Claudia Hahn

Freelance illustrator & wildlife artist

BBC Wildlife Artist of the Year 2012 “Runner-Up”

Claudia Hahn

I’m a published freelance illustrator and wildlife artist based in Cranleigh, UK. I have been around the globe on assignments, commissions, missions, exhibitions and sometimes just plain stalking for new inspiration. My love for details and vibrant choice of colour combinations are trademarks of my pictures. I don’t seem to be able to leave paintings alone until they look right to me, and I will always find something on them I can improve.

I currently have no representing agency; publishers and galleries are warmly welcomed to contact me directly via the contact form or my office phone number. I am available for commissions and as I have previously worked as a graphic designer for advertising and editorial, I understand the principle of deadlines!

I grew up in the Black Forest and studied graphic design & illustration in Freiburg, Germany. A few years ago I met the love of my life and followed him back to England. I still can’t tell the difference between Earl Grey and English Breakfast tea, but I am working on it! I am an enthusiastic fossil hunter and birdwatcher, a lover of owls and was the brief owner of a pet magpie. I have an interest in everything natural history and science has to offer and am active in conservation projects.

My work has been internationally published by diverse companies including British cosmetic company LUSH, Oxford University Press New York, Herrman Schmidt Verlag, Germany, Fieldcandy, SONOR, Turnstone Publishing, CEWE print, to name just a few. Numerous works have been published in magazines and books, including science books for children, and I have done artwork for Internet companies and the music industry. As an exhibiting artist, I have shown my work in galleries and some amazing places like a NATO air base in France, where I presented my large canvases of tigers during the 50th celebrations of the annual ‘NATO Tiger Association Meet’, an event where all NATO tiger jet pilots assemble to participate in flight competitions. (This was probably the most astonishing and unusual event I ever took part in as an exhibiting artist). I have sold original art to private individuals and art collectors in Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Switzerland, Denmark, Israel, Canada and the USA.

I have won competitions and was runner-up in the ‘BBC Wildlife Artist of the Year’ in 2012. I received an honourable mention at the 2006 ‘Adobe® Design Achievement Awards’ in Toronto with my illustrations of Andersen’s fairy tale of ‘The Steadfast Tin Soldier’, as well as two MIWAS International awards for ‘Best Bird Pictures’ and 'Overall Best in Show'.