One of the things we always fantasize about is being an illustrator. We’re not nearly talented enough to make it our job, however, but that doesn’t stop us being drawn to the magical workspaces of the creatives we work with. In issue 11, we speak to five of them about their studios. In this article we give a glimpse in the studios of seven great illustrators. You can read a preview of the article below.
Aiko Fukawa
If you would put Japanese illustrator Aiko Fukawa to work in a dark cellar, her drawings would be just as pretty. “As long as I have my pencils, paint and paper, I can get inspired anywhere,” she says. “Drawing comes from within. Since I got married a year and a half ago, I work from our new house in Kawasaki, near Tokyo. The large living room also serves as my workspace. Around noon, I go and sit down at my desk with a large cup of white coffee, and my cat Maru comes and lies down next to me.
Gertie Jacquet
Since 2000, Gertie Jaquet has worked in a studio that’s part of a complex called Tussen de Bogen (“Between the arches”), in the Haarlemmer district in Amsterdam. “As we are located near a little square and not in a dark little street, we get a lot of light but no direct sun,” says Gertie. “That’s exactly what you want if you do illustrating: sunlight without rays in your eyes. For me this is the
perfect place. Working alone isn’t for me. I share the studio with three other illustrators. I can get so immersed in drawing that I don’t think of anything else.
Text: Eva Loesberg.
