Illustrator breathes new life into Day of the Dead

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Irish artist Steve Simpson always come up with the goods - and this beautifully illustrated children's activity book is a prime example.

We're big fans of Irish illustrator Steve Simpson (opens in new tab) at Creative Bloq, having previously featured his reinvented barcodes (opens in new tab) and spaghetti Western posters (opens in new tab). So we had to share this brilliant children’s activity book he created, which celebrates the Catholic festival of Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muenas).

This beautiful and informative book is comprised of 16 pages filled with petrifying puzzles, morbid mazes, and of course, no shortage of skeletons - all illustrated in Simpson’s unique and colourful style, using pen, pencil and Photoshop CC (opens in new tab).

Simpson's obsession with fine detail and vibrant colours shines through. One extra touch that most will over look is the simple but stylish borders that beautifully link the book together

Aside from the obvious influence of folk art Steve Simpsons influences come from Jim Flora, Mary Blair, arts and crafts pioneer William Morris and his uncle which Simpson talks in more depth about here (opens in new tab). You can keep up to date with Steve’s works in progress on Behance (opens in new tab)or on his blog (opens in new tab).

Words: Alex Williamson (opens in new tab)

Alex Williamson is an art and design student in London, who blogs about design, art and illustration. Follow him on Twitter (opens in new tab).

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The Creative Bloq team is made up of a group of design fans, and has changed and evolved since Creative Bloq began back in 2012. The current website team consists of six full-time members of staff: Editor Kerrie Hughes, Deputy Editor Rosie Hilder, Deals Editor Beren Neale, Senior News Editor Daniel Piper, Digital Arts and Design Editor Ian Dean, and Staff Writer Amelia Bamsey, as well as a roster of freelancers from around the world. The 3D World and ImagineFX magazine teams also pitch in, ensuring that content from 3D World and ImagineFX is represented on Creative Bloq. 

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