Philip’s Monster

“Philip’s Monster,” is an original 40 page separate ended picture book dummy about Philip the mouse, and the monster that follows him throughout his everyday life. The book explores themes of platonic intimacy and the comfort of home, as well as trauma, emotional sensitivity and anxiety. The book is memoir-esque in that Philip’s experience is a direct parallel to my own. The book is largely a reflection of my complicated and difficult feelings around the friendships and losses I experienced as an autistic adolescent.

Please contact me at snailshells.art@gmail.com if you’re interested in viewing the dummy PDF in full!

This dummy has 2 completed interior spreads, as well as a front and back cover. The original pieces are 15 x 24 inches, and illustrated with gouache and collage, on watercolor paper. Each piece was scanned and digitally adjusted in Photoshop.

Philip’s Monster went through a whole year of changes before becoming what it is today! Below is what the process looked like for my first fully illustrated interior spread (pages 4-5).

The dummy of Philip’s Monster was completed as my senior thesis project at PNCA, in Spring 2025.