Sharon Fujimoto-Johnson has been making art her whole life. While recovering from cancer during the pandemic, the Roseville resident realized her dream of writing and illustrating children’s books. An agent discovered her on Twitter and her first picture book, The Mochi Makers, will hit shelves next year.

How did your first book come about?
During my recovery, I suffered major complications that rendered me unable to eat by mouth. During that time, I thought a lot about where food, family stories, and love intersect. This inspired me to write The Mochi Makers, a heartfelt story about Japanese rice cakes, immigrant family stories, and love.
 

 

What mediums do you work in?
Traditional mediums like gouache, acrylic, and pencil, as well as digital collage. I created the art in The Mochi Makers by digitally layering pencil drawings, digital paintings, hand-painted papers, family photographs, heirloom kimono fabrics, and kitchen cloths embroidered by my grandmother.

What inspires you?
Family stories, kindness, poetry, beauty, wonder in the natural world, and the joie de vivre of children. I’m also inspired to tell stories that will nudge readers’ hearts open a bit and leave a positive impact in the world. My second book, Shell Song, is inspired by the shells my grandfather collected in a Japanese-American incarceration camp in Hawaii during World War II.
 

 

What do you wish more people understood about illustration?
A picture book, though seemingly simple and small, is a work of art created by an author-illustrator, or author and illustrator, plus an entire team of people. When a reader holds one of my books in their hands, they’re holding my whole heart and the work of many people who believed in that book.

 

When Nate Reifke was in college, a skateboard company saw some T-shirts he designed for the UC San Diego surf team and hired him to design skateboards, launching his career. His clients include many well-known brands, including Red Bull, Reef, and Patagonia. As a commercial illustrator, the Pollock Pines-based artist says his job is “to be chameleon and make whatever people need.”

How do you view your role as an illustrator?
To listen and learn first. The hope is to make something that speaks for a brand authentically so people will genuinely connect with it and adopt it as their own.

 

What mediums do you work in?
Mostly pen and pencil, but I also really enjoy watercolor. The last couple of years, I’ve been using an iPad a lot, because so much of my work is for screen printing; working digitally speeds up the process and allows me to make much cleaner files.

What inspires you?
Nature—the textures and colors, and the seasons in the mountains. But probably and more importantly, I'm inspired by people who say “f--- it” and do their own thing. We can all learn from people who see the world a little differently.

 

What do you wish more people understood about illustration?
That [illustrators] don't have full control over their own creativity. I've learned ways to coax it out, but I've had to adapt and recognize the ideas worth pursuing and the ones I need to let go of.

As a young boy, Folsom artist Brian Wallace carried around a small notebook to sketch family members. Art was his favorite subject in school; after college, he was hired as an art director for a large company. “It was there that I found the opportunity to bring together my artistic abilities and passion for illustration.” Wallace’s work is familiar around Folsom. He designs the city’s annual Community Service Day T-shirt, illustrates labels for Red Bus Brewing Co., and sells his prints, stickers, cards, and books at Ruby’s Books.

 

What mediums do you work in?
Much of my work is digital illustration, which provides a lot of flexibility. However, my process typically begins with a sketch on paper, allowing me to explore and refine concepts.

How do you describe your style?
It’s uniquely me. People tell me they can spot my work from a mile away, and that's a great feeling! I think it's because I use simple shapes, clean lines, and vibrant colors.

 

What inspires you?
Nature, landscapes, and travel. Capturing the essence of a place and making it relatable is a fundamental starting point. As a California native, many of my recent creations have been inspired by the beauty of my home state. However, inspiration also emerges from the joy of sharing something captivating with others.

Roseville resident Josh Nash has been drawing for as long as he could hold a pencil. In 2004, he was hired by Scholastic Books to illustrate a series of chapter books called The Kids of Einstein Elementary. His current work includes an illustrated map of Old Town Auburn and a comic strip series on Instagram called Harriswood (@harriswoodcomic). Nash draws with black pencil, adding color with digital watercolor brushes.
 

 

How do you view your role as an illustrator?
To tell the part of the story that isn’t included in the text. Every part of an illustration can be enlisted to fill in the blanks left by the author.
 
How do you describe your style?
I don’t know how to describe it, because it’s simply what falls out of my pencil when I sit down to draw, but I know it has something to do with having been raised on Peanuts, Calvin & Hobbes, and Disney movies.
 

 

What inspires you?
Character and humor. When I create something, I want to end up meeting someone new and interesting who is going to give me a few chuckles along the way.

What do you wish more people understood about illustration?
The more effortless a drawing appears to be, the more excruciating it was to make!