Illustration

Artist

Lucy Nicholls

2015 - 2025

My illustration is largely focused on style and figures. I started this kind of illustration when I was a teen practicing textiles and design alongside design and technology in high school. Both subjects were my favorite and I far excelled in these beyond anything else. My style is one of loose lines, energy and automatic expression. I am not sure how to draw any other way. I make use of pencils and pastels as a medium for illustration and sometimes I will extend this work into paintings. Rather than simply drawing on loose bits of paper and scraps that I find around myself, I am striving to make a better habit of traveling with a moleskin sketchbook as if it were my phone. You never know how an environment could spark a sudden inspiration for a sketch!

Bar Luce

These illustrations were completed on a hot day in early June of 2025 on the terrace of Bar Luce at Prada Fondazione in Milan, Italy which coincidentally became one of many more inspirations for the design of this website. Fresh off a flight from New York City that morning and one bathroom outfit change in a nearby hotel, I had some time to spend before the next work engagement during a day in Milan. After viewing numerous exhibits at the Prada Fondazione I was inspired to create my own. An ice café and a pencil case full of pastels produced these sketches with one sketch building upon an earlier outline completed at the Delta One Lounge before my flight.    

2025

Colorful sketch of two women with distinct makeup, one with a low bun and the other with a high ponytail, drawn with markers on white paper, accompanied by handwritten text that reads "Lips" and "GUARDIAN".
A colorful hand-drawn illustration of two faces with closed eyes, and the phrase "Just Because" handwritten below in black and blue ink.
Child's drawing with colorful crayons on white paper, featuring a face with multicolored eye and hair and a black scribble on the right.
Colorful sketch of a woman's face and hand holding a brush, with the words 'Lush's toothpaste' written at the bottom.
Colorful sketches of four women on a paper, with some text reading 'Assc' and 'ORAD'. A blue bag with art supplies, a wine glass, and a sheet of paper with sketches are in the background.
Sketchbook with colorful fashion illustrations on the left page and black and white sketches on the right page, placed on a blue table with colored pencils nearby.

delta one

These sketches were completed at the Delta One Lounge bar in JFK airport enroute to Milan in early June of 2025. Largely freestyle and in my own element the laptop was shut, and the pencils were unleashed.

2025  

A sketch of two people on a piece of paper, with some objects and drawings in the background.
Sketch of four women in stylish outfits on a notebook page, placed on a table in a cozy cafe setting with cups, sunglasses, and a blue bag nearby.
Sketch of a woman in a confident pose on a piece of paper.

supermodel

Produced the night before a work trip to Europe in conjunction with my daughter who drove the crayons. These freestyle fashion sketches convey symbolism through color choice. In common with much of my other work, I intend to evoke a sense of female empowerment and still observation.

2025 

Child's drawing of a face with pink lips, blue eyes, and light brown hair, along with a simple outline of a shape on the opposite page.
Child's colorful drawing of a person with blond hair, wearing a blue shirt and red pants, on white paper.
Child drawing with crayons on a large sheet of paper, with other colorful scribbles and sketches around, on a wooden table.
Colorful crayon drawing on paper with a large blue shape in the center, surrounded by red, green, and yellow strokes.
Child's hands drawing with crayons on paper, creating a blue circular scribble. Nearby are colorful crayon sets, a sketchbook with rough animal sketches, and abstract scribbles on separate sheets of paper.

Jackson Hole

This sketch is a special memory and involved me hijacking my daughter’s crayons as we had tea at the Alpine Lodge in Jackson Hole, WY. At the time I was moved by polarity having just returned from my first trip to Mumbai, India and then shortly thereafter heading to Teton Village for a ski trip before making our way down to Australia for Christmas. My daughter did not mind me taking the crayons at this age but now it is much more of an issue!

2022

A drawing of a woman, partially sketched, on a sheet of white paper. Two crayons, one red and one blue, are placed on the paper. In the background, there is a white mug with a logo and a ceramic container, all on a wooden table.

CHICAGO

During my time living in Chicago between 2015 and 2018 I completed courses in graphic design at The School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC). While illustration wasn’t a part of the focus at SAIC, my time there reignited my passion for fashion illustration—something that I had not been trained in; however, an expression I had always enjoyed engaging in since I was a teen. During my university studies, especially in economics, you could judge how bored I was by looking at the back of my lecture print-outs—the more sketches the more disengagement. These sketches were completed at Filini, the restaurant in the Radisson Aqua Blue Hotel in Chicago.

2016

Sketch of three women in fashionable clothing, drawn with black ink on a sketchbook. The sketch shows women in stylish outfits with confident poses. Papers with photographs and text are in the background.
Sketches of women wearing fashionable clothing, some with elegant dresses and others with trendy tops and pants, drawn with black ink on white paper.
Sketches of women in fashionable outfits, some with colorful details, laid out on a table with art supplies in the background.
Fashion sketch of a woman in a sleeveless, orange top and blue wide-leg pants, with high heels.