An imperious looking woman in medieval garb pointing a sword at the viewer

Issue 059 is ready for you!

Jennifer Lyn Parsons |

Hello hello! Issue 059 is out now. It’s full of stories that burn and spark, where things buried deep climb back to the surface, and seekers wander past the boundaries of safer lands to find what lies beyond.

But wait! Before you click those links and get immersed in the worlds crafted by our amazing authors, I bid you pause and enjoy some insights into the artist behind our outstanding cover for this issue, Kristina Gehrmann:

Tell us a bit about yourself and what got you on the path to being an illustrator. Was there a defining moment that made you decide to make art your career?

I’ve always just wanted to draw. Since learning at age 14 that “illustrator” is an actual profession, something people do for a living, it’s something I’ve focused on. I also looked into fine art, but eventually decided that commercial illustration might be more suitable for me because of the subject matters and style I’m drawn to. Since I was a teenager I’ve experimented with many different art techniques and made a conscious effort to study the drawing fundamentals.

The cover image has got such a creepy vibe and I love that it shows that fighting the monster isn’t always brave heroics. What was the inspiration for it?

I wanted to paint something late-medieval and combine some rich and intense color and pattern into one illustration, and medieval art and tapestry delivers on that front. I’m just fascinated by it. Like, Hollywood wants to make us think that the Middle Ages were dark, dreary and colorless. Maybe in some places they were. But people back then loved color, and used it whenever possible. Even peasants could have colorful clothing – there are very colorful, cheap plant dyes which the Vikings already knew – even if it wasn’t as vibrant or lightfast as more expensive colors. An interior or outfit at the height of medieval fashion would very much dazzle and impress us today.

Who are your favorite women illustrators, past or present?

Linda Bergkvist had quite a big impact on me back in the day – she was one of the first “viral” digital painters on the internet when that word wasn’t in use yet and digital art was still new to most people. Today there are probably too many to name, but if I try: Cynthia Sheppard, Anna Steinbauer, Jana Schirmer are just a few whose work I’ve admired for a long time.

What is your dream project? If there were no restrictions on time or money what would you create?

I have been lucky that my parents were financially supporting me in my first 2 years of freelancing (2012-14) so that greatly helped me to draw my passion project: Im Eisland, a graphic novel about the lost Franklin Expedition of 1845. It was published at Hinstorff Verlag, Germany, in 2015-16 and has done very well (we didn’t find an interested publisher for an English license, though).

Right now I do not have a specific dream project but would rather work on my art skills and refine them further, so with unlimited time and money I would go back to art school and take all the classes.

Because LSQ is all about stories I have to ask, what are some of your favorite tales?

Greek mythology and German fairy- and folktales have had an impression on me since I was young (although so many of them are not exactly child-friendly, haha). I also grew up with European comics like Tintin, Spirou, Asterix, Lucky Luke, Yoko Tsuno, Duck stories and others which likely led me on the path of history and adventure themes.

What’s something you’re working on now that you’re really excited about?

Currently I’m illustrating this project: The Gallaudet Eleven: The Story of NASA’s Deaf Bioastronauts, a nonfiction picture book written by Kerry O’Malley Cerra, which tells the true story of 11 Deaf men whose immunity to motion sickness helped them play a vital role in NASA’s bioresearch and helped the U.S. win the space race. The author and I are also deaf. So apart from the historical subject, this is also something I connect with on a more personal level.

Where can people learn more about you and your work?

On my website and social media profiles:

Posted in News