I've been drawing since I was old enough to hold a pencil, but despite spending my childhood years drawing monsters from Doctor Who (Tom Baker was my hero) I didn't become an official 'illustrator' until I'd finished my first degree back in 1992. Later I achieved a Masters in the same subject. Having certificates to say I could draw didn't make me a better artist and neither did it help much in finding work, but the gift of being able to draw has been a blissful refuge down the years and that alone is worth a stack of certificates.
The completed fifty-two Wildwood characters have proved to be some of the most challenging (but rewarding) of my career, taking two years to complete, many abandoned drawings and many late nights looking at the clock and knowing I ought to get to bed. Reverence for the natural world lies at the core of Wildwood and is a subject that's always attracted me. I've long thought that this important aspect of witchcraft has been played down by populist films and literature. Witches have been vilified in history and I wanted to give something back.
So here is Wildwood. Fifty-two women and girls, all of them bearing the characteristics denied witches down they centuries - they're noble, compassionate and truthful just as devotees of magic ought to be. Enjoy the gallery - I've a few pencils to sharpen!
