For the (Dutch) Flow Illustratiespecial Amy van Luijk drew some really nice illustrations. This month she will tell us all about her work, inspiration and her life as an illustrator on our blog.
Hello, my name is Amy van Luijk. I am an illustrator, pattern and gift ware designer.
I was born and grew up in New Zealand but lived in the Netherlands for a short time when I was very young. As a child we made quite a few trips to Europe to visit family where I fell in love with the canals and the lovely tall Dutch houses as well as the gorgeous old villages in the french alps.
Growing up I always loved drawing, crafting and sewing. My love of colours, fabrics and patterns lead me to study textile design at Massey University in Wellington. After graduating my work took more of an illustrative direction which allowed me to create and develop a more personal style.
Since then I have been working as a tutor at university, worked freelance in illustration and pattern design as well as working in-house designing paper party products for a company called Meri Meri. My love of travel and discovering new things has kept me moving and I have lived and worked in Wellington (NZ), London, Berlin and I am now in Bristol, UK.
I always start off my illustrations by hand, picking colours by rummaging through my many folders filled with different coloured papers. I create my artwork by cutting and sticking shapes and then drawing and painting the detail using pen and ink. I love to collect coloured and patterned papers especially the patterned inside of envelopes. Every time I travel somewhere new I make sure to visit the local stationery shops to look for new colours or patterned paper. Old traditional stationers are the best.
I love making and creating with my hands, especially screen printing fabrics and making ceramics. I find it easy to get lost for many happy hours in these creative processes. I like making objects that can be used and enjoyed everyday.
I get a lot of inspiration for my work from my immediate and everyday surroundings. I love the straight shapes and lines in urban spaces as well as more organic forms in nature.
I’m really excited to share more about my creative processes and inspirations over the coming few weeks. To introduce myself I have included some pictures of my work as well photos of my work space.
You can find more of my work here on Tumblr.
