Julie Child recalls that, even as a young girl, she “always liked to draw plants and animals.” Little did she know then that she would later become a professional biological illustrator, with her work now preserved forever in many books, journals and pamphlets. A love of science and nature runs deeply in her blood. Her father went to MIT, and each of her three children participates in the sciences. And her association with Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) and the Children’s School of Science in Woods Hole spans decades. At 89, her office area and desk remain packed with natural specimens she has collected, scores of books and hundreds of drawing pencils at the ready.

Q: What was your early life like?