Toni Hargreaves's Biography
| A selection of Toni Hargreaves's work | |
 Ant & Dec (Box Canvas) |
 George (Box Canvas) |
Toni Hargreaves was born in Lancashire in 1965 and has been keenly interested in both art and the natural world from an early age. She spent five years at Blackpool and Fylde College of Art, studying first technical illustration then specialising in scientific illustration.
A college work experience placement at the University of Manchester's Medical school interested her greatly working on a series of thoracic anatomy illustrations for use as teaching material. Here she learned model making under the guidance of Richard Neave, the renowned forensic sculptor. This led initially to a career in medical illustration working for a publishing company of professional medical journals. It provided an opportunity to gain a thorough understanding of print and to further her knowledge of anatomy and physiology.
After two years, Toni decided to return to the work she most loved, wildlife, and to pursue a career as a freelance illustrator eventually signing to a London illustration agency. Much of her commercial work has been for natural history books and partworks for older children and adults. She has also worked in the field of advertising which included a series of backgrounds for a TV commercial.
Computer based illustration and digitised artwork were beginning to affect the role of the wildlife illustrator and the type of work available. It was then to prove a turning point in her career when, in 1997, she met international wildlife artists whilst exhibiting at the British Falconry Fair. She changed from painting in gouache to acrylic and found that it added a new dimension to her work giving a sense of atmosphere, control and satisfaction which was not always possible in pure illustration.
Toni then worked exclusively studying and painting wildlife for original paintings. As a keen photographer she works where possible from her own photographs for reference as well as sketch material gained from the field, including trips to Kenya and Botswana on safari. Many photographs are taken of elements that might be useful in subsequent paintings and then filed meticulously until needed. Successful sales at Christie's auction house in London during their Wildlife Art auctions led to her being a listed artist.
Styles change over the years and traditional wildlife paintings have lost their appeal as people seek contemporary paintings for their minimalistically designed rooms. It is to embrace this new era that the funky contemporary work is created. Toni now works in oil on box canvas and is now represented by the UK's leading publisher Washington Green. The new works are only available through Washington Green galleries.
