interview with an illustrator
Caroline Church
After growing up in
Uganda, a fascination
for Victorian England
and Thomas Bewick led
to wood carving and
finally scraperboard . .
u SB What’s been the best moment of the last twelve months?
Caroline: It makes me smile to see my work on meat packaging in
Marks & Spencers. u SB What drew you to illustration? Caroline:
At school I discovered I got higher marks when I added drawings to
the text, went on from there really. My sisters and I would clamour
for my Dad’s architectural plans to draw on the back of. A local
printing firm would put scraps of paper aside for us and we’d make
our own cards and presents. We pored over every detail in the
few books we were lucky to own. u SB Do you have any formal
training? Caroline: Did illustration at Chelsea School of Art and
was briefly taught wood-engraving as a guest student at Royal
Academy Schools. This was most instrumental in the direction
I took. I discovered scraperboard soon after. u SB Where are
you from originally? Caroline: Born in Kenya, grew up in Uganda,
settled in Richmond. u SB Describe your studio. Caroline: It’s in a
pretty Victorian cottage a minute’s walk from my home. It’s quite
empty, there’s just a large victorian desk, a chair, and two trunks
of my favourite books. u SB Do you collect anything? Caroline: I
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