Interview with Collette J Ellis,Artist & Author of 'Welsh Monsters and Mythical Beasts'

Collette June Ellis is an Illustrator of Mythozoology from North Wales, U.K, and her fantastic work is inspired by Welsh fantasy and legend, resulting in striking artwork that is exhibited across the U.K at numerous Comic Cons. Collette has successfully launched three Kickstarters, including her book ‘Welsh Monsters and Mythical Beasts’ which has sold over 1000 copies of its first edition in just one year. Covering albums and books with her stunning art and featuring on podcasts, magazines and television, it seems Collette’s art is going from strength to strength, and I was thrilled to grab the opportunity to chat with Collette about her passion for monsters and dragons!Collette – explain to us what exactly Mythozoology is!Mythozoology is the study and documentation of mythical creatures from a variety of cultures, it’s something I’ve always been fascinated by ever since I was little, that and paleontology and herpetology. I loved to imagine the kinds of adaptions mythical creatures may have in order to blend into their habitat, wildlife documentaries have always had a huge impact on my work and I love the idea of writing about these mythical beasts as if they actually existed, it’s really fun to base ideas on real-world animal adaptations because there is so much variety and diversity out there to explore.Having grown up in Wales myself, I am not surprised that you got your inspiration from the folklore and traditions of our beautiful country. For you, was there a particular story or legend that sparked your interest in Dragons?My first memory of Welsh mythology was learning about the red dragon on our national flag in school. I also remember reading about the Arthurian legend ‘The Dragons of Dinas Emrys’ and how the red dragon and a white dragon fought one another, it was really inspiring and sparked an interest in Welsh and Celtic myths for me.Tell us one or two of your favourite legends behind the pictures you have drawn.My favorite is probably the Gwiber, which is a Welsh adder that has grown so large it has turned into a dragon. My Chinese zodiac sign is a Snake and I was once told by a woman selling zodiac scrolls in China that snake people can choose to stay as snakes or grow wings and become dragons, it reminded me so much of our own Gwiber legend and stuck with me as one of my favorites.There is a story that tells of how a young man decided to hunt down and kill a Gwiber and was warded off doing so by a local wise-man, against this advice he went to kill the creature regardless and died in his attempt.Another I like is the Afanc legend; Afancs are sea-serpent type creatures that live in mountain lakes, similar to the legend of Loch Ness in Scotland. One legend tells of an Afanc that terrorized the town of Conwy, causing floods and eating livestock. The villagers got so exasperated with the beast they had a young girl sing it to sleep so they could trap it and drag it up into Snowdonia away from the village.I like that there’s a level of respect for these creatures in Welsh mythology, they are rarely killed as some form as trophy for a ‘hero’ but seen as intelligent and forces of nature that should be respected.You do a lot of conventions in the UK, where can we see your work displayed in the next few months?I used to do quite a lot of conventions, but this year I’ve had to cut them down to focus on my new ‘Welsh Myths’ book which I plan to launch later this year. I’m also focusing on applying to more fantasy publications like Spectrum Art Magazine.I’ll be attending London MCM from May the 24th – 27th, Cardiff Comic Expo on June the 2nd and hopefully London MCM October (the dates for which should be revealed later this summer).I love meeting people who follow my art online so if anyone is able to make these shows I’d love to say hello!Has anyone had your work tattooed onto them?Yes! It’s strange seeing your design etched permanently into someone’s skin but it’s also really awesome that someone loves your work enough to do that!I always advice people to please ask me first if they’re thinking of doing this, sometimes I don’t own full rights to the artwork as it may have been a commission and then obviously I can’t give permission on the commissioner’s behalf. Most good tattoo artists ask for a permission form before they copy an artists work, in exchange I will request the person wanting the tattoo supports my etsy store by purchasing a print or post card to support me.My favorite piece of your work is the Angelystor because the image is compelling, terrifying and dark – always something that intrigues me! – please tell me a bit more about this creature!The Angelystor is a spirit that is said to arise each Halloween in a Conwy graveyard, it makes its way to the Church alter and proceeds to read out the names of all those that will die that year. It’s pretty scary and I know a few people who’ve gone to the site during Halloween, it really is quite scary at night from what I’ve been told I wouldn’t recommend it!What is your most popular piece of work and why do you think this is?My most popular illustration is probably the ‘River Dragon’ an illustration inspired by the Long river in China, it’s also one of my favorite artworks and as I’m sure many artists can understand, that level I’m always trying to achieve once more in my work.Where do you work, and how much time do you spend each day creating your art.I currently work from home full time as an illustrator, I have a studio in the front room of our home.Before, I used to just create art as and when but these days having a schedule really helps. Most week days my day starts at 8am and ends around 6pm, after that I’ll have dinner and do some house-work. This can depend on deadlines though, some days I’ll have to work into the late evening. Weekends are something I try to keep free to spend time with friends or family, I’ll always keep a sketchbook on me just in case I get inspired, but it feels good to take some time off and recharge on a forest walk.You have a personal love of dragons and I see you keep some as pets! Can you tell me about them?My other passion is herpetology (keeping and studying reptiles), in total I have around seven reptiles living in our home along with four mice and a cat named Korra. I love creating bio-active enclosures and trying to replicate the conditions they would experience in the wild, it’s like creating a little ecosystem in each tank.The animals keep me company while I work and provide an incredible source of inspiration, each has their own personality and characteristics and I love transferring that into my dragon illustrations.Do you have any advice for aspiring artists who would like to pursue art as a career?.Always finish a project, it’s so import to complete something, it doesn’t have to be ‘perfect’ just make something and see it through to the end and share it with your friends and on social media as you do it. If you want to write a comic strip go for it, if you want to produce an art series honestly just do it! I think so many artists (Including myself) get wrapped up in getting things perfect or not bothering to even start something because you won’t be as good as someone else, it’s really not worth the worry, if you have an idea make it a reality.You are working on an updated version of the book Welsh Monsters and Mythical Beasts! When and where can we buy this book?I’m in the process of creating a reboot of the book, since the first launch I received so many new legends from all over Wales and of course I just had to include them! I’ll also be including new artworks and extended pages from the original book, in all I’ve added around 20 new pages and there will possibly be more before the launch.Date-wise I’m looking to open pre-orders at the end of the year, there’s no clear date yet, but as soon as I set one I’ll be creating a facebook event page so people can get a reminder when it goes live. There will be rewards for past backers of the book and early bird giveaways for those who get in on the first day.You sell your work in the form of T-Shirts, cushions and other items where can we buy them?Yes, I have a store over on RedbubbleWhat are your dreams for your work in the future and how can we help this to continue?I’d love to continue working as a freelance artist, just making enough from my original art is already a dream come true! I still have a long way to go before I’m what you’d call financially secure, so having that security would be the next step. I’d also love to write and publish more books about creatures and dragons.As for what you guys could do to help, I have an Etsy store and a patreon where you can support my art, however, if you can’t afford to support an artist financially you can share posts, comment, like and of course word of mouth is such a powerful tool.Please tell us where we can follow you and keep up to date with your events and work.Best places to follow me is on Patreon, Twitter and Facebook, I also have a monthly mailing list which I use to announce exciting news and projects you can find links to all of these via my website.LINKSwww.collettejellis.comhttps://www.patreon.com/ColletteJEllishttps://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ColletteJEllishttps://www.facebook.com/ColletteJEllisArthttps://twitter.com/collettejellishttps://www.instagram.com/collettejellisCollette, thank-you for talking to me at Red Dragon Tales – I hope one day to meet you and to be able to purchase one of your beautiful pieces of artwork for my own office wall!Collette has included a sneak peak at some of the artwork for the new edition of Mythical Beasts & Monsters! See below