Common ground Artist and gardener Martin Hazelgrave has got work-life balance sussed

WORDS BY ANNA TURNS

pot the dog, Angelina Ballerina, summer and I’m tucked away in my warm Mr Benn, Farmer Duck and studio creating art on rainy days Snowman and the Snowdog: throughout the winter. Adaptability seems Martin Hazelgrave has had a to have been the key to maintaining a hand in bringing all these simple but beautiful way of life.” Swonderful animated characters to life “The outdoors gives me a massive from his cottage in the small village of inspiration in every way, shape and form. Payhembury, East Devon. From his Gardening is about balancing shapes and garden shed, he paints and creates colours. There is something lovely about background landscape images for some of looking at a tree all out of shape and the most well-known and much-loved pruning it back. Everyone is asking me to children’s animations, and when he’s not do their wisterias at the moment – I love in his art studio, he’s working as a cutting them back in the right way and gardener – a business that has evolved shape so they thrive and flower,” says from his passion to observe the natural Martin whose father was a head gardener world. at a private estate in Yorkshire and cousin Lynn and Martin have been gardening “I have got the best of both worlds – I’m Mike Hirst who is a well-known botanist. their own veg plot for over 25 years working outdoors in the countryside all “Over the past five years, the film and

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Above: Mr Benn Gladiator (Festive Road). Digital background for TV-DVD special by BBC/ King Rollo Films, original book illustration by David McKee Above right: Hand-painted animation backgrounds for Spot, based on illustrations by Eric Hill Right: Snowman and the Snowdog TV special by Channel 4/Lupus Films © Snowman Enterprises Ltd 2012 animation industry has dramatically countryside changes from woodland changed, resulting in shorter contracts, through country lanes right down to the sporadic workflow and more productions coastline at Beer, Branscombe and based abroad,” explains Martin. “So my Sidmouth just 14 miles away. He often wife Lynn and I set up Country Gardeners, goes walking along the coast path, a business to create and maintain kayaking amongst the limestone crags, beautiful gardens and wildlife areas in camping on the beach and “experiencing East Devon. Devon’s natural beauty whilst being There are such amazing gardens in this creative”. He has lived here for 25 years area, and I get to see sights that I wouldn’t with his wife Lynn, a textile artist, and says otherwise see, such as beautiful cottages “it has been a wonderful place to bring up with orchards steeped in history - the our two daughters; Kay, a nurse in Bristol imagery is so gorgeous.” Martin and Lynn who is soon getting married in have always been keen gardeners, so they Payhembury, and Carina, who works in enjoy working for themselves and New York as a fashion designer.” When determining the pace of the day whilst they come home to visit, the first thing paying some of the bills. they want to do is catch fish from the Above: Maisy TV animations by CITV/King Rollo Martin loves seeing how the kayak to cook on a driftwood fire on the Films, original book illustration by Lucy Cousins devon.greatbritishlife.co.uk DEVON LIFE June 2013 95 PROFILE

The Hazelgrave family at Beer beach. “Unbeknown to me at the time, I taught them about nature and the countryside, rockpools and the wonders of the sea, shadows and sunlight. Happy days!” describes Martin who constantly paints a picture, setting the scene for each story as he tells it in his Yorkshire accent. He looks at things differently: “My job Left: Martin’s is about close observation and daughters with interpretation, then translating this to the his wife Lynn on page in various different mediums.” As the coast path a background illustrator, Martin is instrumental in translating a children’s story from a book to the screen. Working from the script and basic storyboard, he creates and colours the backgrounds before characters are added, making sure each landscape is large enough to be panned across as characters move across Rollo Films, art director Andy Wagner creating others digitally on his computer. the screen. “My job is to emulate different took me for a coastal walk at Beer Head to Looking through diverse samples of his styles of the illustrators I’m working for, see the white chalk limestone turrets. work, it is apparent that adaptability and from books to DVD’s, films and TV series. Wow! The deal was signed!” says Martin flexibility are key in terms of artistic I love unfolding the image, taking back the who worked as a freelancer for King Rollo techniques. layers and then recreating it in a specific for more than 15 years. He has worked The process has changed since Martin style and it has been such an honour to with some of the best authors and started out 20 years ago when everything work with industry greats like Tony Ross, illustrators in the business. “I loved was hand drawn and backgrounds were David McKee and Michael Foreman.” working with children’s author and hand painted on paper. “I would hand After training in graphic design and illustrator David Mckee who was one of paint the animation onto cells which illustration, and working in Leeds, Martin the founders and directors of King Rollo,” would be placed over different moved to East Devon to work for King says Martin, “and those first few projects backgrounds and painstakingly filmed Rollo Films. This animation studio in were the most enjoyable. I was emulating frame by frame,” says Martin. “I Honiton is home to the animations for Mr a genius! He’s a fantastic artist.” remember painting throusands of cells on Benn, Mama Mirabelle, Elmer, Farmer Martin has worked on about 50 Eric Hill’s Spot the Dog special.” Duck and so many others. different stories, hand-painting some of Nowadays, the same principles apply “When I was first asked to work for King the backgrounds in his garden shed, but he is more likely to be painting a

96 DEVON LIFE June 2013 devon.greatbritishlife.co.uk The first thing Carina wants to do when she returns from New York is catch some fish from the kayak Right: Martin’s sketchbook from a day at Devon County Show

watercolour scene on paper, scanning it, Last year, Martin colour enhancing it and adding textures worked on hand- on the computer or drawing it from rendered animations scratch onto a digital tablet, with the for the Snowman and ‘undo’ function at the touch of a button. the Snowdog: “this “It is often the simple designs that really animation illustrates work. If the animation and colouring how music is key in didn’t work, it wouldn’t be so captivating story-telling. There is no narration and the music is so expressive, it The outdoors gives me a sweeps you away.” He illustrated some of now is very different to what it was 25 “ the flying and skiing scenes and years ago – it is more abstract now, and I massive inspiration in sequences of the dog getting hot by the don’t get too hooked on what colour every way, shape and fire and sticking his tail in the snow. something ought to be. I like pushing the Ultimately, it is all about observational boundaries with colour.” form. Gardening is all drawing of details. “I paint the sky and In this case, the connection between trees as I see them, with so many different observing the natural world for painting about balancing shapes colours, rather than how my brain expects and the practical skills of gardening and colours to see them. You need to look, remember extends far beyond balancing two jobs to ” the form, then draw the detail.” make a living. for children.” In Maisy, the style may seem “I have got a few of my own stories in “I feel very lucky to live in Devon and do simplistic but Martin explains how Lucy my head and I also want to focus more on what I do – gardening subsidises the art, Cousins uses complementary colours as my landscape painting – it is a natural but it was never about the money,” says defined by classic colour theory – red progression,” says Martin who knows he Martin. “Art is a way of life to me and I contrasts with green, blue with orange. will never stop being an artist and plans to find the simpler the better.” N These opposing colours create maximum paint a series of Devon landscapes this contrast and colour harmony. year. “My approach to landscape painting martinhazelgraveartdesign.blogspot.co.uk devon.greatbritishlife.co.uk DEVON LIFE June 2013 97