Top children's illustrators join nature-themed charity exhibition

Sharon King-Chai isn't a cowgirl, but she does love the great outdoors, and she has rustled up a big posse of fellow children's illustrators to hold Nature, an art exhibition benefiting both kids and the environment.

Held at The Gallery at The Playroom in North London, the show runs from 9 to 14 June. It will feature artwork by an incredible selection of 50 illustrators, including Rob Biddulph, who broke the Guinness World Record for the largest online art lesson with his viral #DrawWithRob series, as well as the likes of Rebecca Cobb, Tor Freeman and Marta Altes. Scroll right down for the full list.

"I loved the idea of creating an exhibition about nature," says Sharon King-Chai, who is busy working on Julia Donaldson's next release. "It felt like the perfect antidote to the world of AI and computer-generated imagery – a collection of children's book creators making artwork with their hands to celebrate nature."

Each wonderful piece of art will be on sale, with part of the proceeds going to two North London charities – The Toy Project and Urban Forest Tribe, whose remits perfectly fit the nature of the event.

The idea came about when Sharon was at the Bologna Book Fair last year, which is a huge powwow in children's publishing. Having previously exhibited at The Playroom in 2024, she started asking other illustrators if they'd like to take part, and the response was overwhelming.

"There's such a beautiful breadth of work available, including a layered papercut piece by Bianaca Moore, illustrated poetry by Jarvis, and sand art by Yuxuan Zhou," continues Sharon. "Harriet Muncaster, who is the creator of the hugely successful Isadora Moon series of books, has a brand-new book series out. You may spot her latest character, Wiska Wildflower, on our walls."

Each piece of art is self-initiated but inspired by nature, and Sharon has gone above and beyond in designing four posters to promote the exhibition. The lettering that defines the event's identity has been created from natural prints – leaves, flowers, feathers, twigs, and so on. To create the fox, butterfly and bird artworks, Sharon used a printing technique she learned during a school visit.

"A teacher showed me some Christmas cards the children had made using a gel press. I had never worked with one before, so I bought a small gel plate and quickly fell in love with the process. Applying different colours to the plate, with a rich array of textures, and then transferring them onto paper is a very tactile experience – and the mark-making is very rewarding. It is a beautifully hands-on and experimental way of making art. Labour-intensive but very fun!" she says.

The effort was certainly worthwhile – just look at the shimmering effect of the layered colours, and the tactility of the work. Hopefully, the posters will be on sale alongside the other artworks.

To get an eyeful of the 50 incredible pieces of art – or maybe even to pick one up – head to The Gallery at the Playroom, 99 Junction Road, N19 5QX from 9 to 14 June. The opening hours are 10 til six.