Why Illustrator Kitty Dinners Choose Paint over Pixels
- Karin Blak
- May 19
- 3 min read
Handmade illustration still has the power to stop people in their tracks, and Market Harborough artist Kitty Dinners (Katy Dynes) has built an entire creative career around that enduring art form. In an age dominated by digital design, Kitty continues to work traditionally, with paper, pen, paint and an imagination embedded in storytelling, observation and curiosity.
A full-time freelance illustrator and workshop provider since 2007, Kitty's creative journey began long before that. Growing up on a farm, she remembers telling her grandmother that, alongside wanting to become a tractor mechanic, she was absolutely determined to be an artist. “I have doggedly pursued this ever since,” she says with a smile. Not sure what happened to becoming a tractor mechanic, though!
Kitty studied 2D Animation at university, but it was never the moving image that captured her imagination most deeply. Instead, she found herself drawn to the magic behind it all: character design, visual storytelling and illustration. That realisation led her to forge her own creative path, one built steadily through hard work, persistence and a genuine love of creating art.
Like many artists, the early years involved balancing freelance work with other jobs. Kitty worked nights at Sainsbury’s while illustrating during the day, eventually even creating artwork for the store itself. Later, she combined part-time gallery management with freelance commissions until a life-changing opportunity arrived in 2006.
She was invited to become an Artist in Residence at a school in Milton Keynes, initially working with children who struggled to settle in traditional classroom environments but connected deeply through creativity. The experience proved transformative. “I had such an incredible and rewarding time there,” Kitty recalls. “It gave me the impetus, incentive and finances to bite the bullet and freelance full time.”
Today, her work ranges from illustrating children’s books and cards to commissions, workshops and large-scale community art trail sculptures. Everything she creates carries the warmth that Kitty exudes and the characteristics that she has honed over the years.
Inspiration, she explains, can come from almost anywhere. “I’m someone who really does find the joy and magic in the everyday,” she says. From the furl of a leaf to a fleeting facial expression, Kitty is a keen observer of the world around her. She also admits to having a particular fondness for “big-eyed, curious characters and very old books, particularly dictionaries.”
Since moving to Market Harborough over nine years ago, Kitty has watched the town’s creative community evolve dramatically. At first, finding artistic networks and life drawing groups proved difficult, but discovering the Harborough Artists Cluster changed things. “They were really welcoming,” she says, describing how the group has grown both in numbers and creative diversity.
She also credits organisations like Creative Harborough with helping connect artists and creative individuals across the area, creating “a real buzz and vibrancy” in the town.
Despite her success, Kitty remains refreshingly grounded about what matters most. “The support of another person is invaluable,” she says. “Kindness and courtesy can get you anywhere.”
And as for the future? “I absolutely love what I do,” she says. "Whether that's illustrating children's books, cards or commissions, painting huge community art trail sculptures or working with the next generation of young artists: I have a feeling I shall never retire, I'll just say, "Bring it on!!"
You can find Kitty Dinners here:
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