Introducing Abigail Burch, illustrator of everyday wonders
Meet Abigail Burch, a London-based illustrator who creates playful, joyful, and life-affirming illustrations. As she skillfully transforms everyday objects into fun and refreshing images, Abigail's illustrations are full of humour and delight.
Why did you decide to take up illustration?
I originally did a degree in Graphic Design but I loved illustration too, so I ended up incorporating a lot of illustration into my projects. This meant that when I left uni I was being approached for freelance illustrations (and finding it hard to get a full-time design role) so I kind of ended up going down a different route than originally planned, but it’s worked out great. That foundation in design has served me well too.
How do you get past creative blocks?
When I’m stuck, I’ll try and get a change of scenery, either take a day to go get out and about and go to an exhibition or go for a walk. Taking some space away from the problem means you can come back to it with fresher eyes and not just sit there driving yourself crazy.
End pages by Abigail Burch
What is your creative process?
My creative process usually starts with a pencil and paper and a lot of sketching. If it’s a brief for a client, I’ll usually brainstorm ideas and lots of quick sketches before narrowing these down to the best 3 to present. From there, I’ll develop these until they’re ready to be drawn up in colour where I move to my iPad as it gives me the flexibility to play around with colours and make any edits. Depending on the project, I’ll sometimes work up the final image in photoshop, adding textures and some hand-drawn details that I’ve scanned in.
Where do you look for inspiration?
I get a lot of inspiration from general day-to-day life, I love people watching so often I’ll get an idea from things people say or do, or from things I’ve seen out and about or read about. I love books, so if I’m stuck, I’ll head to a library, or I particularly love an Oxfam bookstore for some inspiration to draw from.
Grumpy cat by Abigail Burch
What are you reading or listening to right now?
I am reading Rules of Civility by Amor Towles and listening to Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman. I also listen to a LOT of Crime podcasts.
How do you switch off?
I find it really hard to switch my brain off, so I usually have to be concentrating on something else, such as pilates or a book, or a walk with a podcast.
A big thank you to Abigail Burch for contributing to our series of creative conversations with industry experts.