Artists : Mark Chambers

I was born in 1980 on a sunny day in Aberdeen and shortly afterwards moved to rural Lincolnshire, where I grew up. When I was younger I loved scribbling and doodling on bits of scrap paper. Although I wanted to be a golfer, chef and fighter pilot I found that my skills were much more suited to becoming an artist.

I went to a boarding school in Nottingham, where I was given free access to concentrate on all aspects of Art and, after gaining A grades in my exams, I left to take a Foundation course in Art and Design at Lincoln School of Art. I then went on to complete a Bachelor of Arts in Illustration at Lincoln University, where I graduated with a first for my final year projects and a 2:1 honours degree overall. The Bright Agency took me on as a promising young graduate shortly afterwards and since then there has been no looking back.

I currently live in Lincoln and work at The Terrace, a Creative Industries centre a short walk from my house. My studio is a place where I can make a mess and be as creative as I like. The walls are covered with images, drawings and doodles of everything and anything that inspires me. I work in all sorts of different media and love using real textures, along with paint and pencil, to create my images. I have a large collection of children’s books, art books, articles and pictures from magazines and a few soft toys for inspiration, including a lobster called Larry.

I love seeing a book come together and making the words of a great story come alive on the page. I have recently started writing my own stories; hopefully these will be enjoyed by adults as well as children because I believe there is a child in all of us. Being a professional doodler is fantastic and I would not have it any other way!

Recent commissions include:

‘Best Friends’ – Tango books, which won the NASEN Children’s Picture book award in 2008

‘Pirate House Swap’ – Random House

‘The Adventures of an Aluminium Can’ – Simon & Schuster

Illustrations and promotional material for the London Zoo redevelopment of their Children’s Zoo.

And I have just had my first picture book commission with Templar for ‘Rabbit and the Big Red Scooter’.