Sholto Walker - International Children’s Book Illustrator, Bath, UK

Drawing quickly and expressively with a traditional ink pen, British children’s illustrator Sholto Walker transfers all the energy and emotion of his approach directly into the colourful characters he creates. From his languid line work to frenetically scratched-in detail, there’s an immediacy to his work that instantly engages the viewer and pulls them into the story he’s illustrating.

Now based in a village just outside Bath, Sholto grew up in Southend-on-Sea in Essex, just 100 yards from the beach. He cites a varied range of artists as influences including John Bellany, Francis Bacon, Otto Dix, Paula Rego, Stanley Spencer and William Hogarth, as well as cartoonists like Hergé and Gerald Scarfe.

Approach

Drawing in pencil on paper is where it always starts. Sholto began illustrating in watercolour, coloured pencils and ink. More often now his inked drawings are scanned and coloured using Illustrator and Photoshop.

Style

Expressive, immediate and witty, Sholto’s work has its own unique, fun character to it. The look can range from cartoony to a 19th century illustration style. While drawing, he always imagines the person viewing the image at an individual level rather than as a ‘market’.

Awards

2013 – Chocolate Lily Award (Canada) 2012 – IPA Best of Health – Silver in Consumer Mixed Media Campaign 2012 – IPA Best of Health – Silver in Direct to Consumer, Integrated Mixed media Campaign

Client list

Sholto has a client list that includes Macmillan, Random House, the BBC, Langland Advertising, Kodak, Saatchi & Saatchi, The Times, Annick Press and Egmont Books.