Laura Callaghan’s illustrations center around fierce, unapologetic women. Drawn in bold, almost neon, color palettes, they feature everyday environments – almost all of them indoors – in stunning detail. Callaghan, a bit of a perfectionist, admits she can’t help but focus her attention on every little detail.
“There is something very satisfying about drawing a perfect little rip off of a Lilt can or a Colin the caterpillar cake,” she remarked once, in an interview with Varoom. “It’s a cliche, but I feel if I’m going to do something I might as well do it right, even if the level of finish is something that can only really be appreciated when you are looking at the painting in real life.”
Using watercolors, gouache, and pens, her maximalist environments are very much contemporary, creating a multi-cultural landscape where women have the upper hand. “I put a lot of time into initial research,” says Callaghan, “but it’s the basis of everything I do and I hope the amount of thought and detail that goes into the end result makes for a richer narrative.”
According to Callaghan, it’s her signature details that make her work as personal as it is. “It’s the thing that makes my work mine,” she stresses, “other people can mimic your drawing style but nobody else has your brain (lucky them)!”
Her work is featured in editorials and prints (there are even some murals here and there), but – naturally – you can also follow her on Instagram.
