Sonia Leong
Artist | Professional | Other

United Kingdom

I'm a professional comic artist and illustrator specialising in Anime/Manga. My first graphic novel was Manga Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet (SelfMadeHero). My awards include Young Adult Library Services Association "2008 Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers" and "Best Books for Young Adults 2008" for Romeo and Juliet ; Winner in Tokyopop's first UK Rising Stars of Manga competition (2005/06) and Winner in NEO Magazine's 2005 Manga Competition. I designed the Catgirl mascot for Wacom-Europe's Manga campaign which began in 2006. My artwork features prominently in the British movie, Popcorn (2007) and also on the set of Channel 4's popular sitcom The IT Crowd. I contributed Siren to Comic Book Tattoo: Tales inspired by Tori Amos (Image Comics). I illustrated the Manga Life series of self-help comic books (Infinite Ideas), Find True Love and Be Creative. My work also appears in Domo: The Manga (Tokyopop/Big Tent). I'm also known for my work in children's publishing, namely the illustrations for the I, Hero series (Hachettes) by Steve Barlow and Steve Skidmore, Girls FC series (Walker) by Helena Pielichaty and Ninja: First Mission (Barrington Stoke) by Chris Bradford (Author of Young Samurai series).

I am the Company Secretary of Sweatdrop Studios, a leading UK comic collaborative and independent publisher of Manga. My works with Sweatdrop include Once Upon a Time, Love Stuffing and Aya Takeo, a full-colour comic originally published online.

I've contributed to numerous instructional art books and been teaching Manga workshops since 2004, where I began by giving lectures at the Artist & Illustrators Magazine Exhibition. My UK appearances include the Guardian Hay Festival, Victoria & Albert Museum and London County Hall. I frequently represent UK creators overseas, working with the British Council. I've exhibited artwork in the Kyoto International Manga Museum, London County Hall, London Cartoon Museum, Japanese Embassy, Manchester URBIS Centre and provided product demonstrations on behalf of Copic, Letraset, Wacom and Promethean.

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