Meet Illustrator Hattie Stewart

The Style Sheet: You’re best known for your doodle-bomb technique. Can you tell us more about what this entails and when you first started experimenting with it?

Hattie Stewart: When I started, it was literally just a fun way to describe the act of drawing over something, and when I began drawing over influential magazines like Vogue and i-D, it all kicked off. I was coming from a generation of rather traditional illustration, and anything outside of that field was generally dominated by photography. I wanted to show that there were other ways to visually engage an audience. And when it comes to pop culture, I like the glamour, the ridiculousness, the fun and the freedom and frivolity of it all, so I think with the covers, if you love them or hate them, either way you can enjoy the work. I think it also gives people a sense of nostalgia, as we all used to doodle when we were young.

Can you tell us a little bit about the concept and vision behind the Pacific Place Summer Campaign?

The team came to me with a really fun proposal, so then we worked together to bring all the different aspects and details to life. We wanted a selection that was playful and mischievous to represent the perfect summer vibes. The key character is the leaning devil heart — a tongue-in-cheek mascot for lots of summer fun!

Can you talk us through the length and process of illustrating the project?

Some characters were developed over a few weeks and others more quickly. I had a proposal for various characters that we then worked together to develop further, so it’s been a consistently collaborative process to get a fun, colourful group together!

The Pacific Place Summer Campaign has a Y2K-themed mood and tone, and specifically draws on summer music festivals as inspiration. Did this theme resonate with you personally?

I think it definitely brought out the playful and fun side of my work — it’s become a rather fun and raucous party festival, for sure. I love music festivals and have been to quite a few myself, but none quite like this! This one’s special.

How does it feel seeing your illustrations come to live in large, installation format?

It’s always a thrill to see your work brought into the physical realm, especially at a large scale. Being able to walk through one of my illustrations is such a fun, unique experience. I hope everyone enjoys it! It’s been fun to bring to life.

Our Summer Campaign runs from 3–22 August. Come and check out the vibrant illustrations, plus live music and dance performances, special icy treats, shopping rewards and exclusive merchandise with Hattie’s unique designs! You can find more information here.