Hello, my name is Mark Winters O’Connor and I’m an Irish Illustrator based in Kildare. I’ve always loved to draw and take huge inspiration from animated movies, particularly 2D animation. To me, illustration is a powerful medium for expression and is essential to bringing a story to life. For my education, I recently graduated from the National College of Art and Design. I really enjoyed my time there and I feel I've developed my practice as well as made life-long connections. In my final year I developed a project I’ve called 'Úla’s Big Day Out' and I’d like to share that with you here. Deciding what direction to take your life can be overwhelming for a young person. My final year project aims at preparing young minds to make decisions in a safe environment. My work has a reassuring and lighthearted approach with an emphasis on starting again, that if things go wrong they can try afresh in the future. The publication titled Úla’s Big Day Out is an illustrated book that follows a mermaid's journey as she leaves her old home to find a new one. The reader helps her decide where to go by making choices for her, leading her life down various paths. The main character Úla can wind up in an array of different places to call home, based on the decisions of the reader. She can also wind up in trouble but that's just part of the fun.The aim of this story is to reiterate that it is okay to fail and start again. I want my readers to have fun with my book and evoke a feeling of curiosity for what are all the ways Úla’s life can go, and could that reflect on their own lives?My body of work also includes a video piece showcasing interviews with older people sharing their experiences and tough choices throughout their lives, talking about how they got to where they are, and what pushed them to make pivotal life decisions. I added this to have a real life approach to my project, real stories told by real people. This was mainly because life is more complicated than a fairy tale and it's not always straight forward. Thank you for your time.
