The 52-Week Illustration Challenge: meet challenge member: Karen Eramus

Monday, 14 December 2015

meet challenge member: Karen Eramus

Karen Eramus

1. Your name, location

Karen Erasmus, Melbourne

Karen Eramus

2. Describe your family

I live with my husband, three fabulous, lively, hilarious daughters, and two yappy dogs.

3. Describe your work

I am a freelance children’s book illustrator. I work from home and try to avoid distractions.

Karen Eramus

4. What is your career goal?

My work seems to improve each year. I would love to carry on producing illustrations for more books. I want to work for more major publishers in partnership with established and reknowned authors.

Karen Eramus

5. Describe your art background

I completed an art and teaching degree in UK. When my children were babies I decided to do a four-year, part-time course in Illustration at Chisholm in Frankston. That got me into exhibiting and I got my first book contract with Hachette Lothian Children’s Books a year after I finished the course.

Karen Eramus

6. What do you love about the Challenge? What have you learned?

The Challenge has given me a goal and also allowed me to explore ways of working that I wouldn’t usually use in my commissioned work. I’ve been able to break away from the ‘style’ I was previously attached to. I’ve learnt to admire the craftsmanship in pop-up and paper-cut art.

Karen Eramus

7.What is your favourite illustration you have done for the challenge so far?

I decided to do each of the words as a pop-up illustration. It’s something I really love doing and it makes me look at how I’m working differently. I really enjoyed doing Shakespeare because it came together really well.

Karen Eramus

8. Tell us something that we don’t know about you

Something you didn’t know about me? This is where I should come up with something really interesting, but I’m stuck so you get this. I have a hearing impairment and love cycling. That’s two boring things, sorry.