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John Shelley - Illustrator

@studionib.bsky.social
2.5K followers 1.6K following 658 posts

Illustrator and author for children's publishing and the wider design business. #KidLitUK #illustration linktr.ee/studionib

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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 4h
Just to reassure everyone, this is a fishing smack, not a whaling vessel!
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 4h
#inktober2026 Day 5, and the prompt word is SMACK. (or a smack for a Smack!) #Inktober #Inktober_smack
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
#inktober2026 Day 4, and the prompt word is CACTUS. #Inktober #Inktober_cactus
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Reposted by John Shelley - Illustrator
Sardonicus @sardonicus.eu · 04/10/2026
Ed Cismondi, 1964
Cypress tree trunk in the foreground, with a misty landscape and a distant tree on a rocky knoll in the fog.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
#inktober2026 Day 3, and the prompt word is MINIATURE. It's all a question of perspective ;) #Inktober #InktoberMINIATURE
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
As with every year, I don't plan ahead with my #Inktober contributions, for me the fun challenge is to only check the prompt on the morning it's due, ponder what to do during the day and draw whatever comes to mind in the evening. Some days there's more times to do this than others !
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
Day two of #Inktober2026 and the prompt word is RELIC. #inktober #inktoberRELIC
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Oh my gosh! It's 1st October - I only just realised, and that means the start of #Inktober2026 ! Just before the day ends then, here's a quick drawing for today's prompt word - APPLE Phew! almost there! #inktober #inktober_apple
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
Mervyn Peake - 'At the Warrington', 1938. Currently up for auction. #mervynpeake
Sketch of a woman holding a glass in a pub, in 1930's clothes, by Mervyn Peake.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 20/09/2026
Enough is enough. Devastating wildfires are threatening our communities, our wildlife, and our landscapes 🌳 We need the UK Gov to back our amazing fire fighters and invest in a real national wildfire prevention plan. Join me and sign the petition here: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/te...
you.38degrees.org.uk
Protect nature for the future: make wildfire prevention a national priority
Enough is enough. Devastating wildfires are threatening our communities, our wildlife, and our landscapes 🌳 We need the UK Gov to back our amazing fire fighters and invest in a real national wildfire ...
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
If you're in #Norwich today, I'm DJing cruising downtempo and house at #LookTwice on Lower Goat Lane, the city's coolest art/lifestyle shop & gallery ( looktwice.co.uk ) all day until 5pm, all vinyl. Do drop by!
Flyer for two DJ Jellydrops gigs
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 19/09/2026
Here's an old blog post about the creation of 'Stone Giant', I can't believe it's over 10 years since I worked on the hardback edition, time flies! The new paperback edition is out now :) johnshelley.blogspot.com/2013/10/ston... #kidlit #kidlitUK #books
johnshelley.blogspot.com
Stone Giant
The Giant has awoke! Cover, US edition Cover, Japanese edition Stone Giant - Michelangelo's David and How He Came to Be , written...
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
Since returning to DJing after a 20 year gap, music digging antenna has become so much more focused, discovering so much from the intervening years to engage with, but also genres from my youth I never bought at the time (e.g. folk rock), as I lived out of the UK for over 20 years, gaps to fill!
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Otsukare-sama!
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Today’s the official release of "Stone Giant - Michelangelo’s David and How He Came to Be" in paperback. Words by Jane Sutcliffe, illustrations by your’s truly. If you missed the hardback edition, now’s your chance! Charlesbridge publishers, ISBN 978-1-58089-296-4 #kidlit #kidlitUK #picturebook
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 14/09/2026
Post a character you think is cool and give no explanation why:
Illustration by John Shelley of an 18th century adventurer, in frock coat and cocked hat, one foot on a treasure chest, the other holding a large telescope to his eye. Rolled Maps under his arm, sea gull sitting on telescope.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
act.everyonehateselon.com/p/meta-chase...
act.everyonehateselon.com
Send a reminder to Meta: you have to respond
Use this to send a final chance email to Meta if you've emailed them and they've not responded to your smart glasses objections.
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Reposted by John Shelley - Illustrator
The Guardian @theguardian.com · 10/09/2026
Have scientists finally detected dark matter? - video
theguardian.com
Have scientists finally detected dark matter? - video
For decades physicists have been puzzling over the enigma of dark matter. We think it makes up 85% of the matter in the universe, but the mysterious substance cannot be seen or detected, and we know about it mainly through observations of the gravitational effects it has on other things. But now scientists believe they may be a step closer to detecting it. Science editor Ian Sample explains to Madeleine Finlay why, if confirmed, the finding could completely transform our understanding of the universe. And Dr Samuel Erikson, senior research associate at the University of Bristol, and first author of the research paper, explains how the finding has been received in the physics community
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
38d.gs/jpcf
38d.gs
An open letter in support of the volunteers and staff at the RNLI
This is a disgrace. Brave RNLI volunteers being called scum for risking their lives to save others at sea is just plain wrong. So I've signed an open letter of thanks for the RNLI letting them know th...
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 07/09/2026
Artists, quote with your blue art! From the picture book 'Halloween Forest' (HolidayHouse publishers, words by Marion Dane Bauer) #kidlit #kidlitart #kidlitUK
picture book illustration of a child in black clothes, walking down a forest path enclosed by a line of trees.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 06/09/2026
Many thanks to the Playhouse Bar for last night's gig. Special thanks to the lady who found my locking screw on the floor after my headphones fell apart! (thankfully not broken, just dissassembled due to the loose screw!). Lesson learned - always check equipment before DJing! #Norwich #DJJellyDrops
photo of dissassembled DJ headphones in front of turntable set-up.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Friends in #Norwich, just a little notice that tomorrow, Saturday 5th Sept, I'll be playing the sunset slot at the Playhouse Bar from 5.30-7.30pm, between Barman Joe and Tony Biscotti. It will be chill! #DJevent
Flyer for DJ gig at the The Playhouse Bar, Norwich on 5th September, showing DJ Jellydrops character in front of a setting sun.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
What a lovely surprise in the post today! ‘Stone Giant’, my non-fiction picture book with the late Jane Sutcliffe on Michelangelo’s creation of the statue of David, has a new paperback edition! @charlesbridge #picturebook #Michelangelo #bookrelease #kidlitART #kidlitUK #kidlit
paperback copies of the picturebook 'Stone Giant' by Jane Sutcliffe and John Shelley (Charlesbridge publishers)
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
良いじゃないか!
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 01/09/2026
As these data centres need so much water, I suggest they build them at the bottom of the sea, preferably in the Mariana trench, or maybe use Rocket Boy's fireworks to set them up on Mars, I hear there may be water there :) . c.org/PbzvvV9hTH
c.org
Sign the Petition
Stop the South Norwich data centre construction
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
My god that's appaulling! How can they get away with it, AI companies, and Facebook, have all the questions to answer. The mere fact that this exists is abhorant, whatever people do with it. It's horrendous.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Thanks for the share. I have to admit, I'm suspicious of any outfit posting hire call-outs to illustrators - for competitions I would understand, but for commissions? What kind of publisher makes comics, yet has to resort to social media appeals for artists? Seems rather odd!
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Is that one, or two aircraft? It looks like one was hit on the starboard wing, and the other it's rear fuselage and tail blown off?
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
Show how you paint old people... Well here's an old one (illustration that is) - from '12の月たち' (The 12 Months), my picture book retelling of the Slovakian fairy tale, translated by Sho Suzuki and published by Miki House & Kodansha in Japan. #kidlitART #kidlitUK #picturebooks
Fairy tale illustration of an old woman wrapped in a fur coat, walking in a snow scene, about to be engulfed by the winter wind.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 28/08/2026
I've signed the petition calling on the Government to make wildfire prevention and climate resilience a national priority. Join me and help protect the places we love. campaigns.nationaltrust.org.uk/page/196457/...
campaigns.nationaltrust.org.uk
I've signed. Will you? Add your name to help make wildfire prevention and climate resilience a national priority, and stand with the communities affected by wildfires.
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Reposted by John Shelley - Illustrator
Gregory Norminton @gregorynorminton.bsky.social · 26/08/2026
Let's get this petition to 100,000 by the weekend.
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Reposted by John Shelley - Illustrator
Charlene Chua @charlenedraws.bsky.social · 25/08/2026
😢 I don't know very much about her or her music (other than her big hits), but her contribution to children's books will be remembered.
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Reposted by John Shelley - Illustrator
Tim White @twmcltd.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
I hope you like this too. On the day when Ukraine celebrates its (re)birth and 35 years of independence from Moscow's tyranny, how appropriate for Kyiv to be visited by a phalanx of storks, putting on a different sort of show for the people of Kyiv.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Massive applause for BBC Radio4 Front Row for dedicating the whole programme to the topic of Illustration tonight. If you missed it, BBC Sounds will have it archived shortly. I tuned in after the beginning so will be re-listening! www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/brand... #KidlitUK #KidlitART #illustration
bbc.co.uk
BBC Sounds - Front Row - Available Episodes
Listen to the latest episodes of Front Row on BBC Sounds.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
That's Radio 4 #FrontRow that is :)
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Oh goodness! just turned on #BBCRadio4 and 1/2 way through and it's all about illustration! Posy Simmonds and Chris Riddell amongst the interviewees. #bbc #illustration #kidlitART #kidlitUK
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 22/08/2026
Oho!! Just round the corner from me, I think I've seen this chappie around :)
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
As a separate thing to my illustration career, I've started a JellyDrops Instagram account just for DJing / music updates, including info on my next gig this Saturday afternoon at #LookTwice in #Norwich. If it's of interest, give me a follow! www.instagram.com/dj_jellydrops/ #Jellydrops
DJ Jellydrops logo
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 16/08/2026
11 days ago Jason Arday resigned, saying he was at his limits. The press wrote 188 more articles. 9 days later Jason Arday was found dead. Enough is enough: Demand an urgent inquiry into the role the media had on his death: you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/de...
you.38degrees.org.uk
Sign the petition: demand an inquiry into the culture of the press after Jason Arday's death!
Tragically, Professor Jason Arday has died after a vicious and deeply personal campaign of press attacks over the last few weeks. The Government must urgently launch an inquiry into the culture and b...
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Many thanks to Sharon for the photo.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 09/08/2026
Well that was fun! Thank you to everyone who came to #ThePlayhouseBar in #Norwich last night, and to the lovely welcoming staff. It was great to be back on the old ones and two's DJing in public again, the grooves went down welI think! It's been a long time, there'll be another soon :)
Photo of John Shelley DJing as Jelly Drops at The Playhouse Bar, 8th August 2026.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 08/08/2026
It's 20 years since I last DJ'd in Tokyo, but in recent months the time seemed right to get a couple of old turntables in again. Tonight I'm playing my first gig in a long, long time, and my first ever in the UK. It will be very chilled, if you're in #Norwich drop by! #djevent
Flyer for DJ Jelly Drops at the Playhouse Bar, Saturday 8th August 2026. 8pm-midnight. Chilled grooves & house
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 05/08/2026
If you see this, post a monster! From the Sketchbook.
Pen sketch of a friendly monster.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Sketching people on trains again? Yeah well, it's a habit. www.johnshelley.com/post/inside-... #sketchbook #スカッチブック
johnshelley.com
Inside the Window
In the last post I shared some train sketches of passing landscapes out the window, but you'll know I'm just as likely to be drawing what's going on inside the train carriage - i.e. the other passenge...
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
A petition to call upon the Senedd to reject any badger cull in Wales urgently needs signatures. After a debate in the Senedd last week, A Reform UK motion was passed to consider a badger cull, but it's not binding yet - action is needed, please sign! petitions.senedd.wales/petitions/24...
petitions.senedd.wales
Petition: We call upon the Senedd to reject any badger cull in Wales.
England has slaughtered ¼ million badgers but STILL has a higher incidence of cattle TB breakdowns than Wales. Both countries have achieved reductions on all key metrics, but in Wales without any badg...
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Many thanks!
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
'Hamlet'. Poster for a production by GMBH Yellow Helmets Theatre company, touring in Japan this month. イエローヘルメッツ劇団『ハムレット』のポスターです。今月上演されてます。AD市川きよあきさん。 #Hamlet #Shakespeare #Illustration #イラスト #poster #ポスター
'Hamlet' Poster illustration, showing the face of the King made up of a collage of profiles of Hamlet, his mother Gertrude, father-in-law Claudius, and Ophelia
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Reposted by John Shelley - Illustrator
Gregory Norminton @gregorynorminton.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Ever since Adolf Hitler was turned down by the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, fascism has been a refuge and consolation for the talentless. AI is their revenge on human creativity.
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John Shelley - Illustrator @studionib.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
Nice timing Charli!
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