There is a sense of vulnerability and innocence that we all had as children, that withered and faded as we grew. We learned about the ugly side, we got distracted, we started looking past the things right under our noses. We stopped noticing the little quirks and details that make life curious. Children have a sense of wonderment towards the everyday interaction that drives their will to learn, explore, and create.

It is with this childish vulnerability that I approach my illustrations. My work is decorated with textures, implied shapes, bold outlines, and offset colors that take the usual and makes it unusual. I feel like my illustrations live in a world straddling the line between childhood and adulthood with mature developed themes that are conveyed through a whimsical technique. My goal is to engage both children and adults by visually portraying the bewilderment that we all once knew; that They may remember how easy it was to be imaginative and observant.

I begin an illustration with a very rough sketch, and then, like a sculpture, I shave off the unwanted and excess form. This gives me the groundwork for a very bold, easy-to-read reference. If I’m working digitally, I’ll scan the sketch and begin to layer outlines, fills, textures, and details until the image is reflective of my illustrative style. If I am working traditionally, I also work in layers, but rather in layers of mixed media (bordering collage) including: tracing paper, acrylic paint, oil washes, found textures, dimensional forms, and a myriad of mediums.

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Natalie Nicole Hill received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration from The Savannah College of Art and Design in the beautiful Savannah, Georgia. She was in pursuits of a career illustrating children’s media, when she landed a job right out of college with burton + Burton wholesale. She currently resides in Athens, Georgia with her dog, music, and coffee to keep her company.