Today we’d like to introduce you to Lindley Wiesner.
Hi Lindley, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
I was raised in a home that encouraged creativity – both of my grandmothers are artists, and my parents have creative outlets, too. I’m a triplet, and growing up, my two sisters and I were always kept busy with arts and crafts projects like watercolors, crayons, and Play-Doh! Every year, as gifts for family and friends, we made homemade Christmas tree ornaments out of clay, buttons, paint, and just about every other art supply you could think of. I knew from an early age that I wanted to be involved in the arts. In fact, in my fourth-grade yearbook, students had to write what we wanted to be when we grew up, and I wrote an author/illustrator! As I moved into high school, I became involved in community art fairs, shows, and contests and enrolled in graphic design classes. I fell in love with digital art and, for two summers, did the high school summer programs offered at SCAD. I loved it so much that I only applied to one college – SCAD! I’m currently a senior, and I’ve had the most incredible opportunities to study illustration and fibers, both of which have encouraged my love of surface design and children’s book illustration. In addition, during my time in Savannah, I’ve had the opportunity to work as a studio assistant for illustrator Shannon Snow, which has given me lots of insight into the life of a full-time illustrator. One of the highlights of my studio assistant work was assisting Shannon with a mural in Raleigh!
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I’ve been fortunate that my whole family has been extremely supportive of my artistic journey, which has made the road a lot smoother. However, I’d say that one of the biggest struggles was the pandemic – I stayed home my freshman year, and it was difficult doing remote learning for my first year of college. I think that creative block is always a struggle for artists, too. Nothing is worse than being in the mood to work on a project but having no idea what to make. On the other hand, sometimes I have a creative flood and have so many ideas that my pen can’t move as fast as my brain!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a children’s book illustrator and surface designer! For the most part, I work digitally in Photoshop and love to illustrate scenes full of whimsical characters (especially animals), bright colors, hand lettering, and lots of textures. In addition, because of my interest in fibers, I always try to include an element of pattern in my work.
When I’m not working digitally, I enjoy working with my hands. As part of my fibers curriculum, I’ve taken dye lab and screen-printing classes, and I’ve enjoyed finding ways to translate my illustrations and characters to tangible mediums, like embroidered book covers, bound books, and fabric swatches and yardage.
A lot of my artwork is inspired by my childhood and other personal experiences. For example, a recent screen-printing project involved old family photos overlaid with childhood doodles, and a majority of digital illustrations are inspired by my love of animals, travel, and the holidays. Another personal project was a set of embroidered book covers that I made when I studied abroad in France last spring – I illustrated icons that represented my experiences in Europe, embroidered them on fabric, and used them to create covers for hand-bound books.
It’s been really rewarding to see how far my work has come since I began my illustration career. I am most proud of my ambition and work ethic, which has allowed me to become much more proficient in Photoshop. This is reflected in my work as increased attention to detail, a more developed personal style, and a large portfolio of human and animal characters. I am also proud of my curiosity – because of my desire to learn, I’ve found creative interests outside of my comfort zone of digital illustration.
What were you like growing up?
Like I said before, I was always into art growing up! A lot of other interests influenced my creative journey, though.
My family and I are huge animal lovers – we’ve owned a variety of different pets and often made trips to the zoo, children’s museum, or local wildlife centers when I was little. I’ve always been curious, so I loved to learn about and draw all the animals that I saw at the zoo and the dinosaurs that I saw at the children’s museum – and I loved to draw made-up creatures, too! My mom has saved all of my childhood drawings, and we always laugh looking back at all the whimsical, make-believe characters that I doodled. I had, and still have, a really quirky sense of humor and love of detail, and that’s definitely reflected in my childhood art, too!
I also loved playing outdoors and reading. The imaginative make-believe games that my sisters and I played, combined with the books that were read to me by my parents, all inspired my love of storytelling in the form of illustrations!
Contact Info:
- Website: lindleywiesnerillustrations.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lindleywiesner_illustrations/
- Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/lindleywiesner
