Jillian Tamaki facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Jillian Tamaki
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Jillian Tamaki at the 2019 Stockholm international comics festival
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| Born | April 17, 1980 |
| Alma mater | Alberta College of Art and Design |
| Known for | Illustrator for comics |
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Notable work
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Skim, This One Summer, Roaming |
Jillian Tamaki is a talented artist and writer from Canada and the United States. Born on April 17, 1980, she is famous for her amazing illustrations and comic books. Her artwork has appeared in big newspapers like The New York Times and The New Yorker. She has also created popular graphic novels such as Boundless, Skim, This One Summer, and Roaming. Many of these books were written with her cousin, Mariko Tamaki.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Jillian Tamaki was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. She grew up in Calgary, Alberta. She attended Dr. E.P. Scarlett High School.
After high school, she studied Visual Communication Design. She graduated from the Alberta College of Art and Design in 2003. After finishing art school, she worked at a video game company called BioWare. Later, she taught illustration at the New York City School of Visual Arts.
Artistic Influences and Themes
When Jillian was a child, she loved reading Archie Comics and newspaper comic strips. She even sent in outfit designs for the Betty & Veronica comics. Her parents also had collections of other popular comics like The Far Side, Calvin and Hobbes, and Herman.
In high school, she made small, homemade magazines called zines for fun. Her interest in different kinds of comics grew when she was in college. She enjoyed comics by artists like Julie Doucet and Will Eisner.
After graduating in 2003, she started making mini-comics. Her very first mini-comic is in her first book, Gilded Lilies. Jillian often says these early influences helped her learn how to draw comics. She also worked on storyboards for the popular TV show Adventure Time.
Jillian Tamaki is interested in showing women as complete people in her art. She grew up in an area where she was one of the only mixed-race children in her school. She explains that her background helps her see the world in a unique way. Her work aims to include many different characters so that readers can see themselves in her stories.
Notable Works and Career Highlights
Jillian Tamaki has created many popular books and illustrations. Here are some of her most well-known projects:
Gilded Lilies (2006)
Gilded Lilies was Jillian Tamaki's first published book. It is a collection of her illustrations and comic strips. The book includes paintings, personal drawings, and comics. It also features a story told only through pictures called The Tapemines. This story is about two children in a strange world with "forests of cassette tape".
Skim (2008)
Skim is a highly praised graphic novel that Jillian illustrated. Her cousin, Mariko Tamaki, wrote the story. It is about a young high school girl and explores themes of friendship and finding your identity.
Indoor Voice (2010)
This book collects more of Tamaki's drawings, illustrations, and comic strips. Most of Indoor Voice is printed in black and white, but it also has some color pictures.
Now & then & when (2008)
This drawing, made with ink and graphite, was bought by the Library of Congress in 2011. It shows Jillian at different ages, from a baby to an older person. It's a modern take on how artists show themselves over time.
This One Summer (2014)
This One Summer is another graphic novel created by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki. It focuses on the experiences of two close friends, Rose and Windy. They are almost teenagers and spend a summer holiday together. This book won several awards, including a 2014 Ignatz Award and the 2015 Eisner Award. It also received the Caldecott Honor and the Printz Honor.
SuperMutant Magic Academy (2015)
This book is a collection of Tamaki's web comics that she drew from 2010 to 2014. These comics had previously won an Ignatz Award in 2012 for being an outstanding online comic.
Boundless (2017)
In June 2017, Tamaki published Boundless, a graphic novel with many short stories. The book received excellent reviews. Critics called it an "ambitious and eclectic" collection that showed Tamaki's changing art style. NPR and Publishers Weekly named Boundless one of the best graphic novels of that year.
Roaming (2023)
Roaming, another collaboration with Mariko Tamaki, was recognized for its excellence. It was shortlisted for the 2024 Lambda Literary Award for Graphic Novel. Roaming also won the 2024 Eisner Award for Best Graphic Album. Jillian Tamaki herself won the 2024 Eisner for Best Penciler/Inker for her work on the book.
Book Covers and Other Art
Jillian Tamaki has also hand-embroidered three book covers for Penguin. These covers were for classic books: Emma by Jane Austen, The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, and Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. In her free time, she enjoys making quilts as a hobby.
Our Little Kitchen (2020)
In September 2020, Tamaki published Our Little Kitchen. This illustrated book is about cooking in a community kitchen.
Discussions and Recognition
Jillian Tamaki's work has sometimes led to important discussions in the comics world. For example, when her graphic novel Skim was nominated for an award, only Mariko Tamaki was initially nominated. Many people in the comics community felt that Jillian should also be recognized. They wrote an open letter explaining that in graphic novels, both the words and the pictures tell the story. They argued that Jillian's drawings were just as important as Mariko's writing in telling the story of Skim.
This One Summer, created by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki, was a very popular book. However, it was also challenged by some groups in the US in 2016. The main reasons for these challenges were its inclusion of diverse characters and mature themes.
