As a child Carolyn Carter knew what she wanted to be – “an illustrator!”. She tells Elestr Lee how she achieved her dream of becoming an in-house artist for a leading greetings card manufacturer
Capturing the delight of our garden birds
“I GREW UP in Windsor,” Carolyn recalled. “Then I went to college in Bath, to do art. I ended up living in Bath for 20 years – initially I worked in shops and a gallery, doing bits of freelance design. I got my first design job due to a watercolour I had painted of a little chick. I had sent it with samples of my work to Meri Meri, a card company based in Cheltenham, and on the basis of that little chick they called me in for an interview and I got the job!
“However, after a year I then moved to Ling Design, in Bath itself, and stayed there for ten years, painting in watercolour, and sometimes acrylic designs for greetings cards – all done by hand, as there were fewer computers in those days! Now a lot of my designs are done on the computer, only around 50% of my work is painted,” she explained.
Carolyn’s own artwork is inspired by nature, the countryside – and especially everyday garden birds. She discovered that her grandad, who died when she was young, also loved depicting birds: “I found out that he did lots of detailed pencil drawings of birds. While a very different style to mine, we were clearly drawn to the same things. He also took little sketchbooks around with him, and sketched – just as I do, doing quick-fire sketches of scenes that strike me, wherever I go. Now I also do this with my husband when we are out walking or away.”
In 2023 Carolyn married her husband Neil at St Margaret’s, Mapledurham, and they live in Caversham. “I’m enjoying getting to know my new environment. It’s very different to Bath, but I am exploring and slowly discovering so many new places!”
After a decade with Ling, Carolyn spent nine years as a freelance artist and designer, working on various projects including designing logos, selling her artwork at exhibitions and creating a stand for an exhibitor at the Chelsea Flower Show. Many of her bird paintings were printed by card company Woodmansterne, and for four years she produced an annual calendar featuring garden birds for each month of the year, for Portico. Now she has returned to Ling and splits her time between home-working and the Ling studio in Bath.
Since moving to Caversham, Carolyn has discovered the Caversham Arts Trail, and last year she made her first foray into the annual May event. “It was wonderful – I exhibited my work at Charles Burn’s barn in Emmer Green. I really loved being there!” she said. This year, she is planning to open up her own studio. “I won’t be showing my card-related work. As an illustrator you work to a brief, so I love the freedom to do anything within my own work. I am inspired by light and shade, and colour – people who came to see my work last year commented on how vibrant it is.
“I never get bored of painting birds – they will always be my main interest. As well as garden birds I have recently also been painting wading birds, lapwings and curlews – I am interested in highlighting endangered birds, to draw people’s attention to them. But I find I always return to garden birds; I love to observe their movements and try hard to capture something about their character. When I am painting my birds, I don’t like them to be too static, it’s as though you have caught a fleeting glimpse.
“I look out for birds in my own garden – I love the jays and the long-tailed tits – as well as when I am out walking. And of course, as well as loving to see birds, I really enjoy the sound of birdsong!”
Carolyn is thrilled she has made a career from her passion. “When I was young, I did my own illustrations for stories, and I even made greetings cards to sell in my local church. Being an illustrator was what I always wanted to do. I remember a teacher at primary school first mentioned it to my mum when I was just five. The careers advisor at my upper school, however, told me it was something you could only do as a hobby, and I’d have to get another job… I just thought it must be possible, and my parents were so supportive, so I pursued it, and you never know how things will pan out – and Meri Meri happened to like my painting of that little chick!”
And how will AI impact on the greetings card market? “AI is getting better all the time. But I hope that people will still prefer to buy artwork made by hand, out of a response to the world around us… it’s so much more personal, real and joyful.”
Find out more:
carolyncarterart.com
carolyncarterart on Instagram
cavershamartstrail.co.uk
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