Graphic by Justin Olivares.

In this instalment of our sit-down series, we meet one half of the dynamic duo behind the beautiful, inclusive and diverse illustrations that easyread.tech produces for use in Easy Read resources: Denny Krvavac! 

Denny is a young go-getter with a diverse skill set, a natural talent, and a passion for what she does, and it brings me great excitement to introduce her to the easy read.tech community. 

So, Denny, please introduce yourself, let us know a bit about who you are and what you do.

Hello I’m Denny, and I work as an illustrator for Easyread.tech. I create illustrations for Easy Read documents for people with cognitive disabilities, ageing-related cognitive decline, and low literacy. A little bit about me, other than art, I love to watch films, learn about space, and go spend a day at the beach with family and friends. Last but not least, I try to encourage compassion and kindness and share that with the people around me in my day-to-day life.

Tell us a little bit about your journey to end up as an Illustrations Artist for easyread.tech.

Back in 2021, I started my Bachelor of Film and Television at UniSA, which led to a lot of opportunities, such as a placement to study at Rising Sun Pictures for 3 months, and as a production designer on a short film. I have always loved the creative fields, however, I have been practising art since I can remember, and it has never left me since. I knew I wanted to expand my career in a creative field, and so here we are today, working with the team at easyread.tech.

Did you expect to work in the accessible communications sector?

No, but I am glad that I do, I am grateful I can be a part of something and use my skills to help create more accessible ways to communicate with people. Being in this sector has taught me a lot of things I didn't know beforehand, and I have met some great people along the way.

How do you approach balancing creative liberty and understanding to the specific needs and preferences of people who rely on the illustrations you create?

Research. It is hard to know what people want without putting research into it. Creative liberty comes into the way you approach the illustration, the composition, and the design of it, but you have to follow a prompt that comes along with it, which is super important. Although creative liberty exists, it is important to make sure the illustrations have correct information and portray the situations/items/people illustrated accurately.

Can you talk us through the process of creating an Easy Read illustration?

Creating an Easy Read illustration has layers of steps. Firstly, it always starts with brainstorming, researching, and idea generation and a list is created from that process. I illustrate each prompt, and it begins with using templates and customising them to the chosen prompt. I repeat this process for a whole set and make any changes needed.

What are the key design principles you keep in mind when developing Easy Read illustrations?

I focus on contrast, balance, and proportion. Working in the accessible communications sector and designing for people with cognitive disabilities, it is important to follow those design principles and make sure the illustrations are clear and understandable. Another step we take when possible is not to pair colours that are hard to see for people with colour blindness or vision impairment.

Do you have any goals for 2024?

I have goals to expand my knowledge within the creative fields and work more with people and our clients, not only just behind the scenes. I want to improve my hard skill-set which includes dabbling into animation and design theory. I would also love to learn more about Easy Read overall and the communities I am working with.