A Talk With Jane Ray

I attended a talk in which author and illustrator, Jane Ray, spoke of her practice, interests and typical working day.

Jane was particularly interested in mythology, patterns and colour. Her work appears intricate and decorative, while she works in the medium of paint and sometimes collage.

As an illustrator and author, I was especially interested in what she would make of the physical vs. digital argument. When asked, she started off by saying that she thought ebooks were “amazing”. She liked how the book covers glow on the ebook screen and how they now can be seen as a coloured image too.

When asked if ebooks affect the way she produces her work, she said no and explained that she does not work on the computer. Her media would not be affected by the ebook; she would work in exactly the same fashion, using paints and sometimes collage. 

She went on to say that she thought ebooks were “fascinating” and that she did not think they presented a threat to the physical book. She said that people will begin to see the physical copy of the book as perhaps more beautiful, as people value print, and perhaps that will also make the sales of the physical copy rise.

She finished the question by saying that she thought the two “could exist happily together”.