Who are you and what do you do?

My name is Jiska de Waard and I work as an illustrator.

A big part of my job is making postcards for publishers, but also
individual ones for e.g. wedding invitations or baby announcements.
Apart from that I work for events and restaurants where I make hand
written menus and do chalkboard lettering.

How long have you been drawing and painting?

Actually all my life I’ve been drawing a lot but it became my
profession in 2015 where I made a book about Berlin.

What influenced, or how did you discover your amazing unique style?

As a child I always copied other peoples work and with the years it just
developed to what it is now. Mostly inspired by children books; my
biggest example is the Dutch illustrator Fiep Westendorp, her influence
you can still see very clear in my work.

People often ask you to do something similar from what they know from
you, so sometimes it’s hard to find the time and energy to try out new
things. That is one of the things I struggle with at the moment.

Where is the world do you live?

I was born in the Netherlands, but I live in Berlin since a few years.

What is your one essential tool that you cannot live without?

Sadly enough it’s the eraser I guess…

For most of my work I use water color, but that doesn’t feel like a
must. The tiny little pencils are though because I love to work very
detailed.

Where can I find you on the web?

• My website: www.jiskadewaard.com
• Instagram: @illustratiejiska

What do you like to do when you are not creating?

Eating lots of yummy food and drinking coffee or tea with friends.

Have you got any pets?

Not at the moment, but I would love to have a dog again!

What is your favourite art book?

My favourite art book is a book full of big prints from Maria Sibylla
Merian, I don’t know the title, sorry.

Another, more recent, book is ‘The atlas of beauty’ from Mihaela Noroc.
She traveled many countries and made beautiful portraits of strong women
all over the world.