Sholto Walker, artist and and book illustrator. Nominated for the 2013 Chocolate Lily Award

Now based in a village just outside Bath, Sholto Walker grew up in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, just 100 yards from the sea. When he wasn't on the beach he was in his room taking things apart or just drawing. Sholto trained to be a painter, but his talent for drawing led him into illustration. He’s happiest when he can take an idea and turn it into a picture. Cycling is one of Sholto’s main passions and for a while he even thought of becoming a professional. Recently, he’s been working on a book discovering and riding the 50 best cycling climbs in Somerset. Influences include Vermeer, Steven Campbell, Peter Howson, John Bellany, Francis Bacon, Otto Dix, Paula Rego, Stanley Spencer and William Hogarth. He also includes cartoonists like Hergé, Ralph Steadman and Gerald Scarfe amongst his artist heroes.

Training

After a foundation year in Southend, Sholto went to the Cheltenham School of Art where he specialised in painting.

Approach

Drawing in pencil on paper is where it always starts. Sholto used to use watercolour, coloured pencils and ink but these days his inked drawings are scanned in and coloured using Illustrator and Photoshop.

Style

Sholto’s style is energetic and immediate. He likes to work quickly and in doing so his work is very expressive. There’s wit and humour in it too – not necessarily jokes but something amusing that people can quickly relate to. When he works he always imagines the person viewing the illustration at an individual level rather than as a ‘market’.