Illustrations

at Shutterbunny Creative

I am Rachel Alfonso-Smith.
I am passionate about children’s picture book illustration as well as editorial illustration and would love to connect with art directors and agencies.
Rachel is a traveller with a love of urban sketching, bold color, fountain pens, ink, bookbinding, dogs and British television.


Rachel’s illustrations are primarily watercolor and ink on paper or digital painting.

Inquire

I’m a skilled illustrator that loves drawing the imaginary and real-worlds of childhood. I enjoy making backgrounds and creating fanciful characters. I’m flexible with concepts and find the creative process with briefs and working in teams really exciting! Collaboration is fun and your project should be an enjoyable experience with your illustrator.

Illustration of the main character developed by the artist for her picture books with Shutterbunny Illustrations.

Digital Picture Book Illustrations

Whimsical island with a crazy array of houses built on top of each other with slides and passageways.
Little Puerto Rican girl stands holding folded clothes at the laundromat
Littlle Puerto Rican girl looks out the apartment window in her building in Manhattan NYC
Picture book scene of a young girl in the town of Ponce, Puerto Rico, with her toy, created by Shutterbunny Illustrations.
Puerto Rican girl stands alone in her house with her toy looking at the kitchen
Fantasy illustration by Shutterbunny Illustrations. A woman with brown skin swims in deep water with a whaleshark. There is plants and coral on the seabed. Starfish and jellyfish swim nearby. In the distance the moon rises underwater. There’s a silhouette of another whale nearby.
Little Puerto Rican girl stands on the street alone at night with her toy
A small Puerto Rican girl stand on the sidewalk in front of of a subway station with people coming out
Cat making funny stretched poses
Little puerto rican girl is stretching to reach an outdoor clothing lone behind her house in Brooklyn
Surreal illustration of a young girl in her bedroom that is inhabited by her fears, with her toy, created by Shutterbunny Illustrations.
A storybook style illustration of A girl in a fantasy costume sits beneath a wisteria tree while playing with a magical firefly. A fancy older rat stands nearby.
Animated illustration depicting a downtown shop in an urban environment with a crosswalk and a cherry blossom tree with blossoms falling on the ground because of the wind. The street is tree line and the shop has large windows and a bench outside.
Cartoon illustration of the Artist

Character Development

Poses and Emotions
Character depicting a little Puerto Rican girl in a variety of poses and expressions.

Commercial Editorial Illustration (self-initiated)

Carton face on a modern facility

About the Artist

Rachel, a native of New York City, has journeyed across the country, residing in Southern California and East Texas before settling in the picturesque Pisgah Forest, North Carolina. After a bustling 20-year career, she chose to retire early, rekindling her lifelong passions for painting, illustration and photography. After decades in her practice, Rachel has fallen in love with illustration; whether pen and ink, watercolor or digital artworks. She loves landscapes and the whimsical worlds of childhood imagination. As an experienced and reliable artist, Rachel works well with briefs, meetings and time constraints.

Rachel is a member of SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators), the Transylvania Community Arts Council, the Art League of Henderson County, the Professional Photographers of America and a former student of the New York Institute of Photography. Rachel recently started her local chapter of the Urban Sketchers of Asheville. While residing in NYC Rachel received several awards during her schooling years, including having an illustration on show at MoMA- PS1.

Today, Rachel enjoys a balanced lifestyle, dedicating time to creating art in her cozy home studio, capturing moments through photography, hiking, and tending to her plants. When she’s not immersed in her artistic endeavors, she loves traveling to hidden corners of the world, accompanied by her husband/best friend—and her trusty camera.

The artist and owner of Shutterbunny Illustrations is an illustrator and picture book maker.
Trusted studio assistant at Shutterbunny Illustrations.

Ranger – Trusted Studio Assistant