« Around the age of four, I was already making little comic books. Even before I could read them », says Xaviera Altena. This Dutch illustrator from Rotterdam get inspired by all the little things in her daily life. « From shopping in thrift stores, reading articles online or just simply browsing on Pinterest if I really need inspiration. Furthermore, female action hero’s are very inspiring to me », she adds. With her bold colored and thick lines illustrations, the artist offers unique digital artwork. « When I was younger, I made little stories out of my adventures in the back garden or about my family. Also, being very bad in math and science topics, reading and drawing were my outlets, ever since I can remember ».

« I always get inspiration from fashion magazines, or flyers/posters I’ve took from the city. When I work on a subject, I really study it. I want to do it right, not just make a caricature out of it. Then I do some little sketches, which are mostly just simple black & white illustrations. And then I want to move on as quickly as possible to the end result. Some illustrators are very keen on the sketching fase, but I actually don’t like it. I really like the end result when all the colours come together and the character of image really gets a vibe. That’s why I like to work digital I think, this way you can skip the sketch fase quicker and start playing around with colours ».

Found more about her work on her Instagram page : @xavieraaltena