Catherine gained a First-Class Honours degree in Fine Art from Falmouth School of Art in
Cornwall, where she met her husband Laurence, a Royal Academy trained artist. Catherine went on to take a Master's Degree at the Royal College of Art, where she was offered the Rome Scholarship.
Their first daughter was born in 1984, followed by twins three years later. At this time, the
Anholts settled in the West of England, with studios above the sea near Lyme Regis.
'Our focus was on providing for the family, so Laurence and I moved into the world of children's publishing.'
In a career spanning 30 years, the Anholts wrote and illustrated more than 200 award- winning children's books, which were published in 30 languages around the world. But Catherine never lost sight of her own work, producing hundreds of drawings and paintings on the themes of pregnancy, childbirth, family and nature. As their children grew up and left home, Catherine returned to her studio full time.
2023 was marked by the tragic loss of their 35-year-old daughter, Maddy, from cancer.
'My recent work is about finding some kind of meaning in it all. When I am painting, my daughter is at my side, and my paintings are a vision of the beautiful place where her spirit resides.’
In recent years, Catherine’s work has been exhibited in London, Berlin, Busan, Mallorca and Norway, with major solo exhibitions in Seoul and Copenhagen. Her work was part of a group show at the Paul Smith flagship store in Mayfair. Three of her paintings were selected by 20th Century Studios to hang in Miranda Priestly / Meryl Streep’s townhouse in The Devil Wears Prada