Celebrating Award-Winning Picture Book Art: Spotlight on Sue Todd
In the world of children’s publishing, combining rich lyrical themes with compelling visual storytelling is an art form of its own. Today, we are thrilled to spotlight illustrator Sue Todd, whose work on the picture book Blue Boat Home (published by Skinner House Books) has earned two major industry honors:
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🥈 Silver Nautilus Book Award (Children’s Picture Books Fiction)
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🎨 Merit Award (3×3 Illustration Annual, Professional Show No. 22)
Translating Song to Screen and Page
Blue Boat Home pairs Sue Todd’s expressive visuals with the evocative lyrics of musician Peter Mayer’s beloved song of the same title. The story invites young readers to view our planet as a shared vessel journeys through space—a message brought to life through Sue’s masterful composition, rich color palettes, and deep texture.
Translating musical pacing into page-turns requires a nuanced understanding of rhythmic visual storytelling. Sue’s illustrations carry the reader effortlessly across flowing waters and starry skies, turning abstract lyrical concepts into tangible, memorable scenes for children and parents alike.
The Technique: Digital Ink with a Classic Linocut Feel
At first glance, Sue’s work carries all the tactile charm, bold contrast, and crisp edges of traditional woodcut or linocut printmaking. Remarkably, her entire process for Blue Boat Home was executed digitally on an iPad using her signature digital ink technique.
By pairing modern digital workflows with handcrafted relief-print sensibilities, Sue achieves:
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Bold, graphic line work that maintains organic movement and warmth.
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Textured color layering reminiscent of traditional printmaking inks on heavy paper stock.
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100% human-crafted precision, highlighting the artist’s eye for composition, line weight, and hand-carved character.
Bringing Linocut Aesthetics to Contemporary Publishing
Beyond children’s literature, Sue’s distinctive relief-print aesthetic brings immediate visual impact to editorial features, packaging, and commercial campaigns. Her ability to infuse modern digital media with timeless craftsmanship makes her a sought-after collaborator for art directors and editors looking for work that feels both classic and fresh.
Congratulations to Sue Todd and Skinner House Books on this well-deserved recognition!
Looking for award-winning, linocut-style illustration for your next publishing or editorial project? Explore Sue Todd’s full portfolio and available print styles on her Directory of Illustration profile.
ABOUT THE ARTIST: Sue Todd is a Toronto based illustrator living in two worlds, the analog and the digital. Sue has literally carved out a niche with her linocut technique which she then colors digitally, thus enjoying a variety of activities to fire her passion for problem solving with imagery.
Among Sue’s influences are medieval woodcuts, the art of Jim Flora, and the woodcuts of Frans Masereel and Jose Francisco Borges. Sue’s colorful art has appeared in books, magazines, posters, t-shirts, a TV commercial and on a bus.
Her client list includes Barnes and Noble, Crown Publishing, Pearson Education, Klutz Press, Andrews McMeel Accord, The Wall Street Journal, the American Bar Association, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Walmart Canada and more.
Sue is exploring the world of children’s publishing by writing and illustrating her own stories, presently works in progress. For relaxation, Sue paints oil portraits, both analog and digital. Sue is an associate of the Ontario College of Art, now OCADU.
