Gillian Dreher – Designer

I'm an illustrator based in Oakland, California specializing in young adult, children's, and mental health content. By blending my background in traditional media with digital tools I bring a bright, hand-drawn aesthetic to my work, which results in illustrations that feel warm and relatable. I play with texture, shape, light and color to create images that convey both a story and a feeling at the same time. While my style translates to a variety of content, my specialties are humans and animals-- I love bringing characters to life! My passion lies in creating visual representations of complex emotions, stories, and people-- I believe that two opposites can be true at the same time and strive to convey that in my work.

When collaborating with writers and stakeholders I strive to be uncomplicated, transparent, and succinct throughout the process. I'm a clear and direct communicator and will make sure we're both aligned on the goals of the project before creating sketches to convey your ideas, then will work closely with you to refine the final work until it perfectly illustrates your project. My goal is to not just meet but exceed your expectations-- I want us both (as well as future readers) to fall in love with the final work!

"Really loved working with Gill! She worked off some concept images I created and did a great job incorporating her own style. I asked her to illustrate the most complicated page from a children's book manuscript and she did an awesome job. Very happy with the outcome!"
- Josh R., Private Children's Book Commission