Yesterday evening Booked Out went along to see beloved illustratorsCraig Smith and Terry Denton talk about their new books, Some Secrets Should Never be Kept and Jandamarra.

The theme of the night was the serious side of illustration. Do children’s illustrators have a duty to tackle serious themes in their work? How should those topics be approached? And how can publishers be convinced to take a chance on picture books that tread on more controversial territory than bunnies and bears?

It was a great, eye-opening night and fascinating to see just how much work goes into seemingly simple illustrations. It was also an important reminder that Craig, Terry and their colleagues are not just casual cartoonists, they are artists.