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The Illustrarium

Susie Batsford - Illustration, Art & Pattern Design
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Handpainted folk floral design in rich reds and greens with the text "Welcome to my Blog," created by Susie Batsford of The Illustrarium.
Childrens Story Book Character Design
Childrens Story Book Character Design

Pequena Pezuna The Happy Vicuna

July 1, 2016
Watercolor Kids Book Character
Watercolor Kids Book Character
Mats Bootcamp Cactii for Children's Story Book
Mats Bootcamp Cactii for Children's Story Book

With our Exhibition 'Metamorphosis' coming down today, it's time to move on to new projects.  The MATS Bootcamp Gallery for our June Assignment is now live http://makeartthatsells.com/galleries/mats-bootcamp-2016/june/page/4

This month we had to create a character sheet of South American Vicuna for a children's storybook.  My little fellow is a rather happy chap called 'Pequena Pezuna' which means 'Little Hoof'.  He's a rather curious fellow and trots around the Andes on his epic adventures of discovery.

In Animals in Clothes, Anthropomorphic, Anthropomorphism, Art Courses Online, Character Design Sheet, Childrens Book, Illustration, MATS, MATS Bootcamp, Paintings, Watercolour Painting
Prints of Artists Original Greetings Cards
Prints of Artists Original Greetings Cards

Business Cards, Greetings Cards & Magnets

June 6, 2016
African Animals in historical clothes original artists cards
African Animals in historical clothes original artists cards
Original Artists Paintings Greetings Cards
Original Artists Paintings Greetings Cards
Original Art on Bottle Opener Magnets
Original Art on Bottle Opener Magnets
Small Magnets with Unique and Original Artwork
Small Magnets with Unique and Original Artwork
Susie Batsfords Business Cards with Original Art
Susie Batsfords Business Cards with Original Art

Well, it’s finally here, this evening is the Opening Night of our exhibition ‘Metamorphosis’. I remember watching in awe as all the student work went up on the walls this time last year, and thinking that I could never imagine being ready to exhibit anything. If I’m totally honest, I still don’t feel ready but I wonder how many artists really do when they are at this stage of their career.

 So, with the exhibition hung, I began to turn my attention to promotional material and here is what I’ve designed fresh from the printers today… just in time. Blank greetings cards, small round magnets, bottle opener magnets and of course my double sided business cards from https://www.moo.com/uk/

 When the magnets arrived I popped them into little bags and attached a cardboard label I’ve also designed and printed, there’s a matching logo design on the back of my greetings cards. You might recognise the icons from my previous post http://www.illustratorsimaginarium.co.uk/the-emperors-new-crown/

I’ve also just begun another course in photography with the Makelight community, this time I'm studying 'Makelight Essentials' which teaches some basics in photography:  https://makelight.com

So hopefully, I’ll start getting to grips with my new birthday camera. Photographs of tonight’s exhibition will follow so for now… wish me luck!

In African Animals, Animals in Clothes, Anthropomorphic, Anthropomorphism, Artist, College Degree, Exhibition, Fine Art, Historical, Illustration, Illustration Degree, Illustrator, Jane Austen, Online Courses, Paintings, Printing, Regency
African Lion in Historical Clothing. Tarot Card Watercolour Painting of The Emperor
African Lion in Historical Clothing. Tarot Card Watercolour Painting of The Emperor

The Emperor's New Crown

May 23, 2016

It's been a somewhat auspicious day for Lord Lionheart, since today was his rather grand Coronation and he now assumes the title of Emperor.

'The Emperor' is the IV card in the Major Arcana of the Tarot.  He is the embodiment of great leadership, new beginnings, adventure, authority and creative wisdom (symbolised by the owl in my painting). His ruling planet is Mars and his astrological sign is Aries.  His message is: 'To trust in your own power and rule by serving others'.

This is my latest submission for MATS Bootcamp.  You can see it in the online gallery along with all the other artists amazing and diverse submissions here: http://makeartthatsells.com/galleries/mats-bootcamp-2016/may/page/11?imagesPerPage=18

In African Animals, Animals in Clothes, Anthropomorphic, Anthropomorphism, Floral, Flowers, Historical, Illuminated Manuscript, Illustration, Illustrator, MATS, MATS Bootcamp, Medieval, Paintings, Tarot Cards, Tudor, Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Woodland Animals in Regency Clothes Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Woodland Animals in Regency Clothes Watercolour Painting

The tale of the birthday tea...

May 2, 2016
Anthropomorphic Fox in Regency Clothes Looking at Cottage in Woods
Anthropomorphic Fox in Regency Clothes Looking at Cottage in Woods
Anthropomorphic Mouse in Shabby Chic Cottage Kitchen with Aga Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Mouse in Shabby Chic Cottage Kitchen with Aga Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Woodland Animals dressed in Regency Clothes in Cottage Gouache & Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Woodland Animals dressed in Regency Clothes in Cottage Gouache & Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Mouse Dressed in Shabby Chic Cottage Kitchen Gouache & Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Mouse Dressed in Shabby Chic Cottage Kitchen Gouache & Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Woodland Animals in Regency Clothing Gouache & Watercolour Painting
Anthropomorphic Woodland Animals in Regency Clothing Gouache & Watercolour Painting
The brazen fox had slipped away, but for his crimes he'd have to pay.
For this time he'd been caught red handed.  A sneaky thief he was now branded.
He knew that he could not remain, and no-one saw that Fox again... ...

Sometimes, a project I'm working on becomes a journey of artistic challenges and discovery.  Ventures like these seem to require an endless amount of motivation and determination to complete.  This has been one of those projects; it has pushed my boundaries and challenged me to confront feelings of self doubt, while working on six images at once for the first time, has been intense.  It has also been a labour of love and given me great joy.  Would I do it differently if I started all over again?  Yes definitely!  But, I am happy to finally put my paint brushes down (for now at least), even with all my perceived imperfections.  So here after more than a month in the making is my Woodland Animal Series.  You can see how these paintings developed here: http://www.illustratorsimaginarium.co.uk/woodland-animal-paintings-experiments-in-colour-palettes/

In Animals in Clothes, Anthropomorphic, Anthropomorphism, College Degree, Fine Art, Georgian, Historical, Illustration, Illustration Degree, Paintings, Paintings, Watercolour Painting

Historical Regency Costume, Animals in Clothes, Georgian Clothes, Animals in Clothes, Mixed Media

Woodland Animal Paintings & Experiments in Colour Palettes

April 12, 2016

Historical Regency Costume, Animals in Clothes, Georgian Clothes, Mixed Media

Historical Regency Costume, Animals in Clothes, Georgian Clothes, Mixed Media

Watercolour Paint for Childrens Book Illustration of Forest Creatures

Having finished my essay… at last, I can start to concentrate on getting creative again. Only a few weeks to go now, until our 2nd Year degree exhibition, slight panic! I started developing my anthropomorphic ‘Woodland Animal’ series, by just tentatively trying out colour palettes. There are six all together and I’ve just got some finishing touches and the characters to paint now. Hopefully they will come together once I’ve finished, but I guess it’s been an amazing learning curve whatever the end result. I’ll be posting the finished paintings here, hopefully very soon.

In Animals in Clothes, Anthropomorphic, Anthropomorphism, College Degree, Fine Art, Illustration, Illustration Degree, Paintings, Sketchbook, Watercolour Painting, Work in Progress

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 Copyright © 2025 Susie Batsford. Please do not reuse any images without the artist’s written consent.  All rights reserved.