Author M.H. Clark and illustrator Justine Edge have created a powerful gift book celebrating a woman’s complexity. She’s Everything is an artful ode to our sisters, daughters, aunties, friends—the women in our lives who have a universe of possibilities within them, sometimes without even knowing how expansive it is. These pages are a reminder. Featuring moving prose and vibrant, nature-themed, mixed-media art, this is an invitation to honor everything a woman is and everything she is becoming.
We asked M.H. Clark and Justine Edge to share about their creative process. Here is what they had to say:
Can you tell us more about the title? What does the phrase “she’s everything” mean to you?
Clark: The title “She’s Everything” acknowledges and celebrates the way one person can be both fierce and tender, playful and wise, steady and changing. This book is all about the fact that one person can be so many things—even things that may seem to contradict each other. This is one of the most beautiful aspects of so many of the women I know—the ways they are not one thing, but all things.
Throughout the book, “she” is compared to natural elements like fire, water, earth, and stars. What made you choose to incorporate these kinds of descriptions?
Clark: These kinds of elemental aspects—fire, water, air, and earth—feel like a poetic and powerful way to encapsulate the best qualities of every human being. We all have these universal aspects to ourselves, and I think that seeing and celebrating those qualities is deeply honoring.
Justine, the art is so beautiful and enhances the emotionally evocative nature of the words. Can you tell us a bit more about your artistic choices?
Edge: You’ll find each spread in this book is its own unique work of art. Rather than create visuals that were repetitive throughout, I wanted each page to truly reflect the accompanying words with nature-inspired compositions. Most are dreamy and textural backdrops to reinforce the book’s feeling and references to nature.
What mediums did you use?
Edge: Just as the art varies throughout this book, so do the mediums. A lot of experimentation mixing various materials went into the creation of this book. I used mostly granulating watercolor, because I love the unique textures it creates. I found alcohol inks best mimicked the texture of fire. I also incorporated acrylic paint, ink, and gelli plate printmaking. Many of the compositions are modified and even layered digitally, to abstract and achieve the desired feeling.
Who do you think could benefit from receiving this book as a gift?
Clark: This is a book for someone you know—someone who is brilliant in her complexity. It’s a book for friends, sisters, mothers, daughters, and all the powerful women who shape our world and make it more beautifully complete.
How do you hope readers will find themselves in these pages?
Clark: I hope that readers will be surprised and honored to see facets of themselves reflected in these pages—facets of all of the unique and remarkable qualities that make up their being. I would love for readers to recognize themselves in the text, and to use that recognition to appreciate themselves more completely.
Remind yourself of the natural radiance within you or uplift a loved one today with She’s Everything.
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