Keith Hopkinson

Keith Hopkinson has never thought of himself as an artist in the conventional sense; creativity is simply woven into the fabric of his life. Self-taught and unbound by any single tradition, Keith has always processed his thoughts, feelings, and observations through pencil, color, and character. Drawing is not simply something he does so much as it is his way of being.

Born in Colorado, Keith moved to California at an early age and grew up in the livestock trade, following his father’s work as a butcher in the Sacramento area and Placer County. He spent much of his early life in Newcastle, a small foothill town near the Sierra Nevada that once served as a vital packing hub for fruit harvested from surrounding orchards andshipped nationwide by rail.

When the packing industry declined in the 1980s, Keith and his wife, Candy, breathed new life into an old packing shed by opening Newcastle’s first cheese shop, The Rat Trap. It quickly became the town’s most beloved eatery, known for its generous sandwiches, quality ingredients, and vintage charm. A hand-drawn rat mascot—sketched by Keith on a whim—soon captured customers’ hearts. “What is the Rat doing today?” became a daily question, as Keith continually updated the character to reflect the mood or message of the moment. That Keith’s Rat character has outlasted successive owners over time, is a testament to his artistic intuition and creativity.

Typically, Keith has created art for intimate audiences—family, friends, and nearby communities—using pencil, pen, colored pencil, chalk, and watercolor pencil. Candy affectionately notes, “He just goofs around until he feels he’s done,” earning him the family nickname “Von Goofy.” Keith lives on a sheep ranch in Newcastle, California, where he continues to farm, plant and draw. Kathy and The Queen is his first illustrated book.