Olivia henry

Olivia Henry grew up by the rainy seaside of Hastings and was always drawing or creating from a young age, often being inspired by nature or her own imaginary world. Children's Books have always been the main focus of her work, with influences coming from childhood classics such as Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake, Edward Lear and Aesop. A strong focus on narrative surrounds her work and there is a strong element of morality. Children learn and benefit from moral tales where there is an educational idea so Olivia not only creates a playful place for her audience to escape but also teaches sensitive issues that could challenge the young reader in a delicate manner to provoke a subtle understanding and portray lessons to be learned in life. 

Olivia uses a variety of materials and processes to show her ideas combining hand drawn elements with different textures and typography.

1. Choose a noun, adjective and verb that best describes your work.

Whimsical, experimental and engaging.

2. Have you done any work outside of university?Yes, earlier this year I did a collaboration with another artist, Rohan Samuel, for Cut&Paste competition. Also participated in a group exhibition in Brick Lane in February 2012 named Chicken or the Man.

3. What is your preferred working environment? (studio, home, music, outside etc???)

Working at home surrounded by lots of colours and nice music creates a perfect place for me to work, I also like to illustrate out in the garden, or anywhere that I will be inspired by my surroundings.


4. Where in London is your favourite gallery and why? Where was the last exhibition you went 
to ad what did you think of it?

I can't choose a favorite gallery! But the best ones are The Tate Modern, The Museum of Everything and The Museum of Childhood. The latter are so nostalgic and create a curiosity within me that is really inspirational.

5. What's does your next project entail?

I have a few collaborations lined up with people from all creative backgrounds. There are a few more books in the works too which will contribute to The Bologna Children's Book Fair in 2013, which I am working towards over the coming months. 

Olivia will also be exhibiting & selling work at IDENTITY 2012 and has already some of her hand made books internationally.