Illustration
Illustrating a Changing Planet
From riverside sketchbooks to folklore and climate stories, illustrator Soumesh Choudhury uses tenderness, texture, and hand-drawn honesty to reconnect us with nature.
When you think of the place you grew up, small-town lanes, the river, the quiet - what part of that world do you feel still shows up in your illustrations today?
The riverside of the Ganga, the fields, the wide expanse, giant trees, and the hills, as well as the Himalayan culture, also inspire me with their dramatic environment, from which the visuals come.
You often begin with ink and watercolour before going digital. What does the paper stage give you that the screen never can? And what does the digital stage fix that paper never could?
Now, mostly I start with pencil and coloured pencil for sketching and ideation, adding a bit of value with black and white. Then, I move to colouring using gouache colour and a little bit of watercolour with brushes. Next, I scan it and retouch it in Procreate. I fix and repair digital items, or sometimes, in paper as well.
You’ve worked in animation, including Mighty Little Bheem - a very high-energy, fast-moving world. How did that experience shape your sense of timing, composition, or storytelling when you sit down to make a single still illustration?
Yes, in the animation storyboard, it was very fast-paced and rapid. Then, when I start illustrating again, it takes time to calm down and see it in a calm manner. However, storyboarding helps me to compose instantly and explore it in multiple ways, allowing me to free-flow with gestures and enhance the storytelling in my illustrations. I add these values to my illustrations.
You’ve said you’re drawn to ancient cultures and folklore. If you had to pick one story, symbol, or myth that deserves a modern retelling through illustration, which would it be?
I am deeply interested in folklore stories and illustrations. If given the chance, I would love to illustrate Jatak Katha (Buddhist stories).
Nature changes every day-sometimes subtly, sometimes painfully. What’s one recent moment in nature that made you stop and think, “I need to draw this before it disappears”?
Whenever earthquakes and floods occur, I feel compelled to see or draw those places before they wash away. Sometimes, I even think I should depict the calamity itself.
Many illustrators are documenting climate change by showing destruction. Your work feels more tender, more empathetic. Do you feel hope is still a useful tool for environmental storytelling?
Yes, especially emotional environmental storytelling. The only hope we have. I have developed a story as well; it's about a sea goddess and a volcano. I hope to finish it soon and get the opportunity to publish.
You’ve mentioned wanting to work on a book about global warming. What do you imagine that book looking like?
It will be my story about a mother and her beloved son, showcasing our connection to nature. It will be emotional and very hand-drawn.
Every illustrator wants their work to “say something,” especially today. How do you decide when an illustration should whisper… and when it should provoke?
In a time of vulnerability and a fast-paced world, we need to calm our minds. It should whisper to children and to all of us, urging us to reflect. Additionally, when socio-political situations arise, we should be provoked to raise our voices. Art and illustration should inspire this kind of response.
Your inspirations range from Felicita Sala and Qin Leng to Quentin Blake. What’s one lesson you’ve absorbed from each, consciously or unconsciously?
Their storytelling is easy and fluid, much like Felicita Sala and especially Rebecca Green's compositions.
Long solo cycles by the riverside, what do they do for you creatively? Do ideas come in, or do thoughts clear out?
What I usually do is go out with my ink pen and sketchbook to the riverside or the downhill Himalayas. I sit down somewhere and start loose sketching. It calms my mind; it's like a deep meditation. I forget myself and sink into nature, and sketching is so relaxing.
Folklore often reminds us that humans and nature were once inseparable. Do you think illustration can help people reconnect with that older way of seeing the world?
Illustration serves as a bridge between nature and humans, highlighting their longstanding relationship. By revisiting stories and illustrations, we can help rebuild this bond, regardless of the current state of our connection with nature.
For young illustrators, the climate crisis feels overwhelming. What’s one small way an artist can contribute without feeling pressure to “fix the world”?
If they begin to understand colours and the emotions associated with them, they'll realise that colours come directly from nature. I believe that relying more on traditional colouring methods, such as using brushes, pastels, and paints, rather than digital colouring can be more relaxing for both them and us all.
Finally, if the Earth could commission you for a project, what do you think it would ask you to draw?
Animals, trees, and weather are all interconnected in nature. For example, large whales like blue whales and humpback whales live with great compassion. They contribute to the health of the sea and support other marine animals, even after their death, by providing nutrients to the ecosystem. I think it would be wonderful to work on a project about whales, as they are something I truly love.
