St. Peter Catholic Secondary School graduate Kathryn Durst received an offer she couldn’t refuse when former Beatle Sir Paul McCartney asked her to illustrate his new children’s book, Hey Grandude!.
The former Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board student got the gig after submitting illustrations through her agent in England. Six months later she was chosen as the illustrator for the book.
“It’s such an honour to be working with someone like Paul,” said Kathryn. “It has been such a treat to collaborate with such an inspiring and accomplished artist. We both want to make an exciting and beautiful book that kids will want to read again and again!”
Kathryn had always dreamed of illustrating children’s books but it took her a little while to achieve that dream. After graduating from St. Peter’s, Kathryn went on to study animation at Sheridan College, completed an internship at Pixar and then worked in animation for five years. Finally, she took the leap into freelance illustration.
“A lot of it is just, don’t give up on your dreams and don’t be afraid of hard work because that’s how I got here,” said Kathryn.
Let’s all join together in congratulating Kathryn for this opportunity of a lifetime.
