Sarah Maxwell works
across fashion illustration,
animated GIFs and comics.
She was born and raised
in Austin, Texas, and then left to
study illustration in Paris somewhat
unintentionally – she’d missed the
application deadline for the animation
courses she’d intended to sign up
to. “It turned out to be a blessing.
I ended up really loving it,” she says.
“If I’d stayed on my previous path
I don’t think my art would have
developed as well as it has today –
especially moving to live abroad.”
Working on a new image usually
stems from collecting inspiring images,
or snippets of song lyrics. “From there
it’s easy for me to have an idea in mind
and begin to sketch it down,” she says.
The artist uses Photoshop with Kyle T
Webster’s digital brushes for the vast
majority of her work.
Currently based in London, Sarah
has worked with clients including
Adidas, BBC, Playboy and Wired, and
is now training in tattooing. Her work
has a classic feel in her depictions
of people and faces, but stands out
thanks to its muted colours and a
hugely diverse range of influences.
These, she says, include “nostalgia,
tenderness, femininity and 80s
electronic music”, as well as musicians
FKA Twigs and Grimes, “medieval
imagery and weapons”.
sarahmaxwellart.comSarah Maxwell
NOSTALGIA, TENDERNESS AND 80S ELECTRONIC MUSIC
REPORT