Location: Leesburg, Virginia and Brooklyn, New York.

Duration: Almost four years.

Education: BFA in communication design and Illustration.

Cultural influences: I grew up with Van Gogh, botanical illustrations, encyclopedias, 1990s cartoons, video games and fairy tales. I grew into art deco, art nouveau, surrealism, a stolen biology book and anime. Now it’s an explosion of everything—lettering, gaming, patterns, cultures, food, photography, mythology and fashion, and always the natural world.

First big break: Sterling Publishing asked me to illustrate the start of a series of Shakespeare plays which include actual laser-cut pages inside each book. Still the hallmark of my career, and a great crash course in publishing.

Work environment: Desk, kitchen table, way too many pieces of paper. And lots and lots of books.

Technique: Hand-cut paper and digital. I’m trying to expand the way I work to fit a new variety of projects.