Tell us a little bit about yourself! When did you start creating?
I’ve always loved making art since I was a tiny little girl. I would draw non-stop on desks and my copybooks in school. Much to the chagrin of my teachers. When I went to university for genetics and cell biology I fell out of the habit a little bit. But once I finished university and had more free time I got back into the swing of things.
Naturally during the pandemic everything went sideways and I threw myself into escaping into the idyllic world of my paintings. Somehow I fell even more in love with art and decided to give up the very boring corporate world of quality assurance and dive into the magic of painting full time.
How would you describe your artistic style in three words?
- Whimsical
- Playful
- Magical
Can you walk us through your typical creative process? Do you sketch first or dive straight in?
Most of the time I’m JUST about to fall asleep when I’m smacked in the face with a brilliant idea. Sometimes I know it will stick with me till morning and other times I’ll write myself cryptic notes to decipher the next morning. (Magic deer woods??? Sparkle colours??? Blue! – for example!)
Other times I just slap the paint onto a page and see where it takes me. I have a very intuitive process and rarely sketch intricately. I will usually just draw some chaotic circles where I know I want to lay down certain colours. I trust my brain to translate the image it has onto paper.
What creative conundrum have you had in the past six months and how did you solve it?
I am hyper critical of my work so I find it very easy to get bogged down in negative self talk and get stuck in a creative rut. One thing I find is helpful is painting not what I think would be a ‘perfect’ piece, but something that I genuinely enjoy painting.
I do love being challenged with my work and testing my abilities. But when it’s been a hard week and I can’t muster up the courage to step out of my comfort zone I love slipping back into the warm snuggly hug of a landscape. I find that when I embrace that sense of self-assuredness that comes with landscape painting, it bolsters me to get out there and stretch my creative brain with tougher work.
What can a client do to help you when briefing?
I love being given examples of my work that you feel would translate well into your idea. Even giving examples of ‘I love how you added the lighting in this piece’ can really help give me an idea of the direction you’d like the work to take.
Draw yourself as a character in your favourite book, tv show or film!
Here’s me as a tiefling in the world of DnD! I always play as a tiefling because I just think the horns are really cool!
Time for some quick fire questions…
What is your drink of choice?
Anything with ginger beer. The way to my heart is through a dark and stormy!
What is a song that makes you want to get up and dance?
I lack any and all rhythm, it’s actually embarrassing! But music will always hype me up in the gym. So if we’re talking about music to get me amped to my one-rep maxes then I will always love some Rammstein or Deftones.
How would you describe your agent, Lucie Ludds, in three words?
- Bright
- Encouraging
- Honest
And finally, what’s the best piece of advice you’d give to an illustrator just starting out?
Stay true to yourself! If you mould yourself to create what everyone else is making your work will lose the special spark that only you can bring to it! You will find the clients that love your work as it is, not as you think it ‘should’ be.
