journey. They do leave a fair amount of hair wherever they go, but they are the nicest, quietest pals on a busy day.
Who or What is your biggest inspiration?
Tough one! First I’d say - sorry for the boring answer - my everyday life! I tend to analyze the things I see around me wherever I go, even in the most simple life situations: at the supermarket, in the garden, at home, on holidays…Funny details is what I’m looking for. One of my teachers used to say : ? When you’re an artist, you get to closely watch the world around you every second of life, and you can never get bored!? I often add everyday life objects from my kids, or people I know in my illustrations. And the other crucial aspect is music. The more intensely focused I get on a painting, the louder I sing along in the studio! I bet it must be quite something to look at from an outside point of view.
If you could collaborate with another artist or creative of any genre, living or dead, who would it be?
Ronald Searle.
Is there a work lesson you’ve had to learn the hard way?
Yeah, I used to be too impressed by publishers and clients who gave me suggestions regarding the way a book or a product was going and got disappointed in the past. That taught me to express my opinion and speak up for my work to be respected and trusted, in order to produce books I’d always be happy with.
What’s your favourite way to spend a day off?
Go to the museum with my eldest daughter, spend time in the garden with my family, playing and gardening, and go the restaurant with my girlfriends and try lots of cocktails.
What's your most prized possession and why?
I made birth boxes for each of my three kids, and I preciously keep them in the studio with me. They contain their very first clothes and maternity hats (so so so tiny), the newspapers from the day they were born, their little hospital bracelets, greeting cards…They are definitely my favorite and most prized belongings. It feels so special to open them and look at all the little things every now and then, it’s like travelling back to these unique moments in one’s life.
What causes are you passionate about?
I’ve struggled a bit with eco-anxiety last year, so I try to live accordingly and be a good model to my children.
Do you adopt any environmental habits/practices to be more sustainable?
We walk to school everyday regardless of the weather, buy second-hand clothes, eat less meat, travel in France mostly, grow a veggie patch, and leave some untrodden space in the garden for little animals to settle in, to name a few.
What do you listen to when you work?
If I’m perfectly honest and share my last songs with you, here is what I see: Mariah Carey, Ariana Grande, JLO, Madonna! But two weeks ago it could have been Cypress Hill, Kate Bush, The Strokes, A Tribe Called Quest…My music tastes are pretty random, and a bit dodgy sometimes. I also LOVE UK Garage and I don’t understand why it never got big in France.
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What is the first record you bought?
THE SPICE GIRLS DEBUT ALBUM of course!
What was your favourite assignment ever?
I loved creating a mascot for the French Dessert Brand Andros a few years ago. The team was great, the work was exciting, and the character I created was put on such a wide range of products.
Who is your art hero?
Sempé.
Who is your music hero?
Mylène Farmer.
If you were not an illustrator, what would you be?
A midwife or a farmer, or both!
If you could visit anywhere in the world, where would you go?
I’d go to Japan, I have family there. And I would eat all the food.
Have you any hidden talents?
I can make a fantastic impression of Shakira’s voice (but not her moves, I’m afraid.)
What is your go-to comfort food?
A slice of carrot cake. Two slices. Maybe three.
What movie can you watch over and over?
I can’t wait to show my kids 'Nightmare Before Christmas'.
What is the last show you binged?
I resigned from a few platforms recently because I wanted to read more at night. I was absolutely crazy about Game of Thrones though, and used to have GOT nights every week with my friends from art school. We’d cook dinner while making predictions on who’d die and who’d live, and sang to the opening track like wild football supporters, those were the days.
What was the last concert you went to?
ORELSAN!
What is your favourite book?
If I would answer in a smart, intellectual way, I would say Les Misérables by Victor Hugo, which is still incredibly modern, beautifully written and has helped me to understand how society works and the march of the world, even nowadays. And if I’m truly honest, the first book I thought of was Bridget Jones' Diary.
What is your go-to karaoke song?
Any 2000’s RnB song you can go ?Wooohooo? and ?Yeah yeeeeah yeeeeah? to with your friends.
What is your favourite quote?
Hard is not the same thing as bad.
What career advice would you give your younger self?
It would be a rhyme by the rapper Orelsan: ?Ecoute bien les conseillers d'orientation et fais l'opposé de ce qu'ils diront?, which you can translate as: ?Listen carefully to your career advisors and do the opposite of what they say?.
Do you have any tips/advice for other illustrators?
Follow your inner voice and don’t try to follow trends or fashions with the hope of fitting-in and making more money. Your uniqueness is your strength. Try and work on assignments you truly love: these will be your best artworks.