Carol Wilson, Surface Pattern Designer
Artist Statement
The art of Carol Wilson, no matter what medium she works in, is bright, cheerful and consistent. She takes her inspiration from the world around her- the avocado and citrus grove that she lives on, her garden, daily walks with her husband and dogs, and travels around the United States and internationally.
Carol’s work can be loosely grouped into 3 broad themes- everyday life, just for fun, and athletics/sports. As Carol says, “It always comes back to color. I take things from everyday life and translate them into colorful patterns.”
Carol's Background
Though my formal educational background is in the life sciences (Genetics, to be exact) I’ve always had a passion for art and pursued it in my free time. I come from a fine art and silk painting background and use those skills in creating surface design patterns. In the middle of 2022, I retired from my position as Practice Manager in my husband’s Optometry office and have since been able to devote full time to my art. Since 2002, I have sold my work at art festivals, at art museums, in galleries and online. Currently, my surface pattern designs are available for licensing.
While I was a full-time mom to 3 sons, I began taking art classes at the local community college. Each semester, I would take a new class, progressing thru drawing, painting, color theory, and life drawing. This led to an interest in silk painting and more classes with many talented teachers and mentors.
I was always fascinated with the experience that my teachers had with creating patterns that were printed on fabric. I had no idea how to do that, but during the COVID lockdown, I saw a tutorial online on how to create seamless repeating patterns on Procreate. I had to immediately go out and buy an iPad and the Procreate app! I watched tons of lessons on YouTube and Skillshare on how to master drawing/painting on the Procreate app and how to turn those drawings into seamless repeating patterns in different styles. And then I discovered that serious designers use Adobe Illustrator to create their designs in vectors rather than raster-based. So it was MORE classes and studying to learn this alternate way of making patterns. Fortunately, I love to learn! In my free time, I train for and compete in Open Water swims all over the world (as long as they are shorter than 3 miles and in relatively warm water; no English Channel for me!), maintain an organic vegetable and flower garden, and play with my 2 Bull Mastiff dogs.
I was always fascinated with the experience that my teachers had with creating patterns that were printed on fabric. I had no idea how to do that, but during the COVID lockdown, I saw a tutorial online on how to create seamless repeating patterns on Procreate. I had to immediately go out and buy an iPad and the Procreate app! I watched tons of lessons on YouTube and Skillshare on how to master drawing/painting on the Procreate app and how to turn those drawings into seamless repeating patterns in different styles. And then I discovered that serious designers use Adobe Illustrator to create their designs in vectors rather than raster-based. So it was MORE classes and studying to learn this alternate way of making patterns. Fortunately, I love to learn! In my free time, I train for and compete in Open Water swims all over the world (as long as they are shorter than 3 miles and in relatively warm water; no English Channel for me!), maintain an organic vegetable and flower garden, and play with my 2 Bull Mastiff dogs.
My gear
These may include affiliate links & I may earn a small commission from them
- MacBook Air
- iPad Pro, 12.9 inch
- Apple pencil 2
- Procreate, Version 5.3.1
- Adobe Illustrator, v. 27.1.1 & the entire Creative Cloud apps
- Watercolor paints; various brands-Windsor & Newton, Daniel Smith mostly
- Paintbrushes, Princeton Neptune and Silver Brush Black Velvet brushes
- Paper: Canson, 140 lb, cold press
- Scanner, Epson Perfection V39
- Skillshare
- Multi Color Minds Membership for Creatives
