Fashion Illiustration

They may look like colourful doodles or arty scribbles but fashion illustrator Emma Durnell tells us there’s much more to her work than that

I have loved drawing since the day I could first hold a felt tip pen, and have always had a passion for fashion, so maybe it’s no surprise that I became a fashion illustrator. It’s a peculiar job and not one that a lot of people understand. So let me give you a quick lesson in what it means to be an illustrator, and why our work is important.

Fashion illustrators have always been used to represent the work of designers but fell from favour a bit in the Thirties with the meteoric rise of the fashion photographer. Happily they soon regained popularity – after all illustration can achieve styles that photography can’t always reach. And ever since there has been a kind of see saw pattern between photography and illustration – both enjoying regular intervals of being in vogue, depending on current trends.

But that’s not all there is to it. Illustrators are also designers and trend analysers in their own right and their work is often seen as a raw representation of pop culture, allowing creativity and inspiration to shine through colour, texture and technique. We now also enjoy a broader pallet of materials than ever that allows a far more organic approach to things. No longer does the most recognisable style consist of glossy, computerised girls sat by a pool sipping cocktails.

One of my favourite illustrators (and one I urge you check out) is Julie Verhoeven. Her Old School style is a perfect example of the rebellion against perfection – like a doodle you do when you’re on the phone, it starts out messy but gradually becomes more and more detailed and fabulous!

I love drawing on a whim, taking inspiration from aspects of culture that penetrate my awareness. At the moment I’m kind of obsessed with the Tudor era – inspired by the trend for full-volume skirts and puff sleeves and the popularity of period movies. I love the extravagance of life at court in those times and our present passion for ’peacock’ clothes: big, bold and statement making.

You can see this in my drawings, especially in ‘Bess’ which is a representation of Queen Elizabeth I (everything from the shapes and colours used to the items like the prayer book tied to Bess’s wrist). Or in my ‘Puppet Queen’ Illustration that was inspired by Lady Jane Grey – she was used as a pawn in her family’s ambitions for the throne and her once insignificant life was transformed overnight into a colourful but short reign as Queen.

So, from drawing with felt pens as a child in Wales to fashion illustration (also with felt pens much of the time – some things never change), it has been a fantastic journey that continues now in London, which I find a fascinating city full of inspiration. I love soaking up the atmosphere in the museums, galleries, junk shops and parks – all fantastic primary sources for my commissions.