I was lucky enough to spend a whole day at The Story Museum's 'Illustrator's Zoo', as part of the Oxford Festival of Nature. I drew an A-Z of endangered animals, taught a class how to draw amazing animals, made doughnut art, chatted to lots of budding illustrators, and explored the many magical rooms in the museum.
Here is my day, in 35 Instagram snaps (with captions).
The day started with reading PLEASE MR PANDA and making doughnuts for the museum's 'ABC…Story!' morning session.
'Deconstructed Panda and Constructed Doughnut' by Olympia (age 3?)
Before heading to my studio to draw, I did a bit of light reading. I read ABIGAIL by Catherine Rayner and...
THE ASK AND THE ANSWER by Patrick Ness and...
TIME FOR BED, FRED! by Yasmeen Ismail and...
OLIVER AND PATCH by Claire Freedman and Kate Hindley and...
BEANO comics!
I had a go on The Story Wheel, too.
I chose key number 5, but what's inside the box! The clue was 'chocolate'
Ah, one of my favourite childhood reads! Any guesses?
I entered the rhyming room. On the walls were beautifully painted murals, by...
Helen Cooper...
from her...
award winning picture book...
THE BABY WHO WOULDN'T GO TO BED.
Then there was the lullaby room.
A very sleepy room. Inside were...
napping cats...
giant feathers and a harp.
After my exploration, it was time to settle into my studio for the day. Here, my sketchbook is opened on a page of fish drawings. In the studio, I was surrounded by amazing art by the likes of Mo Willems...
Chris Haughton...
and Clive Goddard.
I drew an A-Z of endangered animals, while visitors popped in to watch and say hello.
I spoke to lots artists of all ages. We spoke about endangered animals, and I gave some tips on how to draw animals. I was given a few tips, too!
This wasn't part of the A-Z. I sketched this just before my 'How to Draw Amazing Animals' class. I taught the class of eager artists how to draw animals (from each animal group) by starting with basic shapes. We started with a stick insect and ended with a salamander. I threw in a dragon at the very end just for fun.
Here I am, just before the class. It's hard to make out, but I'm holding the logo for the Oxford Festival of Nature.
Here's the sign for the class, just outside.
Here I am with Stacey, from the Oxford Festival of Nature.
After the drawing class, I went back to my studio to sign some books. While there, I had several visitors, including fellow twitterer (and book blogger) Child-Led Chaos!
Visitors flicked through the newly published BETTY GOES BANANAS IN HER PYJAMAS and the yet-to-be-published THE QUEEN'S HANDBAG.
Before finishing for the day...
I enjoyed poring over art in the Illustrators exhibition...
and then had a caffeinated beverage in the...
Story Museum's wonderfully topsy-turvy...
...cafe. And just as I was leaving, Lucy Atkins arrived for the launch of her latest book, THE OTHER CHILD. It's all happening in The Story Museum!
Thanks, Tom, Cath and Sarah (from the museum), Stacey (from the Oxford Festival of Nature) and everyone that came to visit. I had an amazing time.
For more information on The Story Museum, go here: http://www.storymuseum.org.uk
For more information on Oxford Festival of Nature, go here: http://www.oxfordfestivalofnature.org