When I was a child I spent most of the time drawing. I would dream up stories and scenarios and translate them into pictures. Everywhere I went I would take paper and pencils, so was never bored and always found entertainment in situations that might otherwise have been very dull.
I went to Nottingham College of Art, then Chelsea Art School where I studied graphic design, but all along I knew I wanted to illustrate. I worked for some years in different advertising agencies, including Saatchi & Saatchi as a visualiser and illustrator, which was good practice for learning to work quickly – and it was fun too. After that I worked for a few years in a design group, The Small Back Room, where there was plenty of scope for illustration. I then worked freelance whilst bringing up my three children, illustrating several children’s books, and also painted, working for some years on a large mural at Waterperry House, near Oxford, with a team of artists, using traditional fresco technique – a unique experience.
For some years I have been organising the Calligraphy and Illustration section at Art in Action, a big annual art and craft show in July at Waterperry Gardens in Oxfordshire, choosing illustrators and letter artists to demonstrate and show their work. 2016 was its fortieth anniversary and sadly its last in this form, but we all hope something new may arise in the next few years. Watch this space.