[School Festival] Cover Illustration Ideas

10 years as a kindergarten teacher / elementary school teacher / junior and senior high school teacher / childminderkepiko
Graduated from Kunitachi College of Music, Faculty of Music (now: Department of Music Culture and Education, Early Childhood Music Education major). In elementary school, my homeroom teacher was Jun Kusaba, a game researcher. After graduating from university, I worked as a kindergarten teacher for 10 years and as an after-school childcare instructor for 7 years, then took a position as a music teacher at an international school in Singapore. In addition to music education, I engaged in activities that introduced Japanese culture, traditional games, and recreational activities, working with many children. Later, through freelance writing, planning, and editing at Shogakukan, I met many delightful adults and experienced the joy of communicating and sharing. Drawing on the perspective cultivated in the field of education and my experience as an editor, I provide practical information with an emphasis on both input and output, mainly in areas related to music and children. My hobbies include instruments, singing, handicrafts, toys, drawing, traditional games, the outdoors, and books. My special skill is spinning-top tricks.
Deputy Editor of RAG MUSICsasashina
Deputy Editor of RAG MUSIC. JFC-certified fact-checker. I’m Sasashina, a mom currently raising an elementary schooler and a preschooler. During my student years at Kyoto College of Science and Technology, I studied a wide range of fields including sound, lighting, and video technology, building a foundation in comprehensive stage production and creative expression. After graduation, I joined a music production company, where I still work, consistently building experience in production and engaging in a variety of music-centered tasks. Currently, I mainly handle articles for children, drawing on what I’ve learned about parenting and what I feel and discover through daily interactions with my kids. I hope my work can be of help to you, even in a small way!

The cover illustration for the school festival is often chosen from many submitted works.

Some of you are hoping to be selected this year.

Here, we introduce cover illustrations that were actually chosen, works created for submission, and tips on how to draw illustrations.

It’s perfect if you’re thinking, “I can’t decide what to draw,” or “I want to see other people’s work.”

Use this as a reference and try creating a one-of-a-kind illustration of your own.

You can enjoy the process of drawing, too.

Turn your ideas into reality and have fun taking on the challenge of the cover illustration!

[Cultural Festival] Cover Illustration Ideas (1–10)

Character illustration

If your school has an original character, or your school festival has its own original character, why not make a poster design that features that character? Using a character in the design will make the poster cute, catchy, and approachable! If it’s a university festival with an early childhood education department, or a high school festival that welcomes visitors from outside the school, creating a character-themed poster aimed at young children could be a great idea.

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Hane Keisuke

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Draw a picture inside the characters

I’d like to introduce the idea of “drawing pictures inside letters.” It’s simple, yet allows for all kinds of variations.

For example, for a signboard that says “Culture Festival,” you would first draw the letters with thick lines.

Then, you design illustrations inside those lines that match the theme.

In this case, you could use illustrations related to the festival, like food stalls, or seasonal motifs like the sun.

Have fun discussing it together and deciding which letters and illustrations to use.

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yamamoto

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Illustrations of musical instruments

When it comes to school festivals, there are often band performances and wind ensemble concerts on stage, and many students look forward to them as headline events! So how about using illustrations of musical instruments on the festival poster? If you focus on instruments used in wind ensembles—like brass and woodwinds—you’ll get a design with a solid, polished feel.

If you center it around instruments used in band performances—like guitar, bass, and drums—it will create a more casual and fun atmosphere.

You can also choose the illustration style—from realistic to more whimsical—depending on the vibe you want for the poster.

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Hane Keisuke

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[Cultural Festival] Cover Illustration Ideas (11–20)

Acrylic illustration

@himasolt
Poster for the school festival! I painted it in acrylic!#Illustration Analog
♬ Original song – ･SoRa’s･🐼 – Soraaa

We’ll introduce ideas for acrylic illustrations that captivate viewers with vivid colors.

Many of you may be thinking, “I want to try painting with acrylics!” Compared to traditional oil paints, acrylics are known for drying quickly and being well-suited to layering.

Plus, by thinning them with water, you can express subtle nuances, making gradients easier to create.

If you haven’t used acrylic paints yet, why not take this opportunity to give them a try?

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Use Netprint

@ruinonena
Plain notebook makeover 🫶 I tried making it cute using my printer!# Note Arrangement #PlannerDIY #PlannerDeco Graffiti Haikyu!!#IWantToConnectWithHaikyuuFans Haikyu net print Nepri distribution in progress Illustration video #Illustration making Hinata Shoyo Tobio Kageyama Kozume Kenma Tetsurō Kuroo
♪ Poe-poe Yaba-yaba Butterfly-san – San Usagi

Try printing your favorite designs and decorating with them! Here are some ideas for using “neppuri,” short for “net print.” Use a service that lets you print design data created on your smartphone or computer at convenience stores to make a cover illustration.

In the video, they draw cute, handwritten lettering and stick on stickers printed via net print around it.

It’s a great idea for those who want to combine hand-drawn elements with digital data.

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pen drawing

@ko.ma.chi
Pen drawing Translation #IllustrationI drew this for the school festival pamphlet! The girl is supposed to be wearing a Toudaiou (Tōdai-Ō) outfit! 🤩 I worked reaaally hard on it!!
Salsa Tequila DamnR Remix – Setsuna

Let’s try expressing subtle shading using a variety of techniques! Here are some pen drawing ideas.

Pen drawings are something you can tackle with just a black pen and paper, without preparing digital equipment, paints, or colored pens.

However, creating shadows and depth with dots, lines, and hatching techniques does take some skill.

It’s a good idea to decide on a theme and composition in advance and make a rough sketch before you begin.

The delicate, beautiful nuances are the charm of pen drawings.

Take this opportunity to give it a try!

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hand-drawn pop

@aki15shodo
Handwritten pop is good Handwritten POP #POSCA #Posca #Hand-drawn illustration POP creation video POP writer Handwritten POP video Handwritten tweet #Donki Handwritten post #performance #Japaneseart #Japanesecaligraphy
3:03 PM – Sharou

Grab attention with bold, impactful colors! Here are some ideas for hand-drawn POP designs.

You often see hand-drawn POPs in stores, and using them on covers is a surefire way to draw attention to the text.

First, use a bold pen to sketch the main outline, then use a fine pen to outline the letters.

By being intentional with your color palette, you can elevate the overall design.

Decide in advance which points you want to highlight and how to structure them, then give hand-drawn POP a try!

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