16 Talented Nordic Illustrators We’re Excited About
I’ve reached out to 16 fantastic illustrators we’re excited about from across the Nordics and invited them to show their work and present themselves to us. I gathered great illustrators from Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Iceland (sorry for no Denmark representation), all in one spot.
It’s a great resource for brands looking to find new Nordic illustrators to work with, or for fellow illustrators looking for inspiration or new illustration artists to follow from the Nordics.
I’m an illustrator based in Helsinki, Finland, and I’ve been working professionally for eight years. I specialise in packaging and brand illustration, as well as surface design, although I occasionally work with editorial commissions. My work is playful yet thoughtfully executed. I don’t have a favourite colour, but I enjoy pairing tones that aren’t considered typical.
I’m Mia Minerva, a Finnish illustrator and jewelry designer living in Helsinki. My illustration style is playful, joyful and colorful, and I’m inspired by nature and the magic of time spent alone. My values as well as my identity as a queer non-binary artist also directly affect my work. I have created illustrations for books, educational material, product packaging, and clothing. I also run my own brand Mia Minerva, for which I design illustrated paper products, jewelry, and home goods that are sold at design shops all around Finland.
Hi, I am Saara Söderlund, an illustrator from Finland. I’ve always been obsessed with visual arts, but my love for illustration fully sparked when I was working as a graphic designer in children’s book publishing. I’ve now worked as a full time illustrator for the better part of a decade and my work can be seen for example in picture books, YA novels, editorials, paper products and packaging.
My illustration technique is mostly digital painting, but I also mix analogue textures and details to my process. In my work I like to play with minimalist and simplified shapes, but I’m a maximalist when it comes to details. Capturing subtle, passing moments through illustration and creating strong moods fascinates me. I’m a bird enthusiast and my work is deeply affected by my love of Nordic nature.
I’m Linn Warme, an illustrator and surface pattern designer from Västerås, Sweden. My work is detailed, botanical, and often full o nature’s creatures. I switch between working digitally and more traditional mediums like markers, and pens.
You’ll find my work on textiles, clothing, packaging, and in editorial work.
Before going freelance, I spent years working in-house as a print designer at some of Sweden’s biggest fashion labels, which gave me a solid understanding for how to design for production.
I am Kati, an illustrator and creator of picture books based in Helsinki, Finland. I create art for books, magazines, products, animations, and digital platforms. I have both written and illustrated four graphic novels and four picture books, with two additional titles forthcoming.
I am particularly drawn to inventing whimsical, offbeat worlds—whether designing a film festival poster populated by carnivorous plants or crafting a picture book inhabited by peculiar creatures.
I’m Jonas Welin, an illustrator, sculptor, and graphic designer from Sweden. My illustrations are colorful, loud, and with a pinch of oddness and chaos thrown in. I create imaginative creatures, characters, and worlds for everyone to step into and explore.
You’ll find my work on print designs for children’s wear and packaging, editorial illustration, and greeting cards. Whatever the project, I bring the same playful energy.
When I’m not illustrating, you’ll find me sculpting animals and other odd creatures, and running Creativehowl, a community resource for creatives.
My name is Anna Olsson and I work as a freelance illustrator. I have a MFA in Graphic design and Illustration from Konstfack University of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm. I work with editorial, commercial and artistic commissions for customers ranging from small businesses to design agencies and large organizations. I mainly design for paper but I have also worked with other materials, such as textiles and metal.
My work are characterized by simplicity and color, an earthy palette mixed with bold and clear colors, and I aim for my illustrations to be warm and playful.
I use both analog and digital techniques. I always start by hand with paper, pen and brush, cutting with scissors and then finishing it up in Photoshop or, sometimes, with vectors in Illustrator.
My name is Karin Söderquist and I’m a freelance illustrator, artist and muralist. I’m based in Stockholm, where I live with my husband and our cat Kimchi. I spend most of my days in a shared studio, drawing, listening to music and drinking coffee. My work is mainly created digitally and I love making colourful illustrations containing people, animals and plants. I enjoy working on projects related to food, sports, lifestyle and I have a soft spot for packaging. One day I dream of combining my love of reading with work by illustrating book covers. This summer my first series of children’s books will be published by Wonder House Books.
My name is Kristin, I am a Norwegian illustrator and picturebook author. I studied illustration at Cambridge School of Art and at Kingston University in England. Sketchbooks are an important part of my life and my work. l draw to document life, to remember moments, to develop ideas, to relax and to make sense of things. I love the act of drawing, but most of all I love the way my sketchbook practice makes me see the world in a deeper and more active way. I have written and illustrated ten books of my own, and illustrated quite a few for other authors. My book Everybody Counts (Magikon, 2018) has been translated into more than 60 languages, something that has resulted in a lot of travelling. To me, travelling means seeing new people and places, new details, new patterns — and drawing all of it. My latest book, Savnet Skatt (Missing Treasure) (Magikon, 2026) is an ode to details. The story is simple: a cat has gone missing. On every page we think we see it, but every time we turn the page, it turns out to be something else. As we are looking for the cat, countless stories are going on in the background. The book encourages the reader to keep an open mind and to look more carefully at the world.
I am a Finnish illustrator, currently living in Spain. My style is colorful and simple, mostly inspired by nature and travels.
I enjoy working with a wide range of clients and have more than ten years of experience as an illustrator. My clients vary from well known organizations and editorials to local shops and textiles makers. No project is too small or large for me so please do not hesitate to contact me.
My name is Tuomas Kärkkäinen. I work mainly within editorial illustration and children’s books, but my wonky characters would probably make a great fit for an adventurous brand as well.
My work leans into two somewhat different directions: on one hand, I am interested in complex societal issues, but on the other hand, my approach is often humorous in a slapstick kind of way.
As our non-human colleagues have gained momentum in the illustration field recently, I have veered even more into that less than perfect clumsiness and off-beat thinking that we humans like to call creativity. Hire me if you like to communicate with humans – otherwise AI is perfectly fine!
I am Oona, a Finnish illustrator and designer based in Helsinki. I get excited over shapes, colour combinations and textures. I mainly work with Indian ink and fountain pen combined with digital editing.
In my work I like to draw spaces and atmospheres. I like to play with the abstract and figurative and challenge my own thinking with this. I always want to add something humorous to my work since being super serious is not really for me.
Recently I’ve been interested in how to transfer my visual world into three dimensional media. I’ve been working with ceramics, laser cut wood and paper mache. Trying out new things keeps me motivated in my creative work. I also enjoy the surprise effect with new materials because that’s what gives you ideas and pushes you further.
Hello! I’m Linda, an author and illustrator from Reykjavík, Iceland.
As a picture book maker, I love telling stories and capturing feelings with images, mostly in children’s books. Sometimes I collaborate with authors, but I also illustrate my own text, most recently the book I DARE! I CAN! I WILL! about the Icelandic Women’s Day off and gender equality. I will admit that I am very proud of that book.
I draw inspiration from my surroundings, from everyday life, the nature and sweet, quiet little moments that warm your heart, like the curly steam coming from a cup of coffee, a well sharpened pencil, the purple clouds just before the rain. My visual world is pretty colorful.
I’ve been honoured to receive awards and nominations for my books and to work with clients around the world, such as Walker Books, Holiday House, Simon & Schuster, Forlagið and the Japanese publisher Yugi Shobou. I’m represented by Root Literary. I host workshops and art retreats, but mostly I spend my days in my backyard studio, writing and drawing and sometimes having people over for coffee.
I’m a freelance illustrator and graphic designer based in Helsinki, Finland. In my illustration practice, I create fun and approachable visuals with a lot of character. I take inspiration from nature, music, and everyday moments. I produce bespoke illustrations for brands across both print and digital. Nowadays I work closely with clients in the cultural, hospitality and editorial sectors. Recently, I’ve also started experimenting with animation, and I find it especially rewarding to bring an extra layer of movement into my visual world.
Photo by Sebastian Ziegler
I was born in Norway, raised in Iceland to parents of each nationality. After a long time on the fly, I am now living and working out of Reykjavík. I most often title myself as an author/illustrator, but I work in the broad field of visual storytelling. I do all kinds of creative projects, but they all center around nature, climate and environmental ethics. I make picture books and comics, visual reports and opinion pieces as well as doing live-drawing at conferences and events, hosting workshops and giving lectures. My work has been described as quirky and lively, sometimes unconventional and playful, which I think is a nice way to say; I make things fast, and I have fun with them.
Photo by Outi Törmälä
I’m Anja Reponen, a Finnish illustrator based in Helsinki. My clients come from around the world, and I’m happy working with any media or field. Apart from occasional adventures and refining, I work almost exclusively by hand using crayons, pencils, markers, ink, and gouache. After years as a graphic designer at the book publisher Otava, I began creating images digitally, thinking it would be faster and more economical. Which it was. However, even though I loved coming up with ideas, I struggled to find a distinctive, enjoyable style and was tired of always looking at a screen. So, out of necessity, I switched to analog techniques. I found myself enjoying illustrating more; my style became more natural, recognizable, and desirable. Therefore, the work I do for my clients has become more impactful. This I really cherish. From the beginning, I have specialized in portraits and people. Even my original portfolio had one or two digital examples—at least one of Margaret Atwood (I gravitated to the most interesting, smart, and sly face). Since then, most of my commissions have been portraits, which suits me fine. Thanks, Margaret! I have created faces for clients such as Google, It’s Nice That, and The New York Times. I’m also fortunate to do other kinds of illustrations. I enjoy them just the same; it’s a welcome change that adds balance. These days, I also consider myself an artist. I paint when I have time, and unlike in illustration, I aim only to please myself and my inner child. So far, my artistic input has been a bit outsiderish: characters and things based on my kids’ drawings from when they were 1-7 years old. Making art is the polar opposite of my daily profession, but it feeds it beautifully.
