Angela Carter Online

Cerys Knighton, a Cardiff-based illustrator, has produced a fantastic dotwork illustration inspired by Angela Carter’s Nights at the Circus (1984). A few months ago, I contacted Cerys to ask her if she would be interested in creating something based on the writings of Angela Carter, after I came across her beautiful dotwork illustrations on Facebook. Cerys responded immediately and was excited at the idea, suggesting Nights at the Circus as a text that resonated strongly with her. In the slideshow below you can see the result. Cerys has produced a fantastic piece that plays on the central ambiguity of Carter’s novel: is protagonist, aerialiste and bird-woman Fevvers “fact or fiction”? Cerys also draws out (pun intended!) the association with the myth of ‘Leda and the Swan’, which is actually a recurring motif in many works by Carter, including not just Nights at the Circus but also The Magic Toyshop (1967).

Take a look at Cerys’s wonderful illustration below and also check out her other pieces on her Etsy page and on her Instagram account. I would like to thank Cerys for responding to my suggestion with such enthusiasm and for taking the time to produce such an amazing artwork.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Cerys Knighton is an MA student at Cardiff University researching representations of mental illness in literature and medical case notes. Cerys also works as a book illustrator, translator and manuscript editor for a publishing company and completes art commissions on a freelance basis. Her personal illustrations are available through her Etsy art shop and most of her work is shared through her Instagram page.