Lisa Swerling

Lisa Swerling
Lisa Swerling in her studio
Born	1972 (age 44–45) Cape Town, South Africa
Occupation	Artist, Author, Illustrator
Nationality	British, South African
Period	1999–present
Genre	Art, Illustration
Notable works	Glass Cathedrals, Harold's Planet
Notable awards	Parents' Choice Awards 2006, 2009, The New York Times Best Seller list 2015

Lisa Swerling (born 1972) is a South African/British artist and a New York Times Bestselling author. She is best known for her Glass Cathedrals dioramas. She is also known as co-creator of the illustrated characters Happiness Is, Harold's Planet, Vimrod and The Brainwaves.

Lisa Swerling was born in Cape Town in 1972, the third of three children (born 30 seconds after her twin sister). She attended Herzlia High School in Cape Town and JFS in London. She was awarded the Shell Prize in 1991 for the second highest A-level score in Economics in the UK. She studied Philosophy and Politics at Oxford University (New College) and Art at Central St. Martins (London), after which she worked, amongst other jobs, as a painting assistant to Damien Hirst. She ran her own graphic design business Swerlybird for two years before setting up the illustration licensing company Last Lemon with her husband, Ralph Lazar.

She currently lives in San Anselmo (San Francisco Bay Area) with her family.

Glass Cathedrals, first introduced at an art exhibition at Spitalfields in London's East End in 2008, are glass-fronted boxes that feature scenes with hand-painted and customized miniature figures. They are showcased worldwide through art shows and galleries. Gallery representation includes MLIA at the Affordable Art Fair London (Battersea, Hampstead) and Quantum Contemporary Art. Primary markets are the US, UK and Europe.