Chelsea Charles

Chelsea Charles is an illustrator who resides in Brampton, Ontario, and has received her BAA in Illustration at Sheridan College.

Chelsea creates her illustrations through a combination of digital and traditional mediums. Her dream job is to illustrate children’s books. She’s built a career from illustrating everything from sports stars and actors, to dreams and political concepts.

In her spare time, she enjoys listening to music, being a nuisance to her cat Charcoal and dog Stokley, while daydreaming about travelling to Japan.

We had the opportunity to sit with Chelsea for this exclusive interview for our magazine this month.

Please introduce yourself to our readers.

Hi everyone! My names Chelsea Charles and I’m an illustrator from Brampton, ON.

Tell us about your education.

Back in 2016, I graduated from Sheridan College and received my BAA in Illustration.

What was your journey to becoming an illustrator?

I’ve been drawing ever since I was a kid so becoming an illustrator seemed inevitable.

Have you always been a digital illustrator or do you also do illustrations with a pencil?

Growing up, I’d use anything I could get my hands on. From crayons, colored pencils, markers and watercolors! Now I create my sketches traditionally with pencil or pen and finalize it digitally.

How would you describe your illustrations in three words?

Abstract, Emotive, Colourful

What is your process for creating an illustration? Do you start with an idea in mind? Or do you draw something and let it evolve naturally?

For personal work, an idea can stem from a dream I had, photographs I take, or from music I hear. For editorial work, when I get a story, I highlight key words that stand out to me which often sparks an idea and I begin sketching from there.

What kind of projects have you worked on recently? What was the most challenging? The most rewarding?

Recently I’ve been working on children’s books which are a lot different from editorial work as there are more illustrations required. I think the most challenging part was dealing with imposter syndrome. I felt as though I couldn’t accomplish a project at this scale as I usually create single illustrations. As soon as I regained belief in my skill and my ideas and saw what I had accomplished, it was very rewarding seeing it all come together!

How do you get inspired?

I love film, music, photography and art so keeping up with these hobbies really help me stay creative.

When someone commissions a project from you, what’s the first thing you do? Where do you start?

For commissions, I usually start by providing

the client with an outline of questions, such as: a brief idea of what they’d like, due date, what their budget is, dimensions of the piece etc. Once these details are finalized, I can start creating!

Describe your studio space.

Currently it’s my bedroom but hopefully in the near future I’ll have a separate room I can work in!

Color seems to have such a special place in your drawings. How do you choose the colors for each illustration?

Colour really helps me set the mood to my work. If I’m working on a more serious piece I tend to use blues and reds as they’re moodier colours. For more lighthearted pieces, I love using yellows, oranges, and greens!

What’s your favorite thing about being an illustrator?

I love being able to do something I’m truly passionate about and I love being able to bring someone’s ideas to life.

What is it like being an artist in Toronto?

Because most of my business is done online, being in Toronto isn’t necessarily a pro or a con.

Tell us about some of your achievements?

A few of my proudest moments were creating a book cover, re-designing the packaging for Village Ice Cream, and now having illustrated a children’s book!

What are your plans for the future?

Ideally, my dream is to be an illustrator fulltime so doing whatever it takes for me to accomplish this.

What is compelling to you about art?

Being able to see how other people visualize and create certain ideas in a way that maybe I wouldn’t have thought of myself.

Are there any messages you are trying to convey with your art?

My goal is to have the viewer instantly feel the mood that I’m trying to portray.

Do you think art is a mirror of the artist?

I think it can be! Speaking for myself, my personal work tends to reflect how I’m feeling. It’s almost like a visual diary of sorts.

Your favorite quote?

Unfortunately I’m too boring to have a favorite quote. haha!

Your message for our readers and your fans.

If you’re reading this and you’re a creative, keep grinding at your craft and don’t be afraid to put yourself and your work out there!

Your message for us at TorontoPages (TOPS)?

Thank you so much for interviewing me! I really appreciate it.