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Describe your illustration style in ten words or less.
Playful, colourful digital illustrations with a traditional and textural feel.
What items are an essential part of your creative space?
My sketchbook, IpadPro and MacBookPro. As well as a huge bookshelf for inspiration, music or a podcast to listen to, a cup of tea and my sausage dog Daisy by my side.
Do you have a favourite artistic medium?
It used to be pencil and watercolour – it’s now digital in order to keep up with publisher’s turnaround expectations.
Name three artists whose work inspires you.
Sarah Massini, Beatrice Blue and Briony May Smith.
Which artistic period would you most like to visit and why?
I would have to say Impressionism – because it was the period of art we learnt the most about in high school, so the artists seem really familiar to me and I imagine they were all great friends and lived this wonderfully self-indulgent romantic life pursuing their art in simpler times.
Who or what inspired you to become an illustrator?
My mother was an artist so I was always surrounded by paintings and pottery and metalwork and needlecraft. She along with two fantastic art teachers encouraged me to follow my passion and their belief in me gave me the confidence to apply to art school.
My mother was an artist so I was always surrounded by paintings and pottery and metalwork and needlecraft. She along with two fantastic art teachers encouraged me to follow my passion and their belief in me gave me the confidence to apply to art school.
Can you share a photo of your creative work space or part of the area where you work most often? Talk us through it.
I am lucky enough to have a little backroom studio all to myself. I have filled it with all my art supplies, a lot of eclectic artwork on the walls, my weird and wonderful collection of random objects and way too many books on the overflowing bookshelves.
I am lucky enough to have a little backroom studio all to myself. I have filled it with all my art supplies, a lot of eclectic artwork on the walls, my weird and wonderful collection of random objects and way too many books on the overflowing bookshelves.
Brainstorming ideas and watching them come to life in my sketchbook.
What advice would you give to an aspiring illustrator?
Just do the (consistent) work. Create illustrations for your portfolio by doing online courses and entering competitions and creating artwork for social media prompts… anything that gets you to follow a brief and deliver to a deadline. Build a like-minded creative community around you for support as this is a long journey. And be thankful you get to do something you truly love.
Lara is a South African born children's book illustrator living in Sydney. She started out in advertising and later went on to complete a BA Honours Degree in Illustration. Her second picture book Running with Wings was released this year and she recently came first in the 'published' category of the CYA Illustrator Awards 2024.
For more information, please visit Lara's website or follow her on instagram.