03/08/2026
Meet Sophia Grausam, an incredibly talented Gloucester-based illustrator! Sophia illustrated two spreads for Issue 1 and was extremely helpful finalizing the last few major features.
Her fun comic strip is already a favorite in our house, and her dunes illustration in collaboration with the Trustees earned high praise from our local experts! She also generously donated a fun extra for kids to receive in the mail alongside their first issue!
A little more about Sophia: Sophia is a Massachusetts-based illustrator whose work celebrates whimsical storytelling and food illustration. She earned her BFA in Illustration from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston, Massachusetts.
Sophia’s illustrations feature quirky characters, expressive animals, intricate insects, and playful typography, all inspired by the world around her. Childhood nostalgia and growing up on Cape Ann continue to shape her work, inspiring her to capture the wonder and magic found in everyday moments.
Her food illustrations are heavily influenced by vintage cookbooks and retro recipes from the 1950s. Learning to cook and bake with her grandmother, Margaret, and her mother, Gemma, was a cherished part of her childhood and remains one of her greatest creative inspirations. Through food illustration, Sophia celebrates family traditions, shared meals, and the stories that recipes carry from one generation to the next.
Sophia’s work has been recognized by Creative Quarterly, 3x3 Magazine, the Scholastic Art Awards, and the Handel & Haydn Society. Her illustrations have also been exhibited at Zone 3 with Harvard University, Isenberg Projects in Allston, Massachusetts as part of the Art in Print Volume 14 series, and in multiple exhibitions at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, including the 2023, 2024, 2025, and 2026 MassArt Auctions. Most recently, her work has been exhibited at Source Bakery in Gloucester, Massachusetts, and Gulu-Gulu Café in Salem, Massachusetts.
Check out more of her work at: http://www.sophiagrausamartwork.com/.
