Yes! Let's be creative!

Making an illustration is in many ways similar to going on a shamanic journey; I have an idea about where I'm going but what happens when I draw, only time will tell. Magic unfolds; characters appear, they want to be in the picture. I am excited because I don't know what happens next! What will appear suddenly in a minute!? I laugh! A cat! Hah! It is so funny and whimsical.

With this years' Christmas card I wanted to show a certain madness of cozy "hygge" time. The scene is set in a cozy cottage with the two main figures going beserk over creating christmas decorations! Magic happens when we just let go and let ourselves be creative. I find that the winter and especially Christmas time is perfect for that.

A Scandinavian childhood

I have friends who live in south and in north of Sweden and when I made the scenery for outside the window, I thought about these warm homes and the view from their windows. I like round carpets like the one under the table. I also had a round carpet under the Christmas tree. I recall this tradition from my Christmases in Denmark.
I know the feeling I want to create with my card. It comes from childhood books and illustrations of Nordic landscapes and indoor life. I think people from all over Scandinavia recognize this feeling. That part of me is familiar, where I grew up and had my Christmases as a child. It is this familiarity that I try to explain in this year's Christmas artwork. The windows are familiar, the chairs, the people. That's what I want to give with my art: a familiar cozy welcome-ness.

How did I make the illustration? 

First I draw what's in the centre of the picture where all the action happens from. In this case it was a round table. Everything else is added on from there.
I have 2 main sketches of the scene; one in my head and one on paper, and together they create the final image. But I don't know everything. I often ask the picture itself what it wants to do next when I am stuck.
It takes two full days to create a detailed illustration such as this one. I don't worry too much about being correct in my lines, but I want the viewer to be able to understand what is happening in the picture even though it's busy.
I like to draw things that are a little impossible. That gets the imagination going. When you draw you can make up solutions that wouldn't work in reality. And it makes it even more fun!


I hope you enjoy the cards! I wish you a joyous wonder-full Christmas!

With love,