Cornwall-based illustrator Ashley Percival delights in reimagining familiar fauna with a riot of pattern and color. In his hands, poodles, rotund birds, and even boot-wearing insects parade through a wardrobe of vivid getups, each creature transformed by spirited surface design and bold palettes.
Percival builds these characters with a blend of colored pencil, pen, paint, and digital tools, a hybrid approach that gives his textures and lines a lively, handmade snap. Rather than isolating a single animal, he often gathers multiple takes on the same species and arranges them in tidy, repeating grids, turning small differences in plumage, pattern, or pose into a playful study of variation. The result is a fanciful menagerie that treats common animals as canvases for cheeky motifs and chromatic surprises.
Process and places
Recent travels shaped the most current work. Percival spent three months in Spain and France, immersed in nature, an experience that spurred a new wave of flocks of birds. His process leans on instinct and memory as much as observation. I dont think about the colors I use. Its all free flow. I sometimes look at an animal once to get an idea and then draw from my imagination, he tells Colossal. That looseness translates into exuberant palettes and patterns that feel both spontaneous and sure-footed.
Collaborations and reach
Alongside personal projects, Percival frequently collaborates with brands, working with names like Ikea and Gucci, among others. He also keeps his audience close: new pieces and in-progress glimpses appear on Instagram, and fans can purchase prints via Etsy. Across these channels, the same signature elements recurconfident linework, humor-forward styling, and animals pictured as ensemblesunderscoring how his patterned creatures thrive whether in a commercial context or on a print at home.
By pairing everyday species with exuberant ornament, Percival invites viewers to look againand then againat forms they thought they knew. The grids may be orderly, but inside each square, color and character roam free.
