Lisa Evans
It was while studying Art A level in Jersey that Lisa Evans first got the illustration bug – when UWE visited her school to talk about courses. She now works as a full-time illustrator from her home in Bath.
"When UWE came to talk to us about what was involved in the illustration course, that was it really - I knew it was what I wanted to do," says Lisa. So after school, she left Jersey for Bristol, and came to UWE to study a foundation course in illustration, and then an Illustration BA.
"The lecturers were really supportive and encouraging," Lisa recalls. "They helped me to realise my talent and gave me the confidence to go on and develop it."
Honing the skills
After graduating in 2002, Lisa then moved from Bristol to Cambridge, where she studied for an MA in Children's Book Illustration. And since then, she's thrown herself into building a career as a freelance illustrator.
"I've had a string of part-time jobs to subsidise my income along the way," she says, " but I've always kept going with the illustration, as that's want I really wanted to be doing.
"A lot of my fellow postgraduates took 'temporary' jobs after university to make ends meet, but they never left them. I was determined that wouldn't happen to me."
The best things come...
Lisa's determination started paying off in a big way in February 2007, when she was asked to illustrate an ad campaign for Nordstrom, a US-based clothing company. "It was a turning point for me, really," she says. "As the campaign developed, they asked me to do more and more, and I ended up doing a whole catalogue in the style of a children's book. It was my lucky break!"
...to those who wait
Since then, Lisa has been able to concentrate pretty much full time on freelance illustrating. "I'm glad I stuck to my guns," she says. "And I still specialise in children's book illustrations when I can. Children are a hard audience to please," she chuckles, "so to know they enjoy my drawings is a real boost."
For those about to illustrate
Although Lisa claims she was "lucky" with the Nordstrom project, her determination meant she was there when the opportunity arose. "If I could give any advice to others, it would be to stick at it," she says. "Sometimes you need to compromise - but not when it comes to your dreams."
Page last updated 1 November 2011