Laura Freeman is a children's book illustrator. She received her BFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York City.[1] She has illustrated many books, and done work for Highlights for Children. In a review of the picture book version of Hidden Figures, writing for School Library Journal, Megan Kilgallen said "Freeman’s full-color illustrations are stunning and chock-full of details, incorporating diagrams, mathematical formulas, and space motifs throughout... enhancing the whole book."[2] She shared the 2019 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work: Children with writer Margot Lee Shetterly for Hidden Figures.[3]
A native of New York City, Freeman was the older of two girls born to African-American father, James Freeman, and Russian-Jewish mother, Gertrude. Her sister is the singer Roberta Freeman.[citation needed]
Freeman knew she wanted to become an illustrator when she was just five years old and learned it was a career choice. She would go on to want to be a ballerina, then an editorial illustrator, and finally came back to her illustrator dream.[4]
She chose to go to the School of Visual Arts because she recognized the vast experience in illustration held by the faculty, and because it was a fairly inexpensive option for her at the time.[5]
Laura Freeman did not become a successful illustrator right away. She did odd jobs to make ends meet, including painting storefront windows, waitressing, and working for Polo and Ralph Lauren. The first hardcover book she illustrated was Jazz Baby by Carole Boston Weatherford, which was published in 2002. The first book she both wrote and illustrated was Natalie's Hair Was Wild! [5]
Though she has used many mediums in the past, Freeman primarily works in Photoshop when illustrating children's books, even when sketching out early drafts of pages.[5] She begins with a manuscript of the text and an idea of how the text and illustrations will be laid out. Freeman values research when beginning new projects, especially when illustrating biographies.[4] Before the internet, she frequented the New York Public Library picture file, where she could find images of just about anything she could need.[5] Freeman enjoys illustrating for biographies because she likes to learn about the people she's depicting, and she hopes the children who read these stories will be able to see themselves in these influential figures. She describes her style as being fairly true to life, while still feeling playful. Her experimenting with colors and textures give her illustrations a collage feel.[6]
Today, Freeman lives with her family in Atlanta, Georgia.[24]
To encourage those who dream of becoming writers or illustrators, Freeman says the key is to be persistent and to put in the hours to achieve those dreams.[5]