Illustration narratives between the East and the West: An individual artist’s perspective

This article is a personal account of my experience of how illustrations are perceived in different countries, as I have observed them during my art education in India and Germany. I will try to illuminate the reasons for such varied perceptions and how the atmosphere of art academies shapes these differences. This will be followed by an examination of the consequences when certain notions of what constitutes art cross national borders in the global world. Finally, I will try to establish how academic notions of art have very little resonance with common people’s perception within their own countries and elsewhere, and why illustrations that are looked down upon in academic circles are a more accessible medium for the masses.