I’m a WA picture book author and illustrator telling stories with a brush and a pencil.
I’ve written and illustrated thirteen picture books and illustrated many more for publishers including Penguin, Walker Books and Hardie Grant.
Described as ‘humorous’, ‘heartfelt’ and a ‘visual delight’, my books have been published in twenty countries, shortlisted in the CBCA Book of the Year, the Victorian Premier’s Book Award and the WA Premier’s Book Award.
I work in a studio surrounded by sketches, books, brushes and unfinished coffee. I paint at a long table made of Jarrah (a WA hardwood) recycled from an old Fremantle shipping warehouse.
I live with my wife and our two sons in a house we built in an old apricot orchard on a big hill.
I create my art using a combination of watercolour, gouache, pencil and ink.
My stories start their journey in my well worn sketchbooks surrounded by thoughts, doodles and scribbles.
My illustrations are made on large sheets of watercolour paper where I use a range of techniques to create my art. Each book has its own unique approach.
How it started.
I grew up with three siblings on a 20-acre hobby farm next to a river, surrounded by deciduous trees and animals (my job was to look after the family’s forty geese).
Early aspirations to be a train driver or detective were discarded when I started focusing on my passion for art.
I was given a watercolour set and visual diary on my twelfth birthday and started teaching myself to paint by copying illustrators from the early 20th century.
At fourteen I landed a paid job as the cartoonist of a youth newspaper that was available in select WA schools.
At seventeen I started approaching publishers with my art portfolio and spent the next five years submitting work before I landed my first trade publisher book deal with Walker Books.
I spent several years illustrating for publishers including Walker Books, Scholastic and Penguin before I wrote my first picture book, Ollie and Augustus. It was acquired and published by Walker Books in 2019 and became my first book to be published internationally.
SIX FACTS ABOUT ME
1) I love to garden. Whenever I get the chance I’ll put on my hat and go outside to weed, build and plant.
2) My favourite books as a child were the Just William series by Richmal Crompton.
3) My studio gets messy when I’m making books. Large sheets of half finished illustrations are strewn everywhere. I have to jump, swing and climb to reach my desk.
4) I love drinking coffee from chunky Cornishware mug. These mugs have blue and white stripes and often make an appearance in my books.
5) My favourite breed of chicken is a frizzle. Their feathers look like my hair in the morning.
6) One of my books was presented to King Charles III as a gift by a city library. I’d like to think it’s his favourite bedtime story.
