Stewart, Chantal 1945-

Personal

Born January 16, 1945, in Paris, France; daughter of Georges Henry (a chandelier maker) and Madeleine Simonet-Henry; married; first husband's name Constantine (divorced); married Peter Stewart, June 9, 1979 (deceased); children: (first marriage) Vanessa; (second marriage) Laurence, Claire. Education: Attended École des Arts Appliques (Paris, France) and Ottawa University. Hobbies and other interests: Drawing, children and pets, gardening (especially weeding), buying and reading children's books, listening to classical and ethnic music, yoga, walking.

Addresses

Home and office—29 Moola Place, Eltham, Victoria 3095, Australia.

Career

Illustrator. Worked as a graphic designer in Paris, France, until 1980.

Member

Australian Society of Authors, Illustrator Association of Australia.

Awards, Honors

Crichton Award shortlist, Children's Book Council of Australia (CBCA), for Percy by Roger Dunn; Young Australians Best Book Award shortlist, 1997, 1998, 1999, all for Smelly Chantelly by Joan van Loon; CBCA Honor Book designation, 1999, for A Ghost of a Chance by Nette Hilton; Best Cookbook for Children in English designation, World Cookbook Awards, and Michelin Australia Best Food Book finalist, Jacob's Creek World Food Media Awards, both 1999, and Young Australians Best Book Award shortlist, 2000, all for Anyone Can Cook by Joan van Loon; CBCA Notable Book designation, 2006, for To the Light by Pat Flynn.

Illustrator

Stephen Ray and Kathleen Murdoch, The Ant Nest, SRA/McGraw-Hill (Santa Rosa, CA), 1993.

David Drew, How Many Legs?, SRA/McGraw-Hill (Santa Rosa, CA), 1993.

Mary Roberts, The Creeper, SRA/McGraw-Hill (Santa Rosa, CA), 1994.

Joan van Loon, Smelly Chantelly, Reed Books (Auckland, New Zealand), 1996.

Roger Dunn, Percy, Ghost Gum Press (Victoria, Australia), 1998.

Nette Hilton, A Ghost of a Chance, Puffin (Ringwood, Victoria, Australia), 1998.

Joan van Loon and Gabriel Gaté, Anyone Can Cook, Five Mile Press (Victoria, Australia), 1999.

David Drew, Seandainya, Longman (South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia), 1999.

Bernadette Kelly, Cartwheeling Carli, Pearson Education (South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia), 2000.

Sherryl Clark, Great Aussie Bites: Volume Two, Puffin Books (Ringwood, Victoria, Australia), 2001.

Joan van Loon, The Chocolate Lovers: A Children's Story and Cookbook, Allen & Unwin (Crows Nest, New South Wales, Australia), 2001.

Kerri Lane, I.C.U.R. Private Detectives, Heinemann Library (Port Melbourne, Victoria, Australia), 2001.

Jan Weeks, Roses for Anna, Heinemann Library (Port Melbourne, Victoria, Australia), 2001.

Sherryl Clark, Batter Up!, Penguin (Ringwood, Victoria, Australia), 2001.

Pauline Cartwright, The Snake Cake, Nelson Thomas Learning (Southbank, Victoria, Australia), 2002.

Robert Hood, Olivia Adams, Private Eye, Longman (Sydney, New South Wales, Australia), 2002.

Rachel Griffiths, Giraffes, Longman (South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia), 2003.

Bruce Dawe, Luke and Lulu, Puffin (Camberwell, Victoria, Australia), 2004.

Mary Small, Catastrophe Cat, University of Western Australia Press (Crawley, Western Australia, Australia), 2004.

Holly Smith Dinbergs, Diary Disaster, Mondo (New York, NY), 2005.

Holly Smith Dinbergs, Hair Scare, Mondo (New York, NY), 2005.

Janeen Brian, Rock and Roll Ducks!, Puffin (Camberwell, Victoria, Australia), 2005.

Pat Flynn, To the Light, University of Queensland Press (St. Lucia, Queensland, Australia), 2005.

Tracey Hawkins, Max Meets a Monster, New Frontier Publishing (Epping, New South Wales, Australia), 2005.

Holly Smith Dinbergs, Cooking Catastrophe, Macmillan Education (South Yarrow, Victoria, Australia), 2006.

Holly Smith Dinbergs, Dog on the Loose, Macmillan Education (South Yarrow, Victoria, Australia), 2006.

Holly Smith Dinbergs, Escalator Escapade, Macmillan Education (South Yarra, Victoria, Australia), 2006.

George Ivanoff, Mush Mess, Oxford University Press (South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia), 2006.

Libby Gleeson, Clancy's Long, Long Walk, Penguin Group (Camberwell, Victoria), 2007.

Also contributor of illustrations to educational publishers, including Pearson, Rigby-Heinemann, Nelson, and Macmillan.

"THE TECHNOS" SERIES

Julie Ramsden, The Technos: A Dummy Ache, Macmillan Education Australia (South Yarra, Victoria, Australia), 2007.

Julie Ramsden, The Technos: From Rats to Riches, Macmillan Education Australia (South Yarra, Victoria, Australia), 2007.

Julie Ramsden, The Technos: The Quiz Whiz, Macmillan Education Australia (South Yarra, Victoria, Australia), 2007.

Julie Ramsden, The Technos: Cat-Napped!, Macmillan Education Australia (South Yarra, Victoria, Australia), 2007.

Sidelights

Originally a graphic artist, Australian illustrator Chantal Stewart ventured into children's literature with an auspicious start. Stewart's first illustration project, Percy, written by Roger Dunn, was shortlisted for the Crichton Award, a prestigious Children's Book Council of Australia award that recognizes new illustrators. Stewart has also won other accolades for her creative contributions to the picture-book genre, including an Australian Children's Book Council Honor Book designation for Nette Hilton's A Ghost of a Chance and three consecutive Young Australians Best Book Award shortlists in recognition of her illustrations for Smelly Chantelly by Joan van Loon. Stewart has also formed successful collaborations with well-known children's authors such as Nette Hilton and Holly Smith Dinbergs.

In addition to illustrating children's fiction, Stewart has also illustrated nonfiction works—in particular cook books such as Anyone Can Cook, a collaboration between noted food writer Gabriel Gaté and children's book author van Loon. As Stewart explained to SATA, "I loved drawing from a very young age, and find myself very lucky to have made my hobby my job."

"Born Chantal Henry in Paris, I have devoted my life to art, whilst raising two families and traveling to broaden my horizons and influences," Stewart explained. "Considering my family background, it is not surprising. My father was an arts graduate and maker of chandeliers prior to [World War II]. With the invention of Plexiglass, he set up a factory designing and making ultra-modern lights. In addition, both parents were very musical— Papa on the piano and Maman on the violin. They were creative in many ways, including gardening, which has become one of my great loves. Sadly Maman died when I was just seven, but Claudine, my eldest sister, came home, and together with her new husband, they raised the younger family members.

"Like most artists, I have always loved drawing and creating, but after school and studying at the Paris School of Applied Arts, I commenced my career as a graphic designer/art director. I married Constantine, a Greek, and we traveled to Canada, where our daughter Vanessa was born. I studied etching at Ottawa University during my pregnancy. Unfortunately, this marriage disintegrated and on returning to Paris, I successfully worked as a graphic designer in various advertising agencies. In 1980, with my new Australian husband, Peter, I traveled through India, Sri Lanka, and Bali studying religions and lifestyles. I also collected a substantial body of paintings by top Balinese artists. In search of a purer, more alternative lifestyle, we bought a small holding in Bellingen, an exquisitely beautiful and lush area of northern New South Wales, Australia, with the idea of raising a family tree away from the stresses and poisons of modern life. Two children arrived— Laurence and Claire—but the idyllic life was interrupted when crop dusting and other agricultural methods wrecked the pure environment. Achieving a reasonable standard of living provided elusive, although I had two very successful exhibitions in Sydney and Bellingen at this time. Also in Bellingen, I illustrated my first book—a black and white recueil (anthology) of poems. This exercise gave me the confidence to switch from graphic design to book illustration.

"After seven years, the family packed up, moved, and settled into suburban Melbourne, where my professional life blossomed again. After some years, we moved to the outskirts of Melbourne into a rural area called Eltham. This area has been the home to many of Melbourne's artists through our short history, so it really is a perfect venue for a successful book illustrator.

"With three children, a grandchild, three cats, and a dog, life is very fulfilling," Stewart concluded, adding on a personal note: "Recently widowed, I am once again commencing a new phase of life with many professional and personal challenges facing me."

Biographical and Critical Sources

ONLINE

New Frontier Publishing Web site,http://www.newfrontier.com.au/ (September 11, 2006), "Chantal Stewart."

Western Australia Department of Education Web site,http://amlib.eddept.wa.edu.au/ (September 11, 2006), reviews of Catastrophe Cat, Luke and Lulu, Max Meets a Monster, and To the Light.