What projects are you currently working on?
At the moment I work on illustrations for a book for a German publisher, coming out in the summer.
Which instruments/tools do you use to draw?
I draw with pencil on paper and than I scan in the drawings for a digital colouring. So the originals are black and white, which is very great for thinking about composition and contrasts.
Do you have any peculiar habits or routines before starting to draw?
No, I don’t have a routine before I start working. It’s better, if I start quickly with sketching. That’s the best. If I think too much, I have trouble starting. So the best is to catch a spontaneous impulse and go with it. I have more a routine when I work, I listen to audio books a lot. That’s my routine.
Do you have books or comic books you keep close by when you draw?
Yes, I am very fond of Edward Bawden’s work. So I have a look inside “Edward Bawden and His Circle“ sometimes. Also L.S. Lowry is very inspirational. I have a book of his paintings. He painted the working class England and cities from the north of England in the 1930s, 40s and 50s. And Utagawa Hiroshige and Maekawa Senpan’s woodprints.
Are there certain objects in your studio which you’re particularly attached to?
I work on a small kitchen table, I bought it in a second hand furniture shop down the road years ago. The table has a small drawer where I keep my equipment. Sometimes I like to think, that when I am stuck with a project, I could open the drawer and pull out an idea. Apart from that I need an empty studio, with room to think. I like the working atmosphere in my studio. Even the wall in front of me is empty, that really helps with thinking.