I’ve always been a big fan of Georges Seurat’s A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte. When viewed up close, this famous pointillism painting looks nothing more than a mish mash of dots. But as you step back, the intentional dots and their connectivity materializes. This way of utilizing perspective is what drew me to French designer and illustrator, Swenn JEDRASZCZYK.
Swenn’s work is breathtaking. She uses a combination of stippling and crosshatching with fine black pens to create shadows, lines, textures and dimensions in an image. It’s a technique that requires nerves of steel and mountains of patience. Although the artwork is intended to be viewed from a bit of a distance, one should be encouraged to look closely in order to truly appreciate the amount of detail involved in the composition.
Whether she’s focusing on characteristics unique to horses or rendering tattoo designs, Swenn captures a stunning likeness of her subjects. It’s amazing to behold the level of realism. Her work indulges the side of me that’s a perfectionist, while also reflecting my interest in form.
Swenn absolutely nailed Dexter’s portraits. They look even better in print. If I could give them ten stars, I would! She did such a great job at capturing Dexter’s essence and personality: The soft eye, that droopy bottom lip, even the resting hind leg fit him to a tee. The beauty in his abstract portraits came from a deeper place. I am completely overwhelmed by Swenn’s work.
Aside from her hand-drawn ink illustrations of Dexter, my favorite equestrian piece by Swenn was inspired by Hermès. It exemplifies stippling at its best, showcasing the extent of the meticulous technique. I would LOVE to have this print in my house!
What do you like about Swenn’s work?
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Caroline Towning
April 1, 2018 at 6:44 pmI love his drawing! Thank you so much for sharing