Artospective: Paintings by Robert Carter from Canada.

Rule The Roost

An Interview with Robert Carter.

Who and where are you from?

Born in St. Albans, England, I moved to Ontario, Canada, at an early age. Eventually I went on to study Art and Illustration, graduating from the prestigious Sheridan College School of Art and Animation. I've been a full time working professional illustrator for roughly 15 years, winning multiple awards along the way. Combining a strong foundation in portraiture with a unique sense of visual and conceptual problem-solving I aim to create striking, vibrant, and textured illustrations and portraits with subjects ranging from the realistic to the surreal. With a background in traditional oil painting I applied those skills to the digital realm and taught myself the digital painting medium, which is now my preferred method of working for it’s speed and flexibility.

How you got into this?

I’ve always wanted to be an illustrator, since I was a wee lad. I grew up on comics and later discovered the work of Norman Rockwell and was mesmerized. Eventually I graduated from Sheridan College studying interpretive illustration. I've been a full time freelance illustrator now for almost 15 years.

What kind of work you do and why?

I mainly do editorial work as well a lot of portraiture for magazines and newspapers. I’d love however to break into doing more fictional book cover work. I do what I do because its like having an itch you’re compelled to scratch.