A New Look, Courtesy of Noelle Stevenson

Welcome to the new, prettified Sarahenni.com! (For those of you reading on an RSS feed, you might want to click through for full effect.) Since The Great Blog Disaster of 2011, I’ve been working on redesigning my blog to make it more pleasant-looking and comprehensive. I’ve added FAQ and lexicon guide pages, as well as a Listening To page where I’ll track my most-enjoyed albums.

Self-Portrait by the Artist

But! Most evident and most exciting, a new, gorgeous blog banner drawn by local Washington, D.C. artist Noelle Stevenson!

I’ve been following Noelle’s art on her Tumblr (better known as Gingerhaze) for a while, and I’m so glad she agreed to lend some of her style to my blog. She’s a student at the Maryland Institute College of Art, and does freelance art and fanart in her spare time. I asked her for an interview so my readers could get to know her better.

When did you start drawing?

I’ve pretty much always been drawing! I was one of those kids who tried to one-up the other kids at crayon time and always got art kits for Christmas. I very clearly displayed a inclination towards it at a very young age.

What made you decide to pursue art school?

I started planning for it as soon as I discovered it was possible to go to school for art. I knew that there was nothing else I’d rather be doing, and so it wasn’t a hard choice to make.

I discovered your Tumblr when my friend linked to the Broship of the Ring. What made you decide to draw the Broship?

My family has a tradition of watching Lord of the Rings every time we’re all together, so I grabbed my tablet and was doodling while watching it. I can’t say where the actual idea came from, but I drew outdoorsy Aragorn, preppy Legolas, and trucker Gimli first and posted them on my Tumblr. It blew up really quickly. Of course I had to keep going!

Were you surprised by how the Broship blew up? You and your drawings became internet famous!

It was super exciting! I found myself with a fairly large following pretty quickly and was seeing my art on big websites like io9. It was kind of surreal.

What is it about a certain book/tv show/movie/comic book that inspires you to draw its characters? For example, you’ve mentioned enjoying Game of Thrones, but you haven’t featured many drawings inspired by it.

You know, I can’t really say! Just that there are certain things that provide me more readily with material. Lord of the Rings, for example, is full of inspiration, because while it’s epic and beautiful, it’s also very easy to make fun of. I can’t say I felt very funny after finishing Game of Thrones. I also haven’t seen very much of the show yet, and it’s easier to draw fanart when the imagery is provided to you.

I write young adult books, and blog about a lot of YA books/movies/TV shows. So I love that you have drawings inspired by The Hunger Games! How did you first hear about THG? What made you want to draw those characters?

My friend recommended them to me and I was hooked instantly. No matter what anyone says about the writing style (and despite the fact that Suzanne Collins apparently decided that she hated all of her readers by the third book), they are undeniably engaging and addictive. I really found the character of Katniss refreshing, especially in the wake of Bella Swan. So when I found out that they were making a movie, I wanted to record my impression of the book before they were altered by the imagery of the movie.

Are you excited for the movie? Any concerns?

I’m very excited! From what I could see in the trailer, it looks like they really captured the spirit of the book. I’m still nervous about a few things, mainly that they’ll play to the pre-teen Twilight crowd too much, but from what I can see so far they’ve done a good job of avoiding that trap. The casting is unusual but I think they could all do a really good job.

Have you read other YA books, or do you seek out anything YA?

I haven’t found much YA to read lately seeing as it’s mostly undead teenagers in love, but I really do like the genre. I prefer action/adventure themed stories though, and sometimes those get placed in the children’s section even if they have more mature themes.

What are you reading right now?

I’m working my way through A Song of Ice and Fire by G.R.R. Martin, but I think I may give up after A Storm of Swords. It’s a bit too much for me.

What do you hope to work on once you’re done with art school?

Any kind of narrative illustration, hopefully! I came to school interested in book illustration, but my sights have shifted towards comics, especially since I’m more interested in telling my own stories. But I’d love to write and illustrate my own book at some point!

Thank you so much, Noelle! And thank you for the gorgeous artwork :) You can find more of Noelle Stevenson’s art on her blog, Tumblr, and Twitter, and buy prints at her shop!

Tagged as: Art, Fanart, Gingerhaze, New look!, Noelle Stevenson