April 6, 2006
Bow Times
By Heather Matthews

The art of being an artist
Young illustrator will teach at Kimball-Jenkins

Neva Austrew, 26, of Raymond, grew up watching Disney movies like “The Little Mermaid,” “Aladdin” and “Beauty and the Beast.” When it came time to choose a major in college, and later a career, she knew there was just one choice for her – illustration.

From an early age, Austrew fell in love with the creative process – starting with a blank piece of paper and ending with a colorful piece of art. Called the “Disney Girl” in school, Austrew would spend hours drawing the characters from her favorite films, and creating her own characters as well.

“It was just something that I always remember doing and something that I always had fun doing,” she said. “It became part of my identity. It just never occurred to me to do anything else in my life. I could never be anything other than a creative person or have anything else as a career.”
Austrew will bring her love for the creative processes and illustration to the students of the Kimball-Jenkins School of Art this semester through four classes on illustration and drawing. Austrew began teaching at the Kimball-Jenkins last fall, but it was during college that she discovered a talent for teaching, which she said was also another chance to be creative.

“Teaching is creative itself,” she said. “You have to figure out how to listen to your students, and come up with interesting ways to teach new concepts.”

This semester at Kimball-Jenkins, Austrew is looking forward to teaching a wide range of students – from 3 year olds to adults – in the art of illustration, but also about the confidence to explore their artistic talents, and their dreams of being an artist.

“My advice is to find something that inspires you and draw, draw, draw – whether it be a tree, a flower, or yourself,” she said. “They’ll get there eventually. It just takes a lot of practice. I’m just trying to give them their own kind of artistic confidence.”

Austrew said she also hopes to share the realities of being a freelance artist with her students.

“I want to tell them that if making a lot of money is important, than being a freelance artist is not for you,” she said. “You need to care about the art you are creating more than anything. When it starts to stink, and you are not working on the most creative jobs, you have to stick with it. Being an artist, it takes awhile. You’re going to have a few tries and stumbles. You’ll have to experiment a bit before you can support yourself solely by your art. But, if you love it, stick with it.”

Austrew, who works as the public relations coordinator for the Currier Museum of Art in Manchester, runs her freelance artist jobs through her company, N.E.V.A., or New Expressions of Visual Art. Austrew has designed album covers for internationally renowned blues and soul singer Mighty Sam McClain, created a mobile for a children’s clinic in Honduras, and most recently, illustrated the children’s book, “Daddy’s Girl,” written by Breena Jacobs. For Austrew, illustrating the book was a dream come true, and the culmination of a lot of hard work.

“It’s so exciting,” she said. “This is what I want my career to be about.”
And for Austrew, being an artist is about being happy.

“Creating art and teaching art keeps me really happy and fulfilled, and in the end that is what is most important.”

For more information, visit www.kimballjenkins.com.