Jason Cockcroft illustrator

The Art Of Jason Cockcroft

Night Walk is a book that began as a non-fiction manuscript detailing the extraordinary, and often hidden, flora and fauna that becomes most vibrant and alive after dark. From there it was shaped into traditional narrative picture book following a boy and his grandfather as they make their way along a familiar walk in order to give tribute to the boy’s late grandmother as the sun rises on a new day.

Published by Walker Books in the UK with Ben Norland once again acting as designer, the making of the illustrations was a great joy. I was given an unusual freedom in my choices, and I particularly enjoyed indulging myself in the use of texture and colour, building layer upon layer of detail in each illustration before paring back to reveal a little of the bone-white effect of the moonlit landscape. If there are unifying themes in my work, and I’ve often doubted that there are, then I would suggest a love of nature, of atmosphere and of location must be included in the possible candidates, all of which are represented with a passion in Night Walk.