Telling gothic tales through pen and ink: meet freelance illustrator Ben Duchesne
22 April 2025
Credit: Ben Duchesne
For Illustration graduate Ben Duchesne, pen and ink is the perfect medium for his unbridled imagination. Crafting meticulous creations in black and white, Ben’s practice – which was recently spotlighted by Creative Boom – is fascinated by the macabre and fuelled by a love of horror films and gothic literature.
As a 2022 graduate of Illustration BA(Hons), Ben has turned his dark visual storytelling into a freelance career, as well as authoring several comics and developing an illustrated book.
We chatted to him about his distinctive visual style, his time at Falmouth and how he finds working for himself.
Why are you drawn to illustration as a form of visual communication?
Illustration is only limited to your imagination, so from that standpoint it has endless possibilities and allows you to be as versatile as you choose. I’ve always had a passion for storytelling through my love for books and comics, so I like to transfer that over to creating stories within the images themselves, whether that be based off an established narrative or one that I’ve created. I also enjoy the thematic approach you can take with illustration too, with a lot of my work conveying darker concepts.
How did your time as a Falmouth student shape you and your work?
I think you’re at an age where you’re naturally growing quite significantly as an artist, finding a style that suits the work you are aiming to make, and you are confident and comfortable using. During my time at Falmouth, I was helped in refining my pen and ink style (shoutout to Chris Odgers in my final year) and adapting that to different areas of illustration, whilst still being encouraged to experiment and push myself outside of the box as much as possible.
I also gained a deeper understanding of composition, what constitutes constructing an appropriate image for specific briefs, and improving the storytelling within an illustration. My time was slightly hampered by Covid, but I met some amazing people and learned a lot from very talented individuals and left with friends for life.
Your work was recently featured by Creative Boom, focusing on the darker side to your practice. What is it about the macabre and gothic that interests you?
A lot of my passion for horror and the macabre originates from watching the Hammer Horror films with Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing.
I’ve always been an avid reader too, especially of the horror, thrillers and gothic varieties. I love the eerie, tense atmosphere and thematically heavy, typically tragic storytelling. There’s always a lot to play with when transferring these narratives over to illustration form.
I met some amazing people and learned a lot from very talented individuals and left with friends for life.
My pen and ink style naturally gravitates towards that of a darker tone, with the heavy linework and dramatic lighting providing a more authentic depiction of these stories as well as delivering visually striking images. I learnt a lot in that regard by studying Victorian age etchings when I was younger, so I think that had a lot to do with shaping my current style and approach to compositions. This same approach remains relevant when transferred over to my historically and mythologically driven images.
Since graduating you have started working as a freelancer. What projects are you currently working on?
I’m developing a few fiction and historical based speculative projects at the moment, refining and adding to my portfolio as I aim to break into the publishing world. I also have a couple of self-authored comics that I work on when I can, as well as a Greek Mythology informative illustrated book.
What’s it like working for yourself?
At times quite challenging; there’s a constant balancing act between the creative process and the more ‘mundane’ admin side. That being said, I find working for myself really rewarding, knowing that any success is a sole product of what I have done. Also, despite it being important to maintain a disciplined structure, you do have a certain level of freedom that keeps things feeling fresh and exciting.
Any advice for aspiring freelance illustrators?
Stay true to yourself and stick to doing work you love producing. In my eyes, authenticity outlasts trends. There will always be a place for your art but still be open to push your work to different areas.
Try to get yourself and your work out there as much as possible and use as many outlooks as you can. Be prepared to roll with a lot of punches however, as there will be plenty of negative responses and rejections.
Above all though, work hard and your luck will come, so stay patient.
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