Most children’s book illustrators only have words to work with when they create artwork. At The Secret Mountain, they also have music. We asked Judith Gueyfier where she found inspiration for her illustrations in the children’s play Amondo, Son of the Baobab. After studying design in Paris at the Duperré School and illustration in Strasbourg at the Arts Déco School, Gueyfier began creating children’s books. Over the past 15 years, she has produced more than 30 picture books for Rue du Monde, Le Seuil, Sarbacane, and The Secret Mountain. Recently, she illustrated the award-winning picture book Songs in the Shade of the Cashew and Coconut Trees.
How do you get started on a project like Amondo, Son of the Baobab? What is your creative process?
For each project, I receive the text well in advance, and I read it many times, so that the visuals and characters take shape and come to life in my head. With Amondo, Son of the Baobab, I had access to the narrated play and music right from the start, and it was very inspiring because the acting, voice work and performances are all excellent.
Once I’m fully immersed in the story, I do some iconographic research, which inspires my drawings of animals, landscapes, characters and their costumes. I sketch out the characters and various scenes, working in a traditional way with paint and an array of colours. It’s through colour that I convey the magic and poetry of the story.
What's your favourite page or part of the story?
It’s hard to choose one part! I really like the image of the baobab tree with the children perched in its branches and the heart underground, connected to its roots. It’s so intriguing: You want to know what’s going to happen next. This is also the image that The Secret Mountain chose to put on the cover. I’m lucky enough to have seen a number of baobabs in my travels—some of them hundreds of years old. They’re so impressive, I can understand why they become characters in their own right in stories and tales!
Where do you find other sources of inspiration for your work?
For a project like this one, it’s easy to find inspiration, as I’m very familiar with West African cultures and Mandingo culture in particular. The story in Amondo, Son of the Baobab stems from this geography and culture. I’ve made several trips to this area, between Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali. I’ve read a lot of authors from French-speaking Africa, along with fairytales and the history of Sundiata Keita. I've been practicing Manding dances since I was 15. I’m also very familiar with the music and instruments that you hear in the songs on the album. So, the visuals came to me very naturally.
As for the illustrations, some details were very obvious to me, such as avoiding wax fabrics for the garments and instead showing real traditional African fabrics, such as bogolan and indigo dyes.
Amondo, Son of the Baobab
In West Africa, a magnificent baobab presides over a village beset with a terrible drought. A long, long time ago, when the stars were still babies, the tree fell in love with the earth. As it buried its roots deep in the earth’s heart, the sun grew jealous. The sun shone and shone, until lakes and rivers flew away and even its own heart dried up and disappeared. At the centre of this tale is Amondo, son of the baobab, known as “The One Who Unites.” Only he can restore hope to the villagers by freeing the water from the spell cast by the sun. But in order to succeed, he must complete four difficult tasks…
This play, followed by seven songs, transports readers to the extraordinary world of African folklore, to a time when the moon, trees and animals spoke to humankind.
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Behind the Art of Amondo, Son of the Baobab with Judith Gueyfier
Most children’s book illustrators only have words to work with when they create artwork. At The Secret Mountain, they also have music. We asked Judith Gueyfier where she found inspiration for her illustrations in the children’s play Amondo, Son of the Baobab. After studying design in Paris at the Duperré School and illustration in Strasbourg at the Arts Déco School, Gueyfier began creating children’s books. Over the past 15 years, she has produced more than 30 picture books for Rue du Monde, Le Seuil, Sarbacane, and The Secret Mountain. Recently, she illustrated the award-winning picture book Songs in the Shade of the Cashew and Coconut Trees.
How do you get started on a project like Amondo, Son of the Baobab? What is your creative process?
For each project, I receive the text well in advance, and I read it many times, so that the visuals and characters take shape and come to life in my head. With Amondo, Son of the Baobab, I had access to the narrated play and music right from the start, and it was very inspiring because the acting, voice work and performances are all excellent.
What's your favourite page or part of the story?
It’s hard to choose one part! I really like the image of the baobab tree with the children perched in its branches and the heart underground, connected to its roots. It’s so intriguing: You want to know what’s going to happen next. This is also the image that The Secret Mountain chose to put on the cover. I’m lucky enough to have seen a number of baobabs in my travels—some of them hundreds of years old. They’re so impressive, I can understand why they become characters in their own right in stories and tales!
Where do you find other sources of inspiration for your work?
For a project like this one, it’s easy to find inspiration, as I’m very familiar with West African cultures and Mandingo culture in particular. The story in Amondo, Son of the Baobab stems from this geography and culture. I’ve made several trips to this area, between Burkina Faso, Guinea and Mali. I’ve read a lot of authors from French-speaking Africa, along with fairytales and the history of Sundiata Keita. I've been practicing Manding dances since I was 15. I’m also very familiar with the music and instruments that you hear in the songs on the album. So, the visuals came to me very naturally.
As for the illustrations, some details were very obvious to me, such as avoiding wax fabrics for the garments and instead showing real traditional African fabrics, such as bogolan and indigo dyes.
Amondo, Son of the Baobab
In West Africa, a magnificent baobab presides over a village beset with a terrible drought. A long, long time ago, when the stars were still babies, the tree fell in love with the earth. As it buried its roots deep in the earth’s heart, the sun grew jealous. The sun shone and shone, until lakes and rivers flew away and even its own heart dried up and disappeared. At the centre of this tale is Amondo, son of the baobab, known as “The One Who Unites.” Only he can restore hope to the villagers by freeing the water from the spell cast by the sun. But in order to succeed, he must complete four difficult tasks…
This play, followed by seven songs, transports readers to the extraordinary world of African folklore, to a time when the moon, trees and animals spoke to humankind.
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