I'm April.
I am an artist and illustrator based in gloriously overcast San Francisco. I paint pictures to accompany other people’s words, write and illustrate my own stories, paint commissions, and license my work. I got my start in donut art (actual job title: professional donut painter) but now do many projects with food and beyond.
While I didn’t go to school for art I figured out how to get educated IRL. I was a studio assistant for a San Francisco-based illustrator for 2 years. I took classes and workshops with people like Mati Rose, Lisa Congdon, Lilla Rogers, Tiffany Han, and Alexandra Franzen. I attended ICON, the Illustration Conference, to meet and learn from fellow illustrators. And I discovered the joy of making art with other people like during the 100 Day Project, Monster Drawing Rally, Sketch Tuesdays, and group shows. But best of all I established my daily art practice and made peace with my sketchbook. (We had beef, it was kinda a thing but now it’s all good.)
So, what’d I do before? My past life included a series of music and food start-ups. My favorite thing that happened during that time was that I wrote, curated, and edited 75 dishes for The Foodspotting Field Guide (Chronicle Books, March 2014). Before I found my way to art and illustration, I ran a food and DIY blog called The Hipster Home. I also hosted a series of Collage Workshops at the Makeshift Society.
Quasi-Pertinent Details:
- Am happiest with an idea and a paintbrush in hand.
- Started in watercolor but love gouache. (If you love gouache too, I want to talk to you and gouache gush!)
- Loved kelly green since forever.
- Made a computer-illustrated book about Europe in 8th grade gifted social studies and it’s still in my top 10 Favorite Projects of All Time.
- Consumes podcasts at an alarming rate.
- Obsessed with vintage caftans, wallpaper, greeting cards.
- Collects vintage illustrated cookbooks.
- Loves zines—both making and collecting them.
- Am the proud owner of a red 1967 Volkswagen Beetle. My Dad bought it new off the lot in college and it’s been in the family ever since.
- Appreciates bulk-quantity arts and crafts supplies such as pom poms, googly eyes, pipe cleaners, sequins, glitter, and construction paper.