Industry Professionals’ Testimonials
Praise for Amanda and her work from industry professionals.
In an age of Children’s Book illustrations that all too often look alike, with a crude simplicity of outline and flat blocks of colour, it is refreshing and stimulating to be confronted by Amanda Hall’s classy and competent artwork.
Her idiosyncratic imagination combines with complexities of content and tonal colouration, to produce confections of visual pleasures. I look forward to every new and original take she confers on classic stories and the best of new authorship.
Amanda Hall’s meticulously crafted illustrations really capture the spirit of traditional stories, and it is with great delight that editors and designers gather to marvel at each package of finished artwork: exactly to specification, beautifully presented and always to the agreed schedule.
Books we have done with Amanda have been received enthusiastically by a wide range of coedition partners.
Commissioning Editor of The Lion Classic Aesop’s Fables
As art director for Cricket magazine, I work with dozens of illustrators on a regular basis and few are as delightful and professional as Amanda Hall. I first worked with her when we adapted her print illustrations for “A Pelican Chorus” (which she had done for Ladybug magazine) for an iPhone app. I was so impressed with the imagination and humor that she brought to her beautiful, stylized illustrations, that I approached her to do a cover for Cricket. She adapted her style to our pre-teen readers beautifully, and was a pleasure to work with as we refined the sketches. The resulting cover was one of my personal favorites-full of creative details and charm.
Working with Amanda Hall on the illustration of several of our picture books has been nothing but pleasurable. Amanda brings great enthusiasm and creativity to the development of her picture books. During the development process, Amanda provides us with all of the materials necessary to help us to understand her visual story telling which in turn helps us to make good decisions about the development of both image and text. Her illustrations have made our books rise above the ordinary. Amanda is a consummate professional in all things. I look forward to working with her again and again.
Art Director for The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau
I’ve worked with Amanda on stories for two major School Market Publishers based in Chicago. She only creates well realized work – her illustrations are radiant and her compositions are flawless. She interprets the most complex of stories lyrically. She collaborates well, and is very professional when dealing with clients’ input. I plan to work with her again and often!
I have worked with Amanda on several projects spanning over a decade. What I love most about her work is her ability to take the story and elevate it to a higher level. I have always been amazed not only by Amanda’s artistic skill but by her sense of design. Her pages are composed like mini paintings. Also Amanda is just easy to work with. I have hired many great artists but I always come back to the people that not only are talented but a pleasure to work with. I always have Amanda on the top of my list.
“I’m the author of ‘The Tiger and the Persimmon’ in Spider magazine, and I wanted to let you know how much I love your illustrations for the story. The village, the tiger, and the family are all as I imagined—or better!”