Where are you based right now?

Johanna Basford: I?m split between Dundee (where my little studio flat and motley crew of friends are) and Aberdeenshire (where I grew up and where my boy lives). Basically, this means I spend a whole lot of time listening to Radio 4 on the A90.

What did you study?

JB: BA Hons in Textile Design at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee, 2001 ? 2005. I specalised in silk screen printing.

What are you currently working on?

JB: At 2am this morning I finished some illustrations for the Body Shop?s winter ad campaign. Currently on my desk are some half designed tattoos for a client in Edinburgh, character illustrations I?m pitching for a new luxury kids? brand, proofs of the Limited Edition prints I?m releasing with Heartbreak Publishing and fabric swatches from a black and white printed dress I?m making to wear to an Awards do next week. I have a short attention span, I like a lot of things on the go at the same time!

Why is your work always black and white?

JB: Against tutor advice, my degree show was completely black and white. My illustrations are so detailed and intricate, I found adding colour somehow distracted from the beauty of the image and confused the eye. It?s good to do something different, to help differentiate yourself from the masses. When I first started out, working exclusively in monochrome became my thing, it helped make my work stand out.

Also, to be completely honest, as a screen printer I found working in lots of colours a nightmare. Less colour = less mess in the printroom. Black and white is a classic combination which is elegant, yet punchy. It made sense to strip back the colours, keep things simple and let the artwork speak for itself.

What other products might you branch out into?

JB: I just finished some drawings which are going to become the animated opening sequence to programme on BBC Alba (the Gaelic speaking channel up here in Scotland). I?d like to see more of my work animated; it would be cool to see the static drawings come to life.

I?d also love the chance to get my hands on a Selfridges Shop Window. Oh, and work with Swarovski on a one-off beast of a project involving as much twinkly stuff as possible.

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