Hello I'm Mono illo
I am an illustrator and artist. My work is inspired by my surroundings, from rolling hills by the lakeside to rocks and twigs hidden in the undergrowth. I use a restricted colour palette of black and white, and capture the essence of my imagined worlds using rich patterns and textures.
My process is simple, I don’t often create multiple sketches of a piece as I find that once I have an idea I’ve already picked up a pen and started filling in the details. As I work exclusively in black and white I find that creating rich patterns and textures with bold areas of contrast gives movement and depth to each of my illustrations. I am inspired by my natural surroundings, fantasy stories and folktales from around the world.
I started my practice as an opportunity to develop and hone my drawing and illustration skills, keeping it simple using only pen and paper. Mono illo was born out of the need to create my own art, and be able to create anywhere. I don’t have a designated studio space, so I’m often found drawing at the kitchen table! Any spare time I have goes into drawing my imagined landscapes and the creatures that dwell within them. Everything I do is crafted by hand, and by not over editing it keeps its human touch, which keeps my work authentic and adds to its overall personality.
