Portfolio - Caroline Magerl

Roll over numbers to view thumbnails

Many kids draw during class, but for me school’s purpose was that there was more time to draw. My parents migrated from Germany to Australia when I was two. Once settled in the suburbs of Sydney, my father set about building a 35-foot steel yacht. After years of toil, welding, and the banging of assorted metal sheets, we launched our new home with much excitement (not to mention sighs of relief from the neighbors). My childhood was spent living aboard. My first break as an illustrator came when a fellow yachty asked me to illustrate an article he was submitting. To my surprise it was accepted, and thus began my making a living from art. My cartoons were soon accepted by a number of major newspapers and magazines, and it was then that I decided my niche would be in boating magazines. So in the late 1980s, I descended upon WoodenBoat magazine in Brooklin, to beg and plead for work. There I met then-editor Peter Spectre, who sat patiently while I put forward my best sales pitch. The next thing I knew, my work adorned his column. This was my first regular illustration spot. As time went by I started to branch out. I began doing illustrations for children’s picture books. Next I embarked upon a career in the fine arts. These days I paint for art galleries full time. I illustrate a picture book every year or so because I like to, and I think they have value for our kids. I stopped all commercial illustrations except for my work for Maine Boats, Homes and Harbors magazine, and now for their web site. With each visit to Maine, I gain a greater appreciation of Maine’s people and landscapes… not to mention the lobster. My daughter saw snow for the first time in Maine (she was then four). Maine and the many people I have met there over the years have a special place in my heart.

-- Caroline Magerl