About the artist

Lucy is a wildlife and pet portrait artist currently living in Lincolnshire, UK. She works predominantly in coloured pencil to create highly detailed representational works with an aim to capture Earth’s natural beauty; her main inspiration. Despite studying art for both GCSE and A-level, Lucy’s coloured pencil skill is all self-taught.

Animals have always been a huge part of Lucy’s life. She either had pets of her own or was around animals within her extended family whilst growing up. When it came to deciding what career to pursue at university, there was no doubt that it would be animal related. She graduated from Nottingham Trent University in 2018 with a First Class Honours in BSc Wildlife Conservation. She came away from the course with a deeper understanding of the natural world and was also fortunate to work with a wide range of species during her placement year including wolves, otters, owls and British wildlife species. The opportunity to observe these animals in natural and semi-natural environments allowed her to gain a fascination for animal behaviour and physiology.

After graduating, Lucy intended to work in conservation science, wishing to use her new skills and knowledge to do positive hands-on field work. Deep down though she also craved the opportunity to be more creative. When the global pandemic halted all potential job leads, she picked up her pencils and has never looked back. She still spends a lot of time in nature and finds that it grounds her and clears her anxious mind. Drawing allows her to connect to wildlife through each pencil stroke as she studies her subject in depth and captures every intricate detail.

“Although I originally thought I would commit to conservation through a science related job, I now see art as a way to express my love and connection with the natural world. I think that people can only want to protect and nourish nature if they have a true appreciation for it in the first place, and that’s what I hope to evoke through each one of my artworks. I imagine people seeing a drawing and acknowledging the journey that species has been on to get here today; to see how complex and yet also how fragile nature can be, and ultimately realise it’s beauty and importance for our own survival. If I can encourage individuals to gain a deeper connection with nature through viewing my work, then I will have fulfilled my main goal.” - Lucy Webster

Now Lucy has combined her two passions, she hopes to commit to conservation through her art by raising both awareness and funds. She has already collaborated with charities and has participated in conservation related exhibitions. She has many ideas for future work based on a variety of topics, each one exploring the natural world in a unique way. She also plans to experiment with other materials alongside developing her coloured pencil skills; in particular she would like to explore watercolours, charcoal and ink work.