illustration

An illustration is a visualization or a depiction of a subject made by an artist, such as a drawing, sketch, painting, photograph, cinema or other kind of image  of things seen, remembered or imagined, using a graphical representation. The word comes from the latin word illustra'tio, illu'stro meaning enlighten, irradiate. Printing is the current process for reproducing illustrations, typically with ink on paper using a printing press. Illustrations can be artistic images illustrating for example a text, poem, fashion,  magazines, stamps or a book and very often illustrations were made for children's books. The aim of an illustration is to elucidate or decorate a story, poem or piece of textual information by providing a visual representation of something described in the text. Illustrations can also represent scientific images of flora, medicine  or different processes, a biological or chemical processes or technical illustrations to give information on how to use something. Illustrations can be executed in different techniques, like watercolor, gouache, ink, oil, charcoal chalk or woodcut.