'Lullabies in Lockdown' exhibiting illustrations about my adoption journey at Sunny Bank Mills, Leeds.

I was so thrilled to have my work selected to be part of the most beautiful exhibition, ‘Lullabies in Lockdown’ at Sunny Bank Mills gallery in Leeds curated by Beth Duggelby. 

Lullabies In Lockdown was a group illustration exhibition showcasing the work of several local, national and international artists who became parents during the Covid pandemic.

The exhibition ran during October 2022 and it uncovered quieter or untold stories around navigating parenthood during the pandemic as well as celebrating the tender moments, precious times and lives of the babies who stayed at home.

I exhibited four pieces from my project ‘the Patchwork Family’ a documentation of my adoption journey during the pandemic.

The Patchwork Family is a story aimed at gently raising the subject of a unique family make up that would help adoptive families, as well as those who have been through other routes to finding their family. The subject of being part of a non-biologically related family is raised in an abstract way to start conversations around identity, family and belonging.

This project has been my way of thinking about how I would bring up themes of identity and family with my child and hold space for them to speak about how they feel as they grow and understand their life story. 

It was also a way of imagining the little family moments I wanted so desperately, the bath and bedtime routine, snuggling on the sofa as a family and having a house full of toys.

I found the exhibition very moving and it tenderly raised the beautiful, heartbreaking and special moments of many different journeys to parenthood over the strange and isolating time that was the pandemic. 

I was touched that Beth had included many diverse stories of people navigating the early stages of parenthood during lockdown, and stories from those deciding to be childfree or experiencing baby loss during this isolating time. 

The stories and illustrations shared were intimate and beautiful and it was such a thought provoking exhibition. It felt very special to see work telling stories not often shared in a gallery setting.

There is more information about Sunny Bank Mills and the ‘Lullabies in Lockdown’ exhibition and the other exhibiting artists here.

If you’d like to find out more about adoption a fantastic starting place is the First for Adoption Website or feel free to drop me a message in the comments or via e mail.

5 Simple Tips for Gaining Confidence when Drawing from Life for Creatives

I really enjoy drawing from life, I find it is often the best way for me to push past creative block. It can feel like a bit of an indulgence, but it gives me some much needed mindfulness as I really focus on my drawing.

Drawing from life is a great way to capture a moment, a bit of body language or a funny detail. Looking back at even very rough sketches can take me back to a time and place in a way nothing else can.

However, there can be something very daunting about taking your sketchbook into a public place - so here are some of my top tips for pushing past that discomfort and getting started! 

Work Small

Working small means people are much less likely to notice what you are up to, and minimise people craning over your shoulder or coming over to chat. I try and keep a tiny hardback sketchbook in my bag at all times (they are a similar size to an iPhone but the hard back gives you something to lean on.)

Even if I only have an old biro with me I have something to scribble down anything interesting that I can see, and it is nice and lightweight for drawing standing up. This feels much less daunting than a big A4 piece of paper, much less pressure and perfect for a quick scribble while you wait for a coffee or the bus.

Limit Materials

I used to lug a whole ‘en plain air’ kit around with me, watercolours, brushes, pencils, ink, making sure I had every colour and different mediums. This ultimately isn’t very practical and sometimes working with a tinier palette and just a few materials leads to more decisive work that can be more interesting and playful. I love the immediacy of drawing from life and too many materials just distract from that.

I tend to stick to ink based (no rubbing out allowed!) and I pick a small palette before I leave the house, usually three split complimentary colours (easily worked out on a colour wheel depending on what I feel like - inspired by my colour workshop with Juliet Docherty) I love things like promarkers, tombow pens, caran d’ache neocolour crayons and coloured pencils for vibrant materials that are easy to transport and don’t spill or leak.

Allow Imperfection

Don’t put pressure on yourself to create a masterpiece. Drawing from life is more about capturing a bit of a feeling and is quite rough and playful. Purposely aiming for an imperfect drawing and not worrying about the result being instagram worthy takes the pressure off. If you’re ready struggling - stand up, get outside or set a timer for just a minute or two - just to get your pen moving across the page whatever the result.

Find the Right Location

If you’re feeling self conscious about drawing in public start off somewhere private, a nice view on a hill, a quiet corner, or even looking out of your window are good ways to start. 

I like to have an objective, or plan to draw a certain subject. Animals can be a great subject as you have the tricky aspect that they don’t tend to hold still but are a lot less daunting to draw than people. 

If you’re based in Wiltshire one of my favourite places to draw is The Gourmet Goat Farmer at Avebury. I’m lucky to have this great little cafe on my doorstep that also has lots of animals to draw - and serves the best hot chocolate! There are adorable boer goats, white park cattle and stunning views.

One of my favourite subjects to draw are people. A good place to start is on a bus or train, your subjects are relatively still and often distracted. A cafe table outside with a slab of cake and some good people watching is great, but my favourite place to draw people is from a good old fashioned pub. People tend to be distracted with their friends, their body language is quite animated and people are generally very relaxed. If people do spot what you are up to they just tend to be very intrigued.

Have Fun!

Drawing from life is such a fun exercise and can make your brain and pen work in unexpected ways. I find I come up with ideas I never would have at my desk. In all my years drawing out and about people have only ever been interested in what I’m up to and been very kind. My rule is not to be precious about my sketchbook. It’s never happened to me, but if someone ever spotted me drawing them and wasn’t happy about it I’d have no problem ripping the sketch up. Likewise if friends or children are interested I’m happy to share my pens and sketchbook for them to jump in and have a go at drawing from life too. 

I’d love to know if you have any queries or questions - drop a line in the comments and I’d be happy to answer.

For More info check out -

walk to see is an amazing hashtag on instagram of people drawing from life - have a browse and join in!

Helen Stephens has some amazing tips and advice for drawing from life, sign up for her wonderful Pencil Pals newsletter which is full of inspiration and ideas.

the good ship illustration has some wonderful free audio prompts for drawing from life and run a free artclub most fridays on instagram.

Being an Exhibiting Artist at Marlborough Open Studios This Summer.

I was absolutely delighted to be included in this years Marlborough Open Studios trail. 

I’ve always really enjoyed visiting different artists studios each July and getting a sneak peek into their process. The Open Studios trail has artists opening their doors all over Marlborough and the surrounding villages, from the Pewsey Vale to Devizes. This was my first year as an exhibitor and I had a wonderful time in July welcoming visitors and chatting about my current illustration projects and commissions.

It was a little daunting as I prepared for the exhibition, between covid  lockdowns and then a year on adoption leave I’d not done any in person events for quite some time. I decided to hold my exhibition at the beautiful St Peter’s Church on Marlborough High Street. The church were lovely about me turning the space into a makeshift studio and exhibition space. I lived opposite the church for much of my childhood but I learnt so much about the history of the building during my weekends there and chatting to the very knowledgable guides. I had ample opportunity to sketch the amazing characters in the beautiful stained glass windows in between visitors.

It felt exciting to print out work ready for framing as so much of what I’d been working on had been edited into its final form digitally and there is something really lovely about holding the work in your hands.

As part of my exhibition I also offered the opportunity for visitors to pose for a live illustrated portrait for a donation to the church. It was really fun to have an interactive element to the exhibition and it was lovely illustrating some of my visitors, and other people were able to observe me at work. It’s tricky chatting to your subject, putting them at ease and quickly capturing a likeness and sense of them on paper all in such a short time, but I was so pleased visitors liked the work.

It was really lovely after all the instagram algorithm changes to hear visitors reactions to my work, it was so valuable getting feedback and seeing what resonated with people. I’ve recently been painting more portfolio work, pieces based on small family moments and memories, both from my journey as an adoptive mum and from my own childhood. I was a little worried that the pieces might be too niche, but it was lovely to hear that people saw their own children and grandchildren in the pieces.  

for more information on visiting St Peter’s Church and their historical, art and music events

https://stpetersmarlborough.org.uk/

Keep up to date with MOS plans for next Summer’s trail here

https://www.marlboroughopenstudios.co.uk/

MOS is currently looking for more associate artists so anyone keen to exhibit in July 2023 has until 1st November to apply. 

https://www.marlboroughopenstudios.co.uk/call-for-artists/call-for-artists

A Little Guide to Commissioning Portraits from Charlotte Illustrates

‘A good portrait ought to tell something of the subject's past and suggest something of his future.’ Bill Brandt.

I think there is something really special about an original hand painted portrait, it should absolutely capture a likeness of the subject - but also some of their personality and sparkle too. There is a lot of love when someone asks you to create a portrait, it’s always to capture someone really special, a child, a grandparent a beloved pet. In my original ink and watercolour pieces I aim to capture that sparkle in the portrait, a sense of who that person is, their energy – that can’t be captured as easily in a snapshot 

We take a million photos a day, even the nicest ones languishing on our phones. Forgotten about, lost when the phone breaks or we need more storage. A piece of original art is something to be treasured. Carefully wrapped, framed, given as a thoughtful gift. My most popular portrait sizes are A6 and A5 – so quite small. These can easily and inexpensively be framed and sit snug on a gallery wall or bookshelf. 

Portraits are often ordered as a surprise gift which makes for a lovely and unique piece to treasure. 

Pippin was such a lovely dog to draw. His owner’s sister sent me a few photos to work from, but this one really stood out. The quality of the photo was great, so I could really see the colours in his fur and all the details of his whiskers. I loved his quizzical expression too. 

I started out drawing quite a rough sketch just trying to capture the proportions and expression on Pippin’s face, I knew the bulk of the work would be slowly building up lots of layers of watercolour to create the tones and texture of Pippin’s fur. 

“Charlotte painted a beautiful watercolour portrait of our two year old son from a photograph. When I saw it for the first time I was overwhelmed with the likeness.

Charlotte is fantastic at painting young children because she captures their essence and character so well.”

How to choose a photo 

I am more than happy to work from photo to create your portrait. I can work from a snapshot taken on a phone, but the better quality of the photo the more detail I can capture. Most clients send a few shots via e mail and I can advise which I will think work best. I like my work to have a sense of lightness, as if drawn from life.

Sizing – good things come in small packages. 

I find that the most popular sizes for portraits are either A5 or A6. This keeps the cost of the portrait affordable and works really well as it’s not overpowering or dominating piece of art. A small portrait can sit tucked on a bookshelf, desk, or form part of a gallery wall with other pieces. This is especially useful if you are commissioning a portrait as a gift as not only is it small and personal, you don’t need to worry too much about the recipient’s interior décor.  

Pricing explained 

My pricing works that the larger the piece, the more detail and time it takes to create, and the more figures the more work involved too. So, for a single subject (e.g. just one person) portrait sized A6 will be £45, and a single subject A5 would be £55 and the price increases with the size. If you would like more than one person or pet in the portrait I charge an additional £20 on A6 scale and £30 on A5.

I ask for a 40% deposit upfront to book in my time and then the remainder when you are happy with the final piece which I will send you a picture of for approval. I accept paypal payments too.

As standard I supply my portraits mounted so they are ready for framing, wrapped recyclable plastic to keep them clean on their journey to you and with a branded sticker.

If you prefer your portrait to be fully framed I have a fantastic relationship with a brilliant framer locally and I can source a frame to your requirements. I can advise the style and colour of frame I think would work best with the portrait, or be led by you if you know the style you would like. 

Please do drop me an e mail, I am happy to discuss portrait projects with no obligation.

Is there anything else you’d like to know about my portraiture? Please do drop me a line in the comments below.

Live Illustration Events at the White Horse Bookshop

I love painting in a large scale, it’s living every toddler’s dream when you can paint directly onto walls and windows. Painting murals has always been a favourite part of my business, it’s so liberating  working on a large scale and see my work come to life in bold swooshes of paint.

I absolutely adore a good independent bookshop and seek them out wherever I am in the world. Here in Wiltshire we are really lucky to have the exquisite White Horse Bookshop in my hometown of Marlborough. It’s an absolute haven for me as not only do they have a fabulous selection of books, (including a wonderful Children’s section complete with bean bags to lounge on and shelves right to the floor for tiny people to browse.) they also have a fantastic art department which is a complete Aladdin’s cave of art and craft supplies, stocked with care by the lovely Edwina. They also have a glorious light filled exhibition space at the back of the shop. All the things I adore under one roof!  The shop is an integral part of the community, it’s a hub for art classes, author events and as a central point on the Marlborough Lit Fest trail.

I was lucky enough to create some festive window displays for the shop in December. The shop was celebrating Christmas 2019 with a Nutcracker theme, including a late night shopping evening. The beautiful 16th Century shop has two large bay windows flanking the front door, one for the bookshop, and another displaying the art materials available downstairs.

On the bookshop window I created a traditional theatre scene by painting red velvet curtains with gold tassels and the silhouette of an enraptured audience framing the display of books, with a Nutcracker doll nestled amongst them. On the art window I painted festive fir and holly leaves, from these boughs the characters of the Nutcracker ballet danced across the glass. I exchanged their traditional swords for pencils and paintbrushes to tie them in with the art materials displayed behind them.

Painting out in public can always be a little daunting – but it is ultimately a lot of fun. Standing in the windows painting directly onto the glass on a busy high street as everyone whizzed around doing their Christmas shopping got a lot of attention. People are always keen to see what you are up to, as questions and in my experience are very entusiastic. The theatre of live painting is always a good way to get your brand noticed, especially during a busy time like Christmas, and gives something new to show on social media. Customers love to see something being created traditionally and the display can be completely unique.

I’d already sketched out my plans for each window so that I had a guide to follow, and so that the shop manager, Angus, knew what the final display would look like. There was a lot of freehand work as I needed to tweak my sketches to match the scale and depth of the bay windows and then work back to front so that the design read correctly from the outside – this coupled with the fact that as I was painting on glass I needed to add the detail first needed me to keep some mental dexterity!

I was really pleased with the final windows, and they made an eye catching display – especially when lit up on a cold, dark Winter evening.

A few days after installing the window display I went back to the White Horse Bookshop for their late night shopping evening in early December. The evening was Nutcracker themed, with all the bookshop staff dressed up and an additional discount for customers who had dressed up to co ordinate with the ballet theme.

I bought my art materials and settled myself near the door, offering complimentary ten minute portraits for the customers. The evening was full of festive cheer and customers enjoyed browsing at their leisure while getting into the Christmas spirit with a glass of wine and nibbles.

Lots of lovely customers spent a few minutes chatting to me as they posed for their A5 portrait, it was such fun getting to know to everyone and capturing a quick likeness at speed. I made sure to keep things festive with lots of sparkly gold paint!

It was a lovely touch as in addition to taking home some new books and getting a bit of their Christmas shopping done, customers could also take home a little piece of art to remember the evening and share on social media. I loved seeing people sharing their portraits on their Instagram accounts.

Christmas is always a busy time for me, making sure all my portraits of people and pets are painted in good time for Father Christmas to deliver them. Adding in live illustration events to my diary over the festive season was  great fun. I loved getting out and meeting people and sharing my art with them. It was great to chat to people about their what they had planned over the festivities and share a bit of what I do as Charlotte Illustrates, and made for a lovely end to the year.

Where are your favourite indie bookshops? I’d love you to let me know in the comments so that I can find even more wonderful places to visit.

http://www.whitehorsebooks.co.uk/

A Day of Colour in Cambridgeshire.

‘The purest and most thoughtful minds are those which love colour the most’ John Ruskin

I have been interested in colour theory for some time, I understood the basic principles but could never fully get to grips with how best to ‘properly’ build a palette. My way of putting together colours in my work has always been quite intuitive. As my day job is in clothing design I have been creating palettes for years and have endless pages of colour inspiration on my Pinterest boards, but I felt I was struggling to translate this into my illustration work. I always found myself always reaching for my favourite and failsafe tubes of watercolour when painting. I was stuck in a serious colour rut.

I first discovered the colour tutor, aka Juliet Docherty, on Instagram and have been following her account for some time. Juliet’s feed was a riot of beautiful shades and palette inspiration but it was her one day colour workshop course at her home studio in Cambridge that piqued my interest. Many of the illustrators I admire had taken her course and had showcased gorgeous micro palettes in bold swooshes of paint on their feeds.

Juliet runs small workshops with a limited number of students, there were four of us on the workshop I attended on a sunny Saturday. Juliet welcomed us into her beautiful home with a lovely cup of coffee on arrival. We introduced ourselves, donned our painting aprons and sat down to our immaculately laid out workstations.

The day was a mix of Juliet running us through a detailed and thought provoking presentation, as well as encouraging us to try out exercises as we went along. We got tactile with the paint using our fingers and a chunky palette knife to get mixing and experimenting.

Juliet has an incredible wealth of knowledge and is a wonderful teacher. Even by the time we stopped for our lunch break I could see myself looking at colour in a new way. As we sat in Juliet’s garden in the sunshine (and enjoying a glorious homemade cream tea!) I was looking at the colours around me differently, seeing the shades they were made up of, how they interacted with the shades next to them and seeing mini colour palettes everywhere!

In the afternoon we played around with taking elements from the colour wheel, mixing and stirring and just playing with putting shades together to create a palette. Juliet shared examples from her gorgeous library of books and broke down how artists and illustrators put colours together, and manipulated their palette to make their work really sing. 

I left at the end of the day armed with Juliet’s presentation, and a wealth of notes and colour samples I’d made throughout the day. When I got home I couldn’t wait to play around with my paints and see what shades I had and how I could experiment with them to get some new colour combinations in my work.

‘It is the best possible sign of a colour when nobody who sees it knows what to call it.’ John Ruskin

Since coming back from the workshop I have been much more intentional when planning out the colours I use in a piece of work. I have also got out of my colour rut and have been making much better use of the neutral shades in my work. I had some feedback about adding more neutrals into my work from my visit to the Bologna Book Fair, but I wasn’t sure how best to put into practice before the workshop.

I would implore anyone to check out Juliet’s website and book a spot on her course. Whether you are a professional artist or illustrator, even if you have a good eye for colour, working through the course with Juliet has so many benefits. I also think interior designers, textile and fashion designers as well as anyone that has a creative eye would get so much out of the day.

I am not local to Cambridge but made the stay into a weekend break and stayed at the most glorious air B and B out in the countryside. As a Wiltshire girl I always found the landscape around Cambridgeshire and Suffolk a little bleak (where are all the hills?! It’s just not right!) but I saw the place with new eyes and was totally enchanted.

For more info please do check out Juliet’s website; https://www.colourtutor.com/

and Juliet’s Instagram page; https://www.instagram.com/colourtutor/

Bologna Children's Book Fair 2019

This year I finally got to see what all the fuss is about at the annual children’s book fair in Bologna!

I’d been wanting to take the trip for a few years and kept putting it off, telling myself I just ‘wasn’t ready’ but I am so glad I finally took the plunge and gave it a go!

The trip was exhausting and very full on, but I got so much out of it - some incredibly useful feedback, galvanising portfolio reviews and I met some wonderful illustrators from around the world.

I thought I’d pop together my top tips for any other Bologna first timers thinking of heading to the fair in 2020.

Bologna Top Tips

Plan Ahead

I booked my Air B&B in October 2018 ready for my April 2019 trip. I stayed in Bologna, near to the university, which was close to the town centre but also on a good bus route to Fiere where the Book Fair is held.

I worked on my portfolio for most of 2018, and don’t forget to plan in time for getting things printed well in advance of the fair.

I wrote ahead to publishers and agents in January asking for appointments, although I didn’t hear back from many, this helped me plan who I MOST wanted to pitch to at the fair.

It’s a good idea to buy your ticket for the fair before you go as I had to print this out and there was a much cheaper rate before March. There is a mailing list you can sign up to for updates.

What to Pack

• 150 business cards. This was about right - you don’t want to ration them! a small holder to keep a few them to hand is helpful too.

• 50 postcards - not essential but a nice extra.

• My latest sketchbook (some agents like to see working drawings).

• I had a portfolio printed with Blurb, I kept in 3 projects and a range of my strongest drawings - about 20 pages is plenty as you’ll have 5-6 mins to show someone. Having this A4 was ideal as there isn’t a lot of space on each stand and it was easy to carry.

• 3x posters for the illustrators wall with tear off strips with my details (don’t forget tape or pins)

• Comfortable shoes! I had to run for early sign ups, and you are on your feet a lot - it can be a long day!

• Water and snacks - the queues at lunch can be long and you can be in line for hours for portfolio reviews.

• A planner - I had this in my sketchbook, each day blocked off into hour slots. Great for organising portfolio reviews and meetings as you don’t want to double book, the fair is big so allow time between each appointment. I also made a note of stand numbers here so it was easier to get around.

Use the App

I downloaded the BCBF app a few days before the fair. It was great to note the stand numbers of my favourite publishers to get organised ahead of the first day. I also checked out who was holding reviews at the Illustrators corner and the seminars that are on through the week.

Not everything on offer will be to your taste, but it’s good to get as much as you can out of each day.

Practice your Pitch

I used several people as guinea pigs for practising talking through my portfolio in the weeks before Bologna. If you get a slot with a publisher or agent you will have about 5 mins (on a timer!) so be ready to sell yourself and your work.

Network

I heard about a lot of portfolio reviews through other illustrators I met at the fair, everyone is really nice and in the same boat so it’s good to meet other creatives - especially as lots of us lead solitary lives as freelancers!

I mentioned BCBF on Instagram in the run up as I was planning my trip, and followed #BCBF to see who else was going. The queues are long (between one and three hours for a portfolio review) and it’s much nicer if you chat to those around you.

Get ready to Hustle

Each publisher works differently, some offered reviews on a first come first served basis on day one, some told you set times in the week they’d see people and others I heard about on the grapevine that were being held on the last day. The queues are long, and even with five minutes per person there are only so many people each publisher can see.

Be ready to run, be quick and be early if you really want to see someone.

Take time to soak in any critique after a meeting. Find a quiet corner with a pen and paper to note down everything they’ve said. You may decide their advice isn’t right for you and your work, but listen respectfully and take time to ponder after the meeting.

Be Polite

The publishers are really there to sell the rights to their books, the illustration aspect is a nice extra so be courteous to everyone (you want to appear easy to work with after all!)

Be friendly and professional, most people will take a card even if they’re not doing reviews. You never know who you’re next to on the bus, or queuing for a coffee with so be friendly at all times.

Allow time to Explore

The fair has an annual illustration exhibition, amazing seminars and gorgeous artwork on each publishers stand - take time to drink it all in!

The fair is a great way to see illustration and publishing from all around the world, and it is easier to see from each stand the kind of books each publisher is interested in from the posters and promotional material they have displayed. I could really begin to see where my work would fit, and where it definitely wouldn’t!

I allowed a few days before the fair to explore Bologna too (you’ll be shattered after a full day at the fair so most evenings I just went back to the air B&B!) Make sure you take a sketchbook to the piazza, visit the amazing children’s bookshop in the centre of town and enjoy the INCREDIBLE food. I even learnt to make tortellini while I was in Bologna!

Have Fun!

Enjoy the trip! I came back fired up and with loads of new ideas on how I could push my work further.

I hope this was helpful, if you have any questions please do drop me a line in the comments below.