About Family Workshop: Spooky Characters Mix and Match
Join author illustrators Steve McCarthy, Erika Meza and Flavia Z. Drago to discover the art of Cadavre Exquis.
Explore this collaborative drawing game and get creative as we work together to design brand new weird and wonderful creatures inspired by Halloween and the Day of the Dead.
Come ready to laugh, draw, paint, and build with other families.
Workshop leaders
Steve McCarthy
Steve McCarthy was born in Dublin where he grew up in a field with horses in it.
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When he was older he learned how to make animated feature films, and later took a job making background paintings for the Oscar nominated 'Song of the Sea'. One day he decided he would like to live in London, so he moved there, and he started making picture books, his first book 'The Wilderness' came out in 2022 and has won several impressive prizes, but more impressively, in London Steve met his pals Erika and Flavia. Steve does not currently own a dog, so if you have one he would like to meet them.
Flavia Z Drago
Flavia Z Drago was born in Mexico where she studied and worked as a graphic designer before deciding to pursue children’s book illustration.
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In order to do so, Flavia moved to the UK and joined the MA in Children’s book illustration at Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge. Her debut picture book, 'Gustavo the Shy Ghost' (2020) became a New York Times bestseller. It was followed by 'Leila the Perfect Witch' (2022) and 'Vlad the Fabulous Vampire' (2023). Nowadays, her love and interest in monsters and the macabre inspired her to do a PhD researching horror in the childrens' picture books. Flavia tries to make books that reflect her interests and background, which bring joy and reflect the things that she would have found exciting as a child.
Erika Meza
Erika Meza was born in a city in Mexico, but moved so often that she considers Tijuana her true hometown.
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After studying graphic design, she moved a few more times over to Paris to study a bit of illustration (she met Flavia there), and then to the UK until finally landing in London (she met Steve there). She now lives with a toddler who thinks he's a puffling and a comedian who thinks he's a pharmacist; she makes illustrations for other people's books (like Love Ssega's 'The Elementals'), and she is working on making her own books (like her own 'To The Other Side', which came out in 2023). Erika can't resist a cup of coffee, a bit of chocolate or a lovely little honey cake. Sometimes all together.
More information
Family activities at the Library
We have lots of free family events and workshops in London and West Yorkshire. Spaces can fill up quickly, so please book ahead.
You can also pick up a Family Trail from the Information Desk to help you explore the Library further, and visit our free Treasures Gallery.
Food and drink
Families are welcome at all of the Library’s cafés and restaurants. The Terrace Café on the first floor has lots of seating (including an outdoor terrace for sunny days). Highchairs are available in the Terrace Café and the Upper Ground Floor Café, subject to availability.
Families with children may also bring their own food to eat outside on the Piazza or in our public spaces, and there are water fountains that can be used to refill water bottles across the building. Please do not consume food or drink inside the exhibition galleries.
Baby-feeding
Parents are welcome to breastfeed or bottle-feed anywhere in the Library. Please ask a member of Library staff if you would like help finding a quieter space.
Please note that we cannot heat bottles or baby food in our cafés and restaurants.
Bags, cloakrooms and lockers
Our cloakroom and digital lockers are free to use, located on the Lower Ground Floor with step-free access. Please note our cloakroom is closed on Sundays, but you can still use our lockers. View more information on our bags and luggage restrictions.
Baby-changing and toilets
There are baby-changing stations available in the following toilets:
- in the men's and women's toilets on the Lower Ground Floor, near the cloakroom
- in the women's toilets near Reader Registration on the Upper Ground Floor
- in the men's and women's toilets in the Terrace Café on the First Floor
- in the men's and women's toilets in the Knowledge Centre.
Accessible toilets can be found on all floors. The nearest Changing Places toilet is at King's Cross station.
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