To date we have illustrated our weekly LinkedIn fables taking advantage of the one-click AI culture to create images, but were never fully satisfied with the result. We have therefore decided it’s time to find our way back to the traditional non-digital art of drawing.
I, Christa, therefore, set out to find a real person who could create illustrations for our fables. I simply stood in the classroom, calling out, ‘Who can draw?’. Teaching Marketing, I felt a little silly as it would be more appropriate to do this in the arts faculty!
After a prolonged silence, one of my master’s students, Kiren Abraham Stephen, came forward with a book filled with beautifully sketched pieces. I was immediately fascinated by his authentic drawings. His work is detailed yet simple and meaningful. Kiran not only draws objects and ideas but also actively researches their meaning, and so he does for our Academic Zoo.
So today we are proudly introducing you to our official illustrator for The Fables of The Academic Zoo and our wider Positive Academia work in the future. Kiran is from Chennai, India, and is currently completing his MSc in Marketing at the University of Westminster.
Like our Chromaleon blogging project, this is another co-creation approach that shows the possibilities of fostering connections with students. By voicing our ideas and needs, we can discover, integrate and highlight the hidden talent of our students who bring a wealth of knowledge and creativity to our work! We are looking forward to seeing Kiran’s work and education flourish; it is such an honour to showcase his wonderfully authentic art!
Welcome, Kiran, and here is to a sustainable long-term collaboration!
We are currently in the process of substituting the AI images with Kiran’s illustrations, and you thus will see a mix of drawings and AI images for a while. As you can imagine, creating real imaginative drawings takes a lot more time than simply clicking a button. You can see Kiran’s first work in the post of The Rickety Ladder: https://christasathish.com/2025/02/week-7-fables-of-academia-the-rickety-ladder/
Enjoy!
Christa & Anne-Wil