Who are you and where do you come from?
My name is Giuseppe Castellano. I’m an award-winning illustrator, designer, and art director at Penguin Young Readers Group. The imprints I oversee are Grosset and Dunlap, PSS!, Penguin Young Readers, Warne, and Poptropica. A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design (’99, BFA Illustration), I’ve worked in the children’s art department at two of the „big six“ publishers for 14 years. I’m also a husband and a dad of three young kids. And I’m a decent little league coach.
I’m from Baltimore, Maryland; and my parents are from Casamassima, Italy.
Share your twitter account with us and tell us what you are twittering about:
I’m @pinocastellano. I’d say 95% of my tweets are bits of information about—and insight into—children’s publishing from an art and design perspective.
Most of my tweets directly or indirectly address artists of all experience levels. A common complaint I here from illustrators is that it’s difficult to connect to art directors. I use twitter to make that connection. Another complaint I hear is that publishing is insular or velvet-roped vis-à-vis folks looking to „break in“. I’m trying to dispel that notion.
Lastly, and probably most importantly, I use twitter to look for and hire illustrators for myriad book projects.
Tell us about your creative side:
What’s there to tell without sounding arrogant or self-serving? And we all interpret „creativity“ differently. I’m fortunate to work everyday as a designer and art director where I can apply what creativity I have in various ways. Outside of work, my true love is oil painting. But I don’t paint as often as I’d like for fear one of my three children will drink the linseed oil.
What inspires you?
In the words of Chuck Close, „Inspiration is for amateurs.“ I just try to keep my head down and work toward being the best illustrator, designer, art director, and manager I possibly can.
Time travel: Where would you go to?
1987. I want to tell my 10 year-old self that he’ll be designing TMNT books, and robot books, and that’ll he’ll be talking about art almost every day. Then we’ll Nutella sandwiches and play The Legend of Zelda for the first time.
Name your favorite present book:
A Moon and Six Pence by W. Somerset Maugham. It’s a book about a man who leaves everything to oil paint. Loosely based on Gauguin’s life.
Which tweeter would you recommend for @createandrotate and why?
Thomas Truong, Associate Publisher at Caterpillar Books and Little Tiger Kids. Because he’s „Happiest searching for talented new artists and developing concepts for new projects.“ @truongthomas
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