About

Geraldine “Deanie” Harris is a children’s book illustrator and character designer based in Durban, South Africa.

She has spent more than four decades drawing characters, creating imaginary worlds and bringing ideas to life - first within the gaming industry and, more recently, in the world of children’s books.

Central to Deanie’s approach is understanding the psychology behind a character - who they are, how they think, how they might react and what makes them definable. This understanding informs everything from posture and expression to the smallest visual details, allowing her to develop characters that feel distinctive, believable and full of character.

Her illustration roots are firmly traditional, working originally in pencil before embracing digital illustration. Today she combines these skills to create expressive characters and richly imagined environments with a touch of humour and plenty of heart.

Before turning her focus to children’s book illustrations, Deanie enjoyed a long career in character and environment design with Derivco, a leading developer in the international gaming industry. Her work ranged from initial character concepts and character development to highly finished artwork. She also mentored other artists in character design.

Today, she works closely with authors to turn their words into visual worlds, developing characters from the first rough pencil sketch through to finished artwork and complete storybook scenes.

Away from her illustration work, Deanie is an avid landscape gardener with a particular passion for rockscaping. Her creativity also extends to interior design and creating beautiful spaces - whether on the page, in the garden or at home.

She is currently available for children’s book illustration, character design and selected illustration commissions.