Sylvia created the artwork for the first issue of DIY City mag. Check out her other art at her Etsy shop - sylviamay.etsy.com.
Sylvia Newton is a doodler. Being a doodler myself, I understand how it is that any scrap of paper can become a target for scribblings. Such was the case with Sylvia when she discovered a new medium for her designs. Sylvia was involved in a very long telephone conversation when she began to doodle with a black felt tip marker in an old novel. When she hung up the phone she realized that what she had drawn was “quite good and the text added to the appeal”. This method has since become one of her favorites.
You may know her work. Yes, it was Sylvia who designed the cover of DIY City’s first issue. Sylvia lives in Newcastle, Australia with her four kids and partner. As you can probably tell from her artwork, she enjoys people watching. Whether it’s a stranger on the street walking by, celebrity, character in a novel, or family member, she says that she can always find something about a person to draw inspiration from. Her pop art style is eye catching and modern.
“I do my best work while listening to music (the White Stripes, the Strokes, David Bowie, Sonic Youth, We Are Scientists).”
She loves the work of Yoshimoto Nara, Warhol, and some of her favorite indie artists are Beci Orpin, Lilly Piri, Audrey Kawasaki, Ali J of Aussie Patches, and Ashley G.
Sylvia really values her many sketch books and journals as most artists do. And when we asked about her earliest memories of creating she recalled creating something with “a tissue and sticky tape dress for Barbie and a forest scene out of felt piece.”
You can find Sylvia’s work for sell at her Etsy shop: sylviamay.etsy.com
Tags: art, australia, DIY, illustration, print