Meet The Illustrators
Barry Robson
Barry and his wife Sandra retired to Tindale in 2002, after running their own graphic design and illustration business in Suffolk for 30 years. A keen birdwatcher since he was 10 years old, the fells around their house have proved an area rich in all forms of wildlife which continue to provide endless and sometimes surprising discoveries as well as plenty of inspiration for illustrations and paintings.
Barry has illustrated more than 30 books but it is only since moving to Tindale that he has begun to illustrate books with a birding theme. It started when he was asked by the RSPB to illustrate a book entitled 'The Moorwitch', a story conceived and written by the children of Castle Carrock Primary School with help from Julie Willenbruch of the RSPB. This led to him being approached by John Miles to illustrate 6 books in his ‘chick book’ series as well as adding art to Joseph Starling.
Dan Powell
Dan studied Wildlife Art at Carmarthen and considers that the best part of the course was meeting his wife Rosemary.
He has won the Artists for Nature Foundation Award which resulted in a field trip to the Pyrenees and an Exhibition in the Gaudi designed building at La Pedrera in Barcelona. He was British Birds - Bird Illustrator of the Year, sometime during the last century.
Dan is best known for his field guide The Dragonflies of Great Britain. During his formative years The RSPB were great supporter of his work. His drawings and paintings have appeared in numerous wildlife books and publications. Recently Dan collaborated with Tony Soper on an anniversary edition of the long running top seller Bird Table Book. Dan has fully illustrated Belle the Barn Owl and RentaFox as well as adding art to Joseph Starling.
John Davis
John is based in Sussex and is keen on painting many aspects of the natural world including landscapes, insects and mammals as well as birds and flora. He has been a member of the Society of Wildlife Artists (SWLA) since 1987.
John sells original artwork and welcomes commissions. He works mostly with watercolour but also uses acrylic and oils. Although birds feature prominently, John is a keen mammal watcher. Much of his illustration work is done in the studio, where he turns his sketches into finished paintings, but he is happiest in the field scribbling away or doing a landscape and hoping something will come along!
John has contributed to many publications over the years including work for the RSPB, Birdlife Magazine, British Wildlife, BBC Wildlife and books including 'Downland Wildlife' with John Burton, 'Heathlands' with James Parry, 'Badgers' with Earnest Neal and Chris Cheeseman and most recently 'Jewel Beyond the Plough' with Richard Jefferson; a celebration of Britain's wildflower meadows.
John did work in Joseph Starling and now is the artist for Chrissie the Crested Tit.
Sarah Farooqi
Sarah lives and works as a watercolour artist/illustrator in Northumberland. The love of place informs everything she paints, from the beautiful landscapes of the Northumberland coast, to her intricate illustrated maps of Northumberland and Yorkshire. As a nature-lover her paintings always feature wildlife, plants and trees. She particularly enjoys painting birds.
Her pictures begin with ink drawings and evolve into complex, layered compositions which reflect her love of detail and colour, and always with a sense of fun.
Sarah's work can be found in a selection of shops and galleries, and she also loves spending time on commissions. These can be for a large organisation like the National Trust, or an individual with a happy memory and a story to tell.
Projects include illustrated maps for the Alnwick Garden, Howick Hall Gardens and Arboretum, and Northumberland AONB. She is currently working on the illustrations for "The Return of Kitty the Toon".
Website: www.sarahfarooqi.co.uk
Email: info@sarahfarooqi.co.uk
Chris Shields
Award winning artist and wildlife illustrator Chris Shields graduated from Northwich College of Art and Design in the UK in 1973.
In 1983 after a short career in the commercial art world he followed his passion for wildlife and became a full-time self-employed wildlife artist and illustrator.
Chris is now regarded as one of the worlds leading natural history illustrators has produced to date in excess of thirty thousand wildlife illustrations in over 300 books, numerous calendars, greeting cards, posters and jigsaw puzzles. He has exhibited his paintings widely in the UK and China and has paintings in public and private collections all over the world.
As a wildlife artist and keen naturalist Chris has a particular interest in moths and butterflies and always include one in each of my paintings, although they are sometimes very hard to find!
http://www.illustratedwildlife.com/
Chris Shields - 2 Bramble Walk, Sale, Cheshire M33 5LL
Tel: 0161-973 2520
Mobile: 07767711194
Joseph Starling
Joseph Starling had several illustrators all giving their work for free in aid of their work published by Ian Langford. There was work from Darren Woodhead, James McCullum, the late John Busby, Carl Benders, Robert Gillmor, Bruce Pearson, Jonathan Latimer, Andrew Haslen, Mike Henry, John Davis, Darren Powell, Leon Hills and Barry Robson.
The British Trust for Ornithology gave permission for the reproduction of their maps showing the movement of Starlings from Britain to Russia.
