Cinderella: Crowdfunding Project- Critiques welcome

idid

@Nyrryl-Cadiz agree, for a book cover I did for a publisher this year, I illustrated a black girl cheering for marathon runners (among many other people), and the publisher asked me to add a black father behind her, so that people won't accuse us for picturing minority in stereotypes.

And there was another time, I illustrated a child in Native Indian Costume, and that has to be removed according to my editors, because some people would find it offensive to see a non-native Indian kid in Indian Costumes.

Lovely project, but be extra careful when handling such issues.

BTW, would it be fun to have some paper dolls along with your book? inspired by your second illustration

Nyrryl Cadiz

@idid i absolutely agree. This is such a sensitive topic. I’ll definitely do more research and show my works to people whose minority I’m painting for a sensitivity screening. I don’t want to mess this up. Luckily, I have until March to complete this.

As for paper dolls... sure! This the first time I’m considering them but they sound like a great idea.

Julia

@Nyrryl-Cadiz it is definitely sensitive. If you keep the classic gown, some people may say you try to put a coloured person in a very occidentalised representation of Cinderella. If you use ethnic patterns on the dress, one might object you disguise the girl to fit your representation with your biais on coloured people.

I am not saying that we should not make adaptation of classic fairy tales and not try to be more inclusive, I am only saying that it is never going be out of critics.

If I were you, I would ask myself how your perfect audience (let's assume a 10 y old back girl living in the USA; a 10y old girl born and raised in South Africa; a 10y old French girl born in guadeloupe and raised in Paris, etc. Pick your own!) would like Cinderella to look like according to her own criteria and own ideal representation of herself in the world.

I hope it helps!

Nyrryl Cadiz

@Julia I definitely feel like I'm damned if I do and damned if I don't. I feel very stressed I feel like pulling the plug.

Julia

Relax! This is only a book. You don't have the full responsability on diversity on your shoulders! A coloured Cinderella, with or without an ethnic gown, would still give some choice to an audience otherwise looking at a shelve of caucasian Cinderellas!

Now... let's push it further :

Would the other characters be coloured people as well? Again there is no right answer. I am just curious of your choice!

Finally why did you decide for this fairy tale? For me, this one (as many others by the by) is arguable on the topic of female empowerment. All fights can't be fought at the same time. That said, what you achieve on ethnic diversity is lost on gender representation (only mariage saves Cinderella from her crual condition). This view is debatable of course!

Edit : that is why I like classic fairy tales to have old-dated pictures so readers think it belongs to another age and time and can't really relate. I am conscious I am pushing the topic a bit far and I don't want to dispirit you from your project. I think the project is awesome in itself, any initiatives to include more diversity in children books should be supported!

Blitz55

This is a really cool project. So far from what I've seen I like the direction and choices you've made and the style is really charming.

It seems from what I'm reading above me you've run into some issues and that you want to make sure you're making the right choices. While I think you're doing just fine I think Julia said it best above me. But it does remind me of an artist I know who is doing her own interpretation of a classic story but using a different ethnic and culture twist on it. Her name is Mia Araujo and she is creating her own version of Alice In Wonderland. Maybe taking a look at what she's doing will help you feel more confident in what you're doing. I've seen nothing but praise and love for what she's been creating. She's a very nice person and very approachable if you ever had questions.

Mia Araujo: https://www.art-by-mia.com/aliceinwonderland
Mia Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mllemiaaraujo/

Julia

@Blitz55 very interesting version of Alice indeed! Beautiful!

djlambson

@Nyrryl-Cadiz I say don't pull the plug whatever you do. We've been looking at Cinderella one way for so long that it's exciting to see other versions regardless of any political connotations. Go with your instincts along with some basic education and let it go out into the world. If it causes a bit of a stir so what? I just love your character..keep going.

Julia

@Nyrryl-Cadiz

Hello Nyrryl! How are you doing with your project? Any new developments?

Two ressources that might interest you:

https://youtu.be/QysGtQN2858

And

https://youtu.be/MZFG1wql2wI

The first one is a discussion about what makes an artist legit in telling certain stories.

The second one is the last Proko's podcast. At one point, the guest is talking about how he thinks costum design and gives one or two tips. Hearing him, I thought about Cinderella's dress and using/not using ethnic patterns.

Show us more!

Cheers

Julia

Nyrryl Cadiz

@Julia @gavpartridge @djlambson @Blitz55 @idid @ina hello, everyone! Thank you so much for all of your support. I've decided to take a break from this project and take my time to relax and ponder my next move.

Lately, I've arrived to the decision that if I were to choose between keeping the costumes westernized and be accused of not trying hard enough versus trying to incorporate foreign culture and failing to represent it as best as it deserves and be accused of appropriation, I'd rather go with the former. I feel it's the lesser of two evils.

Work has also been keeping me busy lately so I think I'm going to pause this project for now. but please stay tuned. I might return to this project sooner than planned. Again, thank you so much everyone for your help.

Nyrryl Cadiz

@Julia said in Cinderella: Crowdfunding Project- Critiques welcome:

Finally why did you decide for this fairy tale? For me, this one (as many others by the by) is arguable on the topic of female empowerment. All fights can't be fought at the same time. That said, what you achieve on ethnic diversity is lost on gender representation (only mariage saves Cinderella from her crual condition). This view is debatable of course!

I actually have a few more tales in mind. Cinderella is just my appetizer, my gateway drug. My personal favorite is actually The Wild Swans. I love it because of the princess' perseverance, hard work and courage. She wasn't rescued by a Prince but she rescues herself and her brothers. My other favourites are The Fisherman's Daughter, The Brave Little Tailor, and Hansel and Gretel. All are stories of underdogs who use their wits and bravery to overcome their adversity. They're also going to be in my book.

Also, I chose Cinderella because of this exact scene. it just looked so beautiful in mind that I had to include it in my book.

idid

@Nyrryl-Cadiz It's good to hear that you are busy with work. Who knows, maybe you'll get inspired of this project while working on other projects As you'll get a chance to think broader and in different ways. So I'd say trust your gut

Anytime if you decide to pick up this project again, keep us posted, I'd love to hear and support

Nyrryl Cadiz

@idid thank you! That means a lot to me.