Graduating in Wellington with a Diploma of
Visual Communications Design, Fifi freelances with fingers in many creative
pies. She
is a published junior fiction novelist, children’s book illustrator of more
than 30 titles and was a long standing television presenter of arts and crafts
on firstly TVNZ’s ‘What Now’ and then ‘The Good Morning Show’. Fifi is a
veteran of Wearable Arts; a finalist and award winner over 20 years with 22
entries in show. She has also worked with Weta Workshop, 3 Foot 7 Productions,
Pukeko Pictures and The Production Shed in the New Zealand TV and film industry
as a costumier, puppet maker and illustrator. When she has a moment,
Fifi visits
schools and community groups, inspires budding artists and writers and runs
workshops in creative process.
All the answers relate
to The Red Poppy
My husband’s grandfather Rothwell, wrote postcards to his
fiancé Hilda, from 1914-1918. Particularly poignant were two from France; they
said simply “Am O.K” and “Keep smiling!” I was in the process of scanning and
blogging these cards for the family when I read David’s story. Jim’s
letter home never mentioning the horrors of the trenches struck an immediate
chord with me; those cheerful words from a young man, disguising the reality of
his situation. Rothwell did come home from France to be a husband and father,
but was far from ‘o.k’; dying just a few short years later from the cruel
ravages of his war experience. Illustrating this book was a journey through his
time for me. I visited the Army Museum in Waiouru (a must see- really great!)
studied WW1 uniforms up close (collected by passionate people), grew red
poppies, (harder than you'd think) photographed mud (outside our house) and
rubbed chalk pastel until my fingers were raw. I learned much about pastel
illustration technique, but more about the horror and sadness of war. 
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