Carson Ellis is an artist and illustrator, most known for her children’s book illustrations and as the artist-in-residence for indie band The Decemberists. Despite being known for children’s books and band merchandise, Ellis’ work can also contain a darker edge; there’s an undercurrent of disquiet and bleakness in her art that can be simultaneously unsettling and mesmerizing. Much like our childhood imaginations, the worlds she conjures are dreamy and full of wonder, but a subtle layer of darkness shadows everything. It brings to mind, at least personally, of the children’s books of Roald Dahl as illustrated by Quentin Blake. Sure, a lot of her work is geared towards children, but why should that mean it’s cheerful and lighthearted?
There’s no denying her style is distinct: not-quite-even lines, a blending of styles and tools, a sense that everything is just somehow slightly off-kilter in the most beautiful way. Her color palette is extremely limited. To quote the artist, “I use a very limited palette – white, raw sienna, paynes gray, prussian blue, burnt umber, cadmium scarlet, and magenta – and I mix all my colors from those seven. I’ve been using the same basic palette for almost 20 years, with the exception of magenta which is an exciting new development for me. There are a lot of colors I can make by mixing those seven but a lot more that I can’t. The limited palette helps my body of work feel cohesive to me; it keep things connected.”
Every picture feels personal, and many are layered in more complex ways than they seem at first glance. It’s beautiful, organized chaos, representing not just our actual world, but the subconscious world, the place where monsters live and roam but maybe they don’t want to eat you, maybe they would rather invite you to a masquerade ball. Ellis’ creations live in an open, imaginative world with a hint of creepiness lurking beneath the surface. And isn’t that what we all secretly crave, in our art, and in our lives?
All photos, unless noted, are from Carson Ellis’ website.
