Artist 123: Laura Wood

Artist feature time again everyone, and it is with great pleasure we bring you up and coming illustrator Laura Wood. Currently operating out of Melbourne but born and raised in Italy, she captures a sunny style with her engaging folksy illustrations. She manages to give her work a really disarming quality that draws in the viewer and allows her to subtly explain the scene in pastel tones and with a real sense of narrative. She uses colour gently and collaboratively to construct a very synergistic image, her work sits well with itself and gives a real idea of continuation and a great fantasy world that is both welcoming and mysterious. she has a nice touch for picking out the little details that are the hallmark of great children's illustration. Her character work is strong and her characters are both convincing and lighthearted. It's a good skill to have as portraying emotion in characters will lend her children's work the quality of exposition that all great children's books contain. The idea that you are communicating how a person should feel in a situation is quite empowering, the illustrator is the relay for learning that helps extremely impressionable young minds decipher the world. I think that they would be well served by Laura and I'm sure her illustrations will be among the first memories of some very happy kids in the not too far future. So with great pleasure we give you Laura Wood.

Who are you:

My name is Laura Wood and I'm an emerging illustrator based in Melbourne. I was born and raised in Italy and at the age of 24, after completing a Bachelor of Cinema and Multimedia, I decided to move to Australia. At the moment I'm attending a Diploma of Illustration at NMIT.

What do you do:

I draw pictures all day and every day, basically. I like to create illustrations full of earthy colors, cute characters and scenes with a folksy feeling. I plan to work one day in the publishing industry as a children's books illustrator. 

How did you start:

I've started doing illustration just one year ago. I consider myself a baby with a lot to learn yet. One day I just realized I needed to do what I really wanted in life or I would have never be fulfilled.

So I have enrolled in an illustration course, started drawing and never stopped. 

A Personal statement about you or your work: 

I am fascinated by illustrations which are able to tell stories and that's what I'm trying to achieve with my own pictures. 

Links:

portfolio

blog

@I_am_laura_wood

behance