About

Claire Widman is an illustrator based in Sleepy Hollow, N.Y. The village, which sits along the Hudson River about 25 miles north of Manhattan, influences much of the art that Claire has created over the last decade. Her drawings of local landmarks, monsters with big hearts, farm animals—and even the Headless Horseman himself—are inspired by the wonder that permeates the community where she lives.  

Claire began her professional career back in 2000 as an intern in Nickelodeon's animation department for the show "Blue's Clues." She went on to a traditional animation studio, J.J Sedelmaier Productions, where she worked on shorts for “Saturday Night Live”, Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report." After six years, Claire jumped from traditional to digital art, working at a startup creating everything from eCards to avatars. Claire spent years as an Associate Design Director at the global advertising agency R/GA, and most recently consulted as a Brand Manager at Turner Duckworth.

In addition, Claire has taught drawing classes for children, held art shows featuring her lovable monsters, and provided illustrations for various marketing campaigns. She also paints murals.

Where the monsters came from

The monsters arrived the way the best things do — unplanned. A tarot reader once told Claire to sit down, let her creativity guide her hand, and see what showed up. What showed up was a monster. Hundreds more followed. Each one holds an emotion: the light and the heavy, the joyful and the hard to name. They're stand-ins for all of us, fumbling through our own journeys, learning to be honest about what we feel and gentle with one another along the way.