Life Beyond Barker

Yvonne Low (Class of 1979) is an award-winning fine artist, writer and illustrator. She writes picture books, poetry and junior fiction and creates illustrations for the children’s publishing industry.

Yvonne’s Welcome to Barker book (originally published by Barker in 2011) has recently been updated and is being sent with a cute soft toy to new bubs of Alumni, as they are welcomed into the Barker Lion Cub Club.

Have you always been passionate about writing and art?

I’m passionate about all things creative – theatre, dance and choreography, music, visual arts and crafts, film, poetry, writing…

I loved drawing from a very young age and continued to dabble throughout school and beyond. I’m largely self-taught, taking art classes and workshops through the years, rather than any formal art college training.

What has been your journey since finishing at Barker in 1979?

I didn’t know what I wanted to do at uni. I ended up with a BA (Macquarie University) majoring in Mandarin and German, then a

Graduate Diploma (Secretarial Studies) at CCAE (now University of Canberra). Because I was interested in the performing arts and foreign languages and culture, I found myself serendipitously involved in both areas, working as a travel consultant with World Travel Headquarters (GSA) and in administration at Sydney Dance Company and QEII Arts Council New Zealand. I also worked at Andersen Consulting in administration and marketing.

I discovered the joys of picture books with my kids and that was the impetus to return to my love of drawing and art, and creative writing. It was the start of my adventure and journey into children’s and adult trade publishing and the literary world.

Tell us about your work as a writer and illustrator.

I’m inspired by the beauty and drama of God’s natural world. I find the artform of picture books a fascinating genre in which to work. A picture book combines creativity and imagination with art and design skills, literary techniques, the need to consider the relationship and interaction between words and pictures, the ability to weave different layers of meaning into the artistic work as a whole and the ability to communicate with different age groups. I also enjoy writing poetry both for children and adults, and on occasion I present at schools as a writer/illustrator. I’m a Role Model with Books in Homes Australia, whom Barker supports (through its Indigenous fundraising program) and which is a great organisation promoting the love of books and supporting disadvantaged schools throughout Australia.

Working as a freelancer in the arts does of course have its challenges – I’ve learnt you need loads of perseverance, patience, selfmotivation and optimism. It's certainly a long game.

Children’s publishing is however a very rewarding industry to be part of. It’s wonderful to be helping promote the love of books, art and reading and the value of creativity and the imagination. With the ongoing pandemic, especially during the periods of lockdown, I think we all realised how important the arts are in sustaining our souls and lifting our spirits, and books are a vital part of that.

We were only the fourth year of the intake of girls at Barker, so I think it was still a novelty for us girls and we felt rather special! I particularly enjoyed trying something new including the sport of fencing, and I loved the performing arts opportunities, performing in the musicals ‘L’il Abner’, Menotti’s ‘Amahl and the Night Visitors’ (which I helped to choreograph) and ‘Patience’. I continued this passion with years of on-stage performing and choreographing with Willoughby and Chatswood Musical Societies. Barker’s trip to China in 1978 was amazing – we were one of the first school groups from Australia to visit China post Mao’s death. It was fascinating for me to go back again a few years later as a university student and study there briefly. I was blessed to be in a great cohort at Barker. Numerous of my gifted year group have forged brilliant careers and are an inspiration, including David Astle and Mark Tredinnick.

Do you have any advice for today’s Barker students?

Don’t worry if you can’t work out what you’d like to do, post-school. Follow your interests and passions, develop those skills and you’ll likely find yourself working in a rewarding area that you never even imagined. It can feel daunting to not initially have a clear career path ahead, but this can also be liberating. You’ll be open to more opportunities as they come along. Embrace the adventure! www.yvonnelow.com

Sometimes you have to go outside your comfort zone, but those experiences will help you grow and will often open up opportunities later for you. It’s also never too late to learn, stretch yourself and try something new! I’m currently exploring the artform of graphic novels, as part of developing my own graphic novel/picture book project, for which I won an Australian Society of Authors/ Copyright Agency Mentorship Award in 2021. The journey continues!