Tom Simpson is an artist and illustrator based in Wellington. He was at St Kevin's College, Oamaru, when he received a Class Act award in 2001.
As a youngster, Tom Simpson would hang out after school in an artist's studio and always go home with a stack of books to read.
The volumes introduced him to people such as Norman Rockwell and N. C. Wyeth: American illustrators who to this day, still influence his work.
Now the 30-year-old is about to exhibit at the Society of Illustrators in New York, an important organisation in the illustration field and one of which Rockwell and Wyeth were both key members.
His work, Marsh Walkers, will be included in the Spectrum Exhibition of Original Art, which opens early next month.
The selection is exciting news for Simpson, whose talents were recognised not only by Burns Pollock - the North Otago artist who gave him weekly lessons and reading material - but the classmates who often asked him to draw the title pages for their school projects.
After leaving school and the family farm at Duntroon, Simpson completed a bachelor of design degree at Massey University and worked as a 2-D animator on the children's television show Action Central.
Since becoming a freelance artist, he has created images for a wide range of projects, from children's books to advertising campaigns to visualisations for film and television.
Clients have included Sony, Mercedes-Benz and Reader's Digest.
Simpson, who uses both digital tools and traditional media, says the two influence each other in interesting ways.
Photoshop is ''fantastic'' for sketching and painting digitally, Sketchup is useful for making 3-D models and Zbrush simulates the traditional process of sculpting something in wax or clay but in a digital format.
The software means he can produce work quickly and easily email it to clients, many of whom are in Australia.
However, when working on his own projects he often goes back to using oils: his first solo show, at the Forrester Gallery in Oamaru earlier this year, included eight oil paintings and a charcoal drawing.
''I really enjoy the craft of drawing and painting,'' he says.
''There's an element of problem-solving to it, especially with the commercial work ... and learning is a big part of it too.
"With every project, there's a lesson to be learned or you take something away that might influence the direction of your work or make you more ready for the next challenge.''
The piece he is most excited about is always the next one he plans to work on, he adds.
''It's very rare that I am completely satisfied with a piece of artwork.
"I think this is healthy though, it merely illustrates that an artist's vision and imagination is always a step ahead of his/her skill or execution.''
