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My mother warned me not to become an artist.

“You’ll starve in a garret!” She said. “A suitable career for a young lady with artistic talent would be an interior decorator.” I dismissed the idea as being too practical a solution. I wanted to draw. My first experiences with art were in Saturday morning art classes which gave way to classes for young teens at the local university. The basis for my technique was established in life drawing classes where I learned the essential skill of contour line drawing.

My career began as a freelance illustrator with Jim Harrison, art director at the Toronto Star which led to regular assignments for various newspapers and magazines. It was children’s publisher and designer Kathryn Cole who spotted my work and approached me about illustrating “Rhinos for Lunch and Elephants for Supper!”, a re-telling of an African folk tale about a group of animals intimidated by a posturing cave monster. Drawing animals was liberating. Fashion, age and “cuteness” became second to the expression and presence of the character in the story. The sky was the limit. Animals can exhibit super-human expressions and somehow get away with it.

When I teach, I tell my students to draw! You learn by doing - by drawing and painting as often as you can. You can’t learn technique simply by looking over somebody’s shoulder. Draw every day without waiting for inspiration. Combine that skill with a generous helping of tenacity and the rest will take care of itself.

Site: © 2007 W4 Design | Images: © 2007 Barbara Spurll