Studio Illustrator – Ongoing Collaboration
Studio Illustrator — Long-Term Collaborator
Atelier Agolée is a storytelling studio creating custom-written and illustrated books drawn from real lives. Each project is developed through a listening-led process and shaped into a carefully composed narrative and visual form.
We are seeking a long-term Studio Illustrator to collaborate closely on commissioned storybooks across our Children, Signature, Heirloom, and Biographical collections.
The Role
You will work in close collaboration with the atelier’s editorial and illustration leads to:
- Develop original illustrations for bespoke, one-of-one books
- Translate complex emotional narratives into restrained visual language
- Maintain consistency of tone, pacing, and aesthetic across projects
- Participate in creative discussions about structure, symbolism, and atmosphere
- Refine and revise illustrations in response to narrative development
- Contribute to the long-term visual identity of the atelier
This is a long-term collaboration, not a short-term freelance assignment.
We Are Looking For Someone Who
- Works with subtlety, restraint, and emotional intelligence
- Understands narrative illustration beyond decorative imagery
- Has experience in book illustration (editorial, literary, or fine-art leaning preferred)
- Can adapt visual language to sensitive themes (grief, legacy, identity, professional life, memory)
- Is comfortable working at a deliberate pace
- Is open to revision and dialogue
- Values continuity and long-term collaboration
Technical skill matters.
Interpretive maturity matters more.
Medium and Style
We are open to:
- Watercolor (traditional or digitally rendered)
- Mixed media
- Minimalist ink work
- Digital illustration with organic texture
We are not seeking:
- Cartoon aesthetics
- Trend-based illustration
- Template-driven design
The work must feel literary, editorial, and enduring.
Collaboration Structure
- Project-based compensation, defined clearly per commission
- Ongoing collaboration across multiple books (preferred long-term relationship)
- Clear scope defined per project
- Creative alignment conversation prior to each commission
- Full credit as illustrator on published books and selected digital materials
- Full credit as Studio Illustrator within the project context
- Permission to include selected work in the illustrator’s portfolio, subject to client consent and appropriate discretion
- Confidentiality agreement due to the personal nature of the stories
We work slowly and intentionally.
Our illustrator must be comfortable with depth over speed.
To Apply
Please send:
- Portfolio (book or narrative work preferred)
We are particularly interested in illustration that demonstrates narrative sensitivity — work that sustains tone across pages, understands pacing, and supports text rather than overpowering it.
- A brief note describing your approach to narrative illustration
Tell us how you think about story. How do you translate emotion, memory, and complexity into visual language? We are interested in process, not performance.
- Availability and location
Geography is not a limitation. We work with illustrators worldwide, provided there is alignment in vision, pace, and working method.
- Rates (per project or per illustration basis)
Kindly share your typical fee structure and how you prefer to work — whether per page, per project, or another model. This helps us shape commissions transparently and respectfully from the outset.
Send to: stories[at]atelieragolee[dot]com
Subject: Studio Illustrator Application
Applications close: 13 March 2026