Interview of Honee Jang, Illustrator of THE PRINCESS & THE GRAIN OF RICE by Tina Cho
I want to welcome my fabulous illustrator to the Grog Blog, Honee Jang! I'm blown away by all the research and places she traveled to for illustrating our picture book, THE PRINCESS & THE GRAIN OF RICE.
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| Honee Jang |
1. Tell us a little about yourself. (and how to pronounce your name for readers)
Hello! It's a delight to share my story with you. My name is Honee Jang, pronounced "Han-ee", with Han as in the "Han Dynasty" and E like the letter. I'm a Korean American illustrator and a book designer.
I started out as a picture book designer at HarperCollins in New York. After moving to London in 2020, I expanded my practice to illustration as well. Through bookmaking, I wish to be true to the message of each story and to create work that feels genuine, thoughtful, and sincere.
2. What or who inspired you to become an illustrator? What steps did you take for your career?
Shaun Tan's The Red Tree was my first true introduction to the world of illustration. I devoured picture books as a child, but his work was the first to make me realize that "illustrator" could be a profession. When I first moved from Korea to the U.S. in 2003, art became my primary form of expression. I used it wherever I could–to make friends, to take on big school projects, and to shape a sense of identity for myself, as someone who does art. I was shy and not yet fluent in English, and the way Tan captured feelings of displacement and self-discovery through metaphor resonated deeply with me.
His rich colors and emotional depth kept pulling me back to his other work, and learning much later that his family were immigrants made that connection feel even more meaningful.
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| Shaun Tan's The Red Tree - YouTube flip through |
Through pure luck and the encouragement of my middle school music teacher, I auditioned for A.W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, a public free arts high school which happens to be one of the rarest programs in the country. Students could audition for two majors, so I applied for flute performance first and fine art second. My parents thought this would improve my chances for admission since I didn't have proper art training, but I remember secretly wishing not to get in for music, so I can study art. And that's exactly what happened.
My path to art still wasn't a straight path. After a few turbulent years and many difficult conversations with my parents, I transferred from a pharmacy program to Pratt Institute, filled with a lot of hope and even bigger fear. After graduating with a degree in illustration, I took on any creative-ish work I could find–mostly graphic design for event stationery and social media. It took another two years to join HarperCollins as a book designer. I hadn't even known that role existed, but I loved it instantly. It felt like going to work to play.
As I immersed myself in the publishing world, my love for picture books quietly deepened. In 2020, I moved to the UK to join my husband, and a six-month period without a work permit gave me the unexpected space to pursue illustration myself. What began as a pause became a new chapter.
3. What made you want to take on this book project?
While working in publishing, I was in awe of the growing number of Asian immigrant voices creating picture books, and I felt a strong need for more Asian stories. Like many Asian Americans growing up in the US, I remember scanning through library shelves for familiar surnames, hoping to find a story that reflected how I felt– looking for all the Parks, Kims, and Lees (hello, Harper Lee–you're wonderful, but not quite who I was searching for).
Around the time I joined HarperCollins, Black voices were gaining long-overdue visibility in the industry, and that gave me hope that Asian voices would soon follow. Then books like Joanna Ho's Eyes that Kiss in the Corners and Robin Ha's Almost American Girl appeared, which affirmed to me that this shift was already happening, and that we didn't need to wait quietly for our turn. I knew that if given the opportunity, I could bring something honest and deeply rooted in my culture to the world of picture books.
Joanna Ho's Eyes that Kiss in the Corners and Robin Ha's Almost American Girl
I was already familiar with Tina's wonderful book, The Ocean Calls, a story about a haenyeo (Jeju island's freediving fisherwoman) and her granddaughter. With my desire to do my part, I was thrilled to receive the manuscript for The Princess and the Grain of Rice. The visuals came alive immediately–the yellow jeogori, and orange-red chima, and a curious, sincere girl who genuinely wants the best for her people. I was excited to highlight Korean values such as jeong–a deep, innate sense of care and connection– respect for elders and all living beings, and modesty.
Setting the story in the Joseon dynasty allowed me to explore a culture I deeply love. I was especially drawn to retelling Queen Jeongsoon's princess test through the lens of a familiar Western folktale, and to share her wisdom in a way that felt both fresh and relatable for readers.
4. Please share w/readers how you created the illustrations. (tools, medium)
For some years, I felt drawn back to traditional media, and this project felt like the perfect opportunity. I wanted a hand-drawn, folky quality that feels carefully made and gently worn by time.
I aimed for a flat, calligraphic style that nods to ancient art while remaining modern and child-friendly. I used rough black outlines that mimic calligraphic brushes, and charcoal/crayon like textures to flatten the color shapes. This approach helped evoke the feeling of traditional painting.
To emulate the texture of traditional rice paper–the "canvas" during Joseon period made from mulberry pulp and used since Korea's Three Kingdoms era–I experimented with various surfaces. Surprisingly, photograph of a white concrete wall worked beautifully to achieve that effect.
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| Early sketches of Jeongsoon |