Pick up any popular children’s book in Hawai’i, and chances are that it is illustrated by Yuko Green. The award-winning author/illustrator of dozens of children’s picture and activity books, Yuko’s mixed-media artwork is unmistakable with its vibrant colors and delightful subjects that children love. Her work celebrates the people, nature, and traditions of our islands.
We are so pleased to talk story with Yuko today.
Aloha, Yuko, and welcome! For those who havenʻt met you yet, could you please tell us a little about yourself?
Aloha mai kākou! I am an illustrator and author of children’s books, living on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi. I am grateful to have had opportunities to illustrate and/or written more than forty children’s books and many childrenʻs activity books, with Hawaiian themes since 1989. I am also an art teacher for children.
I moved to Hawaiʻi from Japan in 1987. I have lived in Hawaiʻi more than 35 years, so I call Hawaiʻi my home now and like to call myself kamaʻāina 🙂
Your art is so expressive and colorful. If you had to choose a favorite project, which would it be and why?
Mahalo for your kind words!
I love to create illustration with an array of colors I see everyday in Hawaiʻi, and these vibrant and multicolored illustration has become my signature style. For my art, I use watercolor, collage, and digital mixed media to create illustrations. Working with textual mixed media (traditionally or digitally) adds visual interest to my illustrations, so mixed media collage is my favorite technique I use at this moment, and I have been using this technique for most of my recent books, including my latest children’s book Tūtū’s Secret written by Gloria Itman Blum.
I was illustrating this book when our first granddaughter was born, and since this story was about the relationship between tūtū and granddaughter, the story resonated with me. This book also allowed me to grow as an illustrator, learning to add the details digitally to my large forms of collage and finding the balance of those two elements. So this book turned out to be my favorite project.
What was the journey like to becoming an artist? Did you always knew you could create art?
As long as I remember, my dream was to illustrate children’s books, from my young age. That dream came true when God brought me to Hawaiʻi. In my early career, I was given the opportunity to illustrate a textbook by Bess Press in 1989 and illustrated and designed many island products by Island Heritage Publishers. I also illustrated many cultural paper dolls for magazines and a publisher on the continent, Dover Publications, for about ten years.
Then from around 1996 through 2000, I illustrated a series of Hawaiian theme educational coloring books, including Hawaiian Plants and Animals and Exotic Flowers for artists (76 pages), for Dover. To accomplish the task, I did intensive research and study, and that knowledge became my foundation for illustrating Hawaiian childrenʻs books. I give thanks to God how He has guided my illustrating career, which I have never dreamed I’d have when I first landed on the Big Island.
I also cannot thank enough for the relationship I have with Island Heritage since my first encounter in 1993 designing island products and my first book in 1997. I illustrated many childrenʻs books, board books, paper doll books, and coloring and activity books, and we continue to work to create for island keiki to this day. One of the longest selling books I illustrated with them, Humu: The Little Fish Who Wished Away His Colors, is 23 years old now! The author Kimberly A. Jackson and I are still good friend, and we are learning ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi, Hawaiian language, together now.
What do you enjoy most about creating art?
When I see keiki reading my books in the library or other public places, or when moms of my art class students tells me they used to read my books when they were young, I feel so humbled and grateful, and feel rewarded for my hard work.
Who would you say are your biggest supporters?
My family. My two daughters have seen their mom illustrating children’s books from their young age, and have been my best critics, giving me honest and valuable feedback.
My husband, Stephen, has always been there for me in every way to encourage me and support me, whether to assist me to decide on the career path or to decide between this color or that color for the keiki’s dress on a page. He was born and raised in Hawaiʻi, with knowledge and love for Hawaiʻi’s nature and culture, that has given me tremendous insight to all aspects of island themes. He always believe in me, even when I lose confidence, and so I know his faith in me made me to be the artist I am today.
Can you share a bit of your current work?
Being a Japanese native, I have always wanted to work for Japanese publishers one day. Since 2017, I have illustrated two coloring books for a Japanese Christian publisher, Olives Press, and currently am working on the third one.
I am also working on the 5th coloring book with a local organization, Keiki Heroes, on local keiki characters I developed with community leaders when COVID started. This project led me to work with several non-profit organizations in Hawaiʻi to help and educate keiki on various issues. I am very grateful that I can help these causes through my art.
What are your hopes and dreams for the year and beyond in terms of your artistic career and what you would like to see published in the future?
As much as I love creating and illustrating books, I enjoy having real relationships with my young readers. So my hopes and dreams for the year to come is to develop relationships in my community and on the Big Island, and in Hawaiʻi at large, to reach out and doing art with children. My on-going goal is to do more keiki art workshops and teach art in the classroom.
I also have this dream of creating a book illustrated with children’s art, and it looks like it will happen soon thanks to a workshop I offered on “Coloring Book Creation” for ages 13–18 at East Hawaiʻi Cultural Center in Hilo. The workshop theme is “Mālama ʻāina”, about endangered animals and plants of Hawaiʻi and how kids can help to protect them.
Where do you get your inspirations?
Hawaiʻi’s rich and diverse culture, history and nature have become my primary subject and inspiration for creating my children’s books. Over the years, my aloha for the ʻāina has grown deeply in me and is reflected in my books for keiki, whether in vivid stories of traditions of Hawaiʻi or illustrations featuring many native plants and animals.
In addition to books, what other kinds of art do you do?
Besides illustrating and writing children’s books, I am also an art educator. Currently, I enjoy teaching in the K‑5 art program at Waimea Elementary School. Teaching young children is my other passion, and I feel so grateful that I can share our beautiful world through art with them.
What advice would you give an aspiring illustrator?
Besides improving your artistic skills, knowing who you are can help you navigate your illustrating career. For example, when I just started, I concentrated on creating my paper doll books. It’s such a niche market, but it was a good decision for me to focus on that niche because I really enjoyed doing it and not many people was doing it at the time. Over time, my illustration skills improved because I was creating lots of art.
Another advice is to start locally instead of targeting big markets and competing with a large group of artists. When you start locally, such as on local magazines, newsletters, and businesses, you start to develop your style. You also learn about the illustrating business as you hone your skills. You become more experienced, and your portfolio grows.
Are you active on social media? Do your readers contact you? What do they say?
My website is www.yukogreen.com, and my Instragram account is @yukogreen.art. I also always appreciate hearing from my readers. I have received such nice messages from teachers, parents, and grandparents. I read and respond to all of them, even just to say hello. 🙂
Mahalo, Yuko, for talking story with us! We wish you all the success in the world! To learn more about Yuko Green and her books, please visit her website or at Instagram.
Images courtesy of Yuko Green.