"You can miss nature without even knowing it".
Saara lives a peaceful life in the countryside of Finland. She spends her time drawing, wandering the forests, the fields, the seashore. When she is not busy illustrating, she likes to birdwatch.
Tell us a bit about your life. When did you begin to
paint, what made you decide to do illustration?
I
was born in southern Finland where I've lived all my life. I have
always loved drawing, took art classes as a child and also used to go
to my grandmother's house every morning before school and paint
pictures of her cats. Despite this I had no idea that I would be
pursuing illustration as a career, I actually went to an art school
to study graphic design. I kind of forgot about painting for years
and worked as a freelance graphic designer mostly in book publishing
field. At some point I just wanted to try and do something creative
on my own, so I started painting again and haven't stopped since.
What kind of illustrations do you do? Would you like to share with us
a unique experience you had when illustrating a book?
I
do all kinds of illustrations – I'm still in quite early stages of
my career and don't have a specific field of illustration I'm only
concentrating on. My work consists of editorial, commercial and
private commissions, and selling my own projects as prints and
originals. I'd say the most unique and memorable experiences are when
I'm illustrating something I know nothing about. It's exciting,
intimidating and rewarding to research a completely unknown subject
and figure out how to best convert it to a visual form.
I've
been dreaming of illustrating my childhood favorite book, Vattumato
(Raspberry worm) by finnish author Zacharias Topelius. It had
beautiful and mesmerizing illustrations by Maija Karma. The story
means a lot to me and I'd love to take my spin on it. I've
also been wanting to do a series of paintings about finnish or nordic
bird mythologies.
What materials do you usually use?
I
use gouache paint. Sometimes I like to mix it up and use pencil or
colored pencils with it.
Is there a time of the day you prefer to work? Do you always paint at
home?
I
love mornings and that's when I feel most productive and creative, so
I try to get to work as early as possible. I always try to wrap
things up when there's still some hours left in the day, so I'd have
time for walking outside, cooking and relaxing in the evening. I
always paint at home in my little office, with my two dogs as my
office buddies.
What is on your desk at this moment?
Essential
things like brushes, jars and tubes of paint, colored pencils, a
sketchbook, an old botanical book and of course, a cup of coffee.
Are you currently working on something?
I'm
currently working on a series of patterns. One of my goals this year
is to better and expand my webshop.
Is illustration a profession for you or a hobby? Is it possible to
make a living through illustration in your country?
Illustration
is a profession for me, but I do graphic design projects too. It is
possible to make a living through illustration in Finland, but I
guess like anywhere, it takes time and a lot of hard work.
Which illustrators (classical or contemporary) have inspired you?
I
adore the work of Aleksander Lindeberg, Tove Jansson, Rudolf Koivu,
Edward Gorey, Mary Blair, Charley Harper, Alice and Martin Provensen
and too many more to mention.
Images form imagination. When you paint do you think that images will
come alive in the imagination of children?
I
don't think I consciously really focus on this as I'm painting, but
of course I hope that the viewer, children and adults too, will find
the magic I try to put into my paintings. Children have such a strong
imagination that I think it comes quite naturally to them to step
inside the world of a painting.
What is an illustrator's relationship with childhood? How much do
your childhood memories define your work?
I
think my childhood memories have affected me so much visually that it
undeniably shows in my work. I've always, particularly as a child,
been easily overwhelmed by beautiful books, landscapes, paintings and
objects. I remember being obsessed with Ilon Wikland's illustrations
in Ronia the Robber's Daughter by Astrid Lindgren. The way the forest
was portrayed in her images still takes my breath away to this day.
You very often draw pictures of every day life (girls looking for
mushrooms, having a walk in the woods, wearing their socks). Are you
inspired by your routine? How could you define happiness?
Routine
definitely inspires my work, there's something comforting about
painting everyday life. A lot of my work is inspired by quite
ordinary moments that seem insignificant but are unintentionally
comical or sad or important. For me happiness is in the small things
and those ordinary moments in life, cliché as it might sound.
Picking mushrooms, camping with friends, playing with my dogs,
watching birds or painting.
What do you find inspiring in the countryside?
I
used to live in a mid-sized town before moving to the countryside
with my husband a few years ago. It was bizarre because I felt like I
had been missing the nature and the quiet without even knowing it! My
favorite thing is to wander the forests, fields and the seashore. The
landscapes are just so beautiful and there's so much to see and
explore, that's what I find most inspiring. Also, the stars are very
bright and visible in the countryside.
In your blog you introduce yourself as an illustrator, but also a
“bird lady”. What is it that you find interesting in bird
watching? Is it true that birds are the most colorful little animals?
Birds
truly are the most colorful little animals! I
find birds endlessly interesting – there's such a variety of
colors, patterns, shapes, sounds. It's a thrill to see a bird you've
never seen before, or spot one of your favorites. You can watch birds
from your own window or bird watching can take you places you've
never been to before. There's also something beautiful and wistful
about birds migrating. Most of them leave Finland for warmer climates
for the winter. But they always come back.
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For any information concerning Saara's work have a look here.
