Sophy finished studying at Kingston in 1988 and has been illustrating her socks off since then.
A traditional illustrator, she works in the dusty and seductive medium of chalk pastel, layering colour to evoke atmosphere and drama.
She spent part of her childhood living in exotic corners of the world which she often finds influencing her work. Sand dunes and camels from the Middle East or Chinese landscapes from Hong Kong appear in her illustrations for books such as Philip Pullman's 'Aladdin', The Lion Classic Children’s Bible and The Oxford Treasury of Fairytales.
With over 35 years in the business and well over 150 published titles she has worked with many prestigious clients including Penguin Books, Templar Publishing, Oxford University Press, Orion, Hodder, Scholastic, Lion Hudson, Bloomsbury, Royal United Hospital Bath, Somerset Tourist Board, Random House, Francis Lincoln, Transworld, Stripes Publishing, Nosy Crow, Orchard Books, and Arthur Levine Books. She has had the privilege of illustrating the work of some top class of authors - Philip Pulman, Margaret Drabble, Michael Rosen, Adrian Mitchell, Holly Webb, Geraldine McCaughrean, Martin Waddell, Carol Shields and Adele Geras to name some of them.
She lives in England in the beautiful Wiltshire town of Bradford on Avon where she shares her life with the talented author/illustrator Mark Robertson <www.mprobertson.com> and their cheeky grey cat, Hamish. They have two delightful grown-up sons.
All artwork is unique, pastel on paper and all images in the portfolio are published.
Please contact Sophy for long list of co-editions or to talk about your ideas for a commission. Some artwork is available for sale so please get touch if you are interested.
© Sophy Williams