Artist Feature - Shan Fischer Mar 12 2014

Take a look at one of our children books illustrators Shan Fischer here at Advocate Art! We love her beautiful choice of complementary colours capturing the atmosphere! Her online portfolio is being updated just in time for Bologna, have a look then for a glimpse of more of her work! I grew up on a vegetable farm just outside of Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. It was a tough life but also one I wouldn't exchange for anything. It was freedom. Open spaces to run and play in, my best friends were seven border collies, four ex-race horses and a gaggle of vicious geese! I have always worked in industries that create content for children, from books, to games, to films and TV. My style and choice of materials may be in a constant state of flux, but my love for ardent characters and their environments remains a constant. I have a diploma in commercial art and two degrees in Visual Art, majoring in printmaking and painting. If I wasn't an artist I think I would have become a chef... or a pilot... or an archaeologist. I love detailed and realistic looking art, with a hint of fantasy thrown in. I think I get bored easily so I'm constantly trying out new styles. I mostly work digitally these day in Photoshop, but also love to draw and paint traditionally. I live for the smell of new stationery! Being a freelance illustrator is a solitary existence so I enjoy taking part in any and all art fairs and exhibitions I can. It's confirmation that yes, there is a world beyond my studio. Two siamese kittens keep me company. Sisters. Beautiful. Cheeky. They are my happy pills. My imagination is constantly being stirred by the music I listen to, the books I read and the movies I watch. I'm drawn in by intelligent, witty writing. I am a big geek. I love folk, indie rock music, Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman and I'll watch anything Joss Whedon and Steven Spielberg make.