Experimental Techniques through Children’s Illustration
A course by Kayla Stark , Illustrator
Find your artistic style by exploring various combinations of materials, mediums, and techniques to create special illustrations for children
Find your artistic style by exploring various combinations of materials, mediums, and techniques to create special illustrations for children
“The way to find who you are as an artist is to lose the fear of experimenting” says illustrator Kayla Stark. She is inspired by observing the world around her, questioning everything, and playing with materials to keep exploring her artistic style. She has illustrated several children’s books, including an interactive board book she wrote, Friends at the Firehouse. Her work has appeared in magazines and on posters, and she has co-founded a working studio.
In this course, she shows you how to experiment with combinations of different mediums, develop your own artistic style, and expand your illustration techniques. Discover mind mapping exercises, and experimentation and analysis practices to produce three versions of your illustration, and learn how to digitally refine and edit your final piece. Dare to experiment in the wonderful world of illustration and see how far you can express your ideas.
What will you learn in this online course?
16 lessons & 16 downloads
- 100% positive reviews (31)
- 1,039 students
- 16 lessons (2h 53m)
- 16 additional resources (5 files)
- Online and at your own pace
- Available on the app
- Audio: English
- English · Spanish · Portuguese · German · French · Italian · Polish · Dutch
- Level: Beginner
- Unlimited access forever
What is this course's project?
Produce three different illustrations of the same scene, changing your techniques and materials for each one to show a different mood and style.
Who is this online course for?
This course is for anyone with an interest in exploring their illustration style, and for illustrators interested in the children’s publishing world.
Requirements and materials
Experience with illustration materials, color theory, and artistic terms would be useful but is not essential.
In terms of materials, you will need gouache paints, colored pencils, water-soluble crayons, watercolors, paper, an iPad with access to Procreate, and an Apple Pencil.
Reviews
A course by Kayla Stark
Kayla Stark is an illustrator from Tennessee, USA, who has been in love with drawing for as long as she can remember. She believes in using your own individual perspective on the world and using it to create illustrations with a unique perspective. She studied Graphic Design at university and worked in a number of graphic design roles after graduating before pursuing her first love: illustration.
Since becoming a full-time freelance illustrator, working both digitally and traditionally across projects. Kayla has illustrated several books, including an interactive board book she wrote, Friends at the Firehouse, and her work has appeared in magazines and on posters. As well as this, Kayla sells her art prints online. Inspired by fellow illustrators, graphic designers and other creatives in her area, Kayla co-founded a working studio The Warren in Nashville, home to workshops, gallery shows, and other community events.
Content
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U1
Introduction
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About Me
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Influences
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What Will We Do in This Course?
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U2
Brainstorming and Mindmapping
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Materials
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Brainstorming and Mindmapping
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Finding Pattern and Connections To Plan for the Final Illustration
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U3
Playing and Mark Making
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Water!
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Layers Layers Layers 1
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Layers Layers Layers 2
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Graphite and Digital Color
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U4
Planning and Executing Your Final Illustration
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Go Turn On Your TV!
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Thumbnailing and Sketching Your Final Piece
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Illustrating Your Final Piece and Incorporating Experimental Elements
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Digital Touches and Prepping the Final File
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U5
What’s Next?
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Make It a Set!
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Submit Your Story
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FP
Final project
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Experimental Techniques through Children’s Illustration
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What to expect from a Domestika course
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Learn at your own pace
Enjoy learning from home without a set schedule and with an easy-to-follow method. You set your own pace.
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Learn from the best professionals
Learn valuable methods and techniques explained by top experts in the creative sector.
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Meet expert teachers
Each expert teaches what they do best, with clear guidelines, true passion, and professional insight in every lesson.
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Certificates
PlusIf you're a Plus member, get a custom certificate signed by your teacher for every course. Share it on your portfolio, social media, or wherever you like.
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Get front-row seats
Videos of the highest quality, so you don't miss a single detail. With unlimited access, you can watch them as many times as you need to perfect your technique.
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Share knowledge and ideas
Ask questions, request feedback, or offer solutions. Share your learning experience with other students in the community who are as passionate about creativity as you are.
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Connect with a global creative community
The community is home to millions of people from around the world who are curious and passionate about exploring and expressing their creativity.
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Watch professionally produced courses
Domestika curates its teacher roster and produces every course in-house to ensure a high-quality online learning experience.
FAQs
Domestika's courses are online classes that provide you with the tools and skills you need to complete a specific project. Every step of the project combines video lessons with complementary instructional material, so you can learn by doing. Domestika's courses also allow you to share your own projects with the teacher and with other students, creating a dynamic course community.
All courses are 100% online, so once they're published, courses start and finish whenever you want. You set the pace of the class. You can go back to review what interests you most and skip what you already know, ask questions, answer questions, share your projects, and more.
The courses are divided into different units. Each one includes lessons, informational text, tasks, and practice exercises to help you carry out your project step by step, with additional complementary resources and downloads. You'll also have access to an exclusive forum where you can interact with the teacher and with other students, as well as share your work and your course project, creating a community around the course.
You can redeem the course you received by accessing the redeeming page and entering your gift code.
mhmehrabani
PlusKayla excels at building confidence, especially for beginners hesitant about starting illustration. Her warm, encouraging approach helps overcome initial fears. I'm glad this was my first course—it set a positive tone for my illustration journey! Each lesson is thoughtfully structured, accessible, and engaging. Kyla's guidance makes complex ideas manageable, creating a safe space to make mistakes and learn. This course gave me both skills and self-assurance; I highly recommend it for beginners!
fabiennebegonia
Bon cours, bien expliqué, j'ai bien aimé ces echniques mixtes et je compte continuer à les utiliser
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oxymorous
Kayla fez eu me sentir muito à vontade para curtir o processo e aceitar os erros como parte essencial do aprendizado!
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hahlynn
Cours intéressant. Je ne l'ai pas terminé, mais il donne des idées.
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solilus
Me encanta el curso es muy entretenido, aun no lo termino pero ya quiero hacer mi proyecto final
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