Divi & Frey

Research, Insights and notes for educators

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  • Seeking Inspiration in Japan

    Aizu Wakamatsu Japan has become one of my favourite places to explore, and this year I was lucky enough to return for my sixth trip. Each visit feels fresh, whether I’m wandering through ancient temples, weaving through neon‑lit laneways, or simply soaking up the rhythm of everyday life. This time, though, I travelled with a…

  • Story starts with ideas

    As someone who often works on my illustrations in public spaces—whether it’s my local café, an airport lounge, or mid-journey on a train—I’ve come to expect a certain kind of conversation. People spot the sketchbook, the watercolours, the characters taking shape, and inevitably ask: “Are you working on a book?” Sketching on a train (2024)…

  • Learning from the Masters: Rule 5 and the Art of Storytelling

    As an illustrator and storyteller, I’ve always been drawn to the wisdom handed down by creative legends—those rare individuals who manage to distil complex ideas into deceptively simple truths. Whether it’s Wally Wood’s iconic “22 Panels That Always Work”, the foundational Elements and Principles of Design, or Pixar’s 22 Rules of Storytelling, these are the…

  • Behind the scenes 1: Idea to Story

    One of the most common questions I get asked is, “Where do your ideas come from?” Like many illustrators, I stay open to inspiration in everyday life. But for my graphic novel series Divi & Frey, I had to take that to a whole new level—turning daily moments into full-blown adventures. To create the Paris-based…

  • The Magic of Paris: An Artist’s Journey

    Paris is often described as magical. For me, it was creatively catalytic. Rosamond McCulloch studio building, Cité Internationale des Arts, Paris (Dec 2023) In early development for Divi and Frey and the Curse of Anubis, Book One of the series, I lived and worked at the Cité Internationale des Arts as part of the University…

  • Hello North Carolina!

    Some days you wake up to interesting requests from across the globe. Back in February I received a lovely request from a school in North Carolina to us the cover image for my ‘Hello!’ book on a fundraising tee-shirt for their International Festival. As a very culturally diverse school they identified with the concepts of…

  • Traditional and Digital illustration

    I have been having some fun working on a new project. This one has allowed me to combine traditional illustration techniques with digital work. Loads of fun and I am very happy with the results so far.  

  • The Great Cycle Challenge

    This October I am taking part in the “Great Cycle Challenge” to raise money to help fight children’s cancer.   To see a little more about the kids and why it is import to raise money, follow this link https://greatcyclechallenge.com.au/Pages/the-kids   My current cycling goal is to reach 150km. In truth I would like to…

  • Edward Lear at Harvard

    Imaging my delight and surprise yesterday, when after a morning or recording and sketching notes from the original Alice in Wonderland pencil sketches by John Tenniel (with even a few rough sketches by Lewis Carroll (aka Charles Dodgson) I found out the Harvard’s collection of rare books and manuscripts included works by Edward Lear. While…

  • Ready to fly

    I’m making final preparations for my trip to America on Wednesday. I am heading to the International Visual Literacy Conference which is being held at the Leslie University in Cambridge Massachusetts.  At the conference, I will be presenting a paper on ‘Illustrating Visual Language Research” at 10 am on Sunday the 17th. In which I…