Illustrator Lydia Nichols has come to be recognized with her naive style of illustration, admitting to having what she calls “a penchant for the quirky.” With almost 20k fans on Instagram and clients that include giants like Google, Penguin Random House, The New York Times, and the Museum of Modern Art—Nichols is a busy bee.
But there was a time, she admits, that she worried that drawing cute things might pigeonhole her if she ever wanted to branch out into editorial. “In college I would look to extraordinary artists and draftsmen like Sterling Hundley or Gary Kelley and think, I want to do that,” she relayed in a candid interview with Brave the Woods.
“Eventually I realized that I just want to admire them! For one thing, I can’t be them and for another, they already exist!”
With that thought in mind, she took the time to figure out what, exactly, she found the most interesting about illustration without the pressure of creating the perfect illustration. Having earned a BFA in Illustration from Syracuse University and an MFA in Design from Tyler School of Art, her artistic career soon took off.
“Once I stopped worrying, my work became better and more unique!” she admits, explaining that with time she let go of her worries about how cool or trendy her finishing product was. Judging by her impact, she did the right choice.
