IGI features
Jon Donohue Interview
Feb, 01, 2002Jon Donohue is a veteran of Irish illustration and a former artists’ agent. We asked him for his views on a number of issues, which are currently exercising the minds of illustrators everywhere.
Has there been a decline in the use of illustration in Ireland, since you started in the business?
There is no question but that the demand for commissioned illustration has declined considerably in recent years - the advent of computers marked the beginning of the decline.
For many years you owned an illustration agency; How did that enterprise fare, over the years?
The illustration agency, which I developed in the eighties, was initially very successful. I had approximately twenty illustrators on my books and by spending a lot of money on promotion, I reckon that at least ten to fifteen illustrators were comfortably supplied and busy for some years.
Before that, agencies were using English illustrators on a continual basis, which particularly annoyed me. Not that I have anything against illustrators from the U.K., it was just that Irish illustrators were being ignored. I placed ads in the marketing journals requesting that illustrators get in touch and I was overwhelmed by the response. Kids just out of college; established artists -all available for commissioning. It was a real eye-opener; I chose the best, and tried very hard not to discourage any I felt were not quite ready for the big bad world of commercial illustration. However, it was not only altruism, for I could see the possibilities of developing a decent and professional agency.
As the agency grew, English illustrators also began asking me to represent them in Ireland. Then some Americans and even a French Canadian joined the group. The standard we set was very high -it had to be, to convince clients we could do the job. And then came the computer, and of course we embraced the technology. They were a God-send for accounts and also for our design department, which was also developing -with a heavy emphasis on illustration. However, the cost of staff; reps on the road; rents going up and the slow but inexorable decline in demand, put paid to the agency.
You gave up your studio in Dublin’s city centre and started working from home. Why?
The reason I chose to work from home is simple: costs. The advent of clampers everywhere, I was hit four times in a three month period and finally I decided; that’s it!
Many key illustrators, such as Brad Holland, have complained that stock diminishes the value of illustrators’ work - with illustrators making less money because the need for original, commissioned artwork is subsiding. What are your thoughts on the increasing use of stock imagery?
The rise in the use of stock illustration is like a cancer in the body of creative art. I can understand the dependence of agencies and design groups on this, as they are invariably under pressure to complete assignments in double-quick time. Budgets are lower and I think that creative agencies’ clients have an unfortunate and unrealistic view that computers are miraculous things that can complete work in seconds.
What are your own tastes in illustration?
I have a very catholic taste in illustration. I like all confident artists with a different view; from Quentin Blake to Dahl Taylor. Of the Irish illustrators, I admire Des Fox, David Rooney, John Short and a host of others that would take too long to list here.
Do you have a web presence and if so, what value do you place on it?
Yes I do, I developed it with help from Jack Gillin, (my son-in-law) and continue to develop and update when I get the chance. The jury is still out on whether it is a good idea or not. I think it probably is, if only because everybody else seems to have one - a bit like an asshole and an opinion!
Do you use new technology in your work?
I am a bit long in the tooth to change a lifetime’s habit; I use traditional methods. However, I have started to try using technology but I would consider myself a very raw recruit in that regard.
What are your plans for the future, in terms of illustration work?
With the many children’s books I have been involved with through the years, I hope to write and illustrate my own kids’ books, sometime soon and to go back to my first love of painting, i.e. pictures as against walls and doors! So an exhibition, at some point in the future, I hope.
