| About me |
My illustration career began around the time I learned to sign my name and discovered floors, walls and furniture made pretty neat canvasses. By the time I hit second grade, I became a tattoo artist for my classmates (also pretty neat canvasses) in spite of inadequate pay and their being forced to bathe.
Once I grew up a little, I worked for six years as an illustrator and graphic designer for a newspaper before I left to work on my own stuff. I got my first break in 2003 with a half-page illustration for the Weekly Reader, which I've posted on its very own page for your amusement. (That "posted" link opens in a new window, just so you know.) My next big break came in 2007 when the nice people at Lark Books asked me to illustrate "Yikes! Wow! Yuck! Fun Experiments for Your First Science Fair." Any book with the word "Yuck" in the title is so where I'm coming from.
As for influences, I have quite a few, and my collection of kid's books are alphabetized by illustrators (of course).
Here is my dream list of illustrators who knock my socks off, along with one if-I-only-had-one-of-this-person's-books-which-one-would-it-be pick.
- Lane Smith The Stinky Cheese Man
- Dave McKean Arkham Asylum
- Gris Grimly Sipping Spiders Through a Straw
- Edward Gorey The Gashleycrumb Tinies (a classic)
- Stephen Gammell Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
Like many artists, I am influenced by much of what surrounds me, but all of those things would be difficult to find the links to.
So, as I said before, thanks for stopping by, and let me know what you're thinking. My email is illustrations@nora-thompson.com.
