Ada Augustyniak won the Drawing Award in Jackson’s Art Prize this year with her work Memory of a Forest. In this interview the Kraków-based artist discusses her unique bleed-through drawing technique, the difference between her picturebooks and sketchbooks, and the slowly blurring distinction between them.
Above image: Ada in the studio.
Memory of a Forest, 2021
Ada Augustyniak
Markers on paper, 15 x 21 cm | 5.9 x 8.2 in
Josephine: Could you tell us about your artistic background?
Ada: I’ve been drawing and painting since childhood; I just never stopped. Every child draws, but most of them eventually quit. I didn’t quit. I didn’t even take long breaks throughout my life, so I don’t really know what it means not to draw. I remember drawing with my mum when I was little – we used to draw portraits of each other (even when I couldn’t really draw a face). For me, it was an amazing way to connect with her. Since then, it’s been important for me to draw with other people. I still enjoy drawing together with my mother, my partner, my friends, or even strangers. These precious moments also taught me that the process of drawing and the entire experience are more important than the final result.
I studied philosophy instead of art and used to regret this for a few years until I realised that philosophy taught me things I could apply to my art, which I probably wouldn’t have learned in art school.
For years, I didn’t know which field of art to pursue. I used to paint with acrylics, take analog photos, draw a lot in sketchbooks, and create some illustrations, but I didn’t know what to do with all of it. In 2011, I discovered picturebooks, and it was a breakthrough. I found a way to connect drawing with philosophy and discovered what was most important to me in creating art – narrative. Since then, I’ve been focusing on learning visual storytelling. I realise that I mostly think in terms of books, often in a series of images rather than individual ones. In the picturebook world, we, picturebook makers, usually don’t see the images in the books as simply “illustrations” of the text, even if we call ourselves “illustrators.” I love that picturebooks are gaining more and more recognition worldwide as an art form, not just something childish or made exclusively for children.
Creating picturebooks also fulfils my childhood dreams; I’ve always loved reading books and admiring good illustrations, often more than the text. I remember looking at images in books and dreaming of creating books myself.
Dear Mountain (from the picture book Dear Mountain, 2023), 2020
Ada Augustyniak
Markers and coloured pencils, 18.5 x 25 cm | 7.28 x 9.84 in
Josephine: What does a typical working day in the studio look like for you? Do you have any important routines or rituals?
Ada: I don’t have a “typical” day because I work part-time as a Mandarin Chinese language teacher at Jagiellonian University in Kraków, Poland. On the days when I’m not teaching, I try to spend as much time drawing as possible.
I don’t have a studio; I work in a rented one-room apartment or at my family’s summer house, where I have more space and usually more time to draw when I’m there.
I do have rituals, though: I drink a lot of green tea, sometimes listen to podcasts, or draw and paint together with my partner, who is also an artist and a teacher at the same university. Meditating and practising yoga helps me focus on my work better, especially when there are a lot of distractions from other aspects of my life.
Ada’s studio space corner in Kraków.
I’ve found that the best way for me to work is to dive completely into a project (usually a picturebook) for an extended period, alone. This is only possible during the summer or winter vacation. Working part-time at the university allows me to have fairly long vacations, and at the same time, it prevents burnout as an artist: I have a basic income and don’t have to worry too much about commissions, allowing me to focus on what I really want to create.
When I have the possibility to focus completely on a project, it stays with me all the time, even during sleep or meals. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night to take some notes. These moments feel very precious.
A selection of Ada’s old and current sketchbooks, each with a different purpose.
Josephine: Which materials or tools could you not live without?
Ada: When it comes to coloured pencils and markers, I use a specific range of colours, usually not the primary ones. I love stormy grey and lavender blue shades, as well as very light and very dark leaf greens. I buy whatever markers I can get, but my favourites are Winsor & Newton’s Promarkers (I love their Storm Blue, Cornflower, Slate, and Meadow Green colours) and Propic markers by the Polish brand Renesans.
As for coloured pencils, I’m more particular: I mostly use Polychromos by Faber-Castell (I always need a supply of Dark Indigo and Sky Blue), Luminance by Caran d’Ache (mostly their light colours), and various Derwent pencils for specific shades.
Ada’s favourite coloured pencils.
I draw in sketchbooks to create a visual narrative, using marker bleed-through as a key element. That’s why I only use sketchbooks with 120 gsm paper – it allows me to control the bleeding effect as I want. It’s not just the thickness of the paper that matters, but also its smoothness. The smoother the paper, the more it blurs the markers, but I love how textured paper enhances the bleed-through effect. When the paper isn’t as smooth, the “strokes” of the texture become more visible on the back, almost like blood seeping through a bandage.
Recently, I’ve started painting with watercolours. My favourite paper is Arches (unfortunately, it contains gelatine, so I’m looking for an alternative), and Roman Szmal watercolour pans, which are produced in Kraków, where I live. I was thrilled to find them available at Jackson’s! Their granulating colours are unique, especially Misty Morning and Aquarius Green. I highly recommend them.
The colour I can’t live without is mint green. I use it in every drawing and painting, even if it’s not easily visible. I’m addicted to buying every coloured pencil in this colour that I can find.
I enjoy trying new techniques and challenging myself with primary colours, but when I work on my final drawings, I always return to my favourites.
Work in progress with favourite markers.
Josephine: Do you regularly draw or keep a sketchbook? If so, how does this inform your work?
Ada: Apart from picturebooks, sketchbooks are my primary field of work, and the distinction between the two has been blurring. I consider most of my sketchbooks to be picturebooks or art books in their own right. I use marker bleed-through to create a narrative – the bled-through reflection becomes part of the next image, shaping the following drawing.
This process is very addictive. Even when I try to keep a simple, daily sketchbook, a narrative always emerges, and I can’t control it! I usually start a new sketchbook with the intention of not turning it into an art book, just a space for practice and preparation for something bigger. Sometimes it works, but other times it turns into yet another art book.
I would love to keep more sketchbooks for life drawings and not worry about the results or the narrative. I remember illustrator Sydney Smith saying at his workshops in Bologna that daily sketches from life are important because the habit of quick sketching enhances the spontaneity of mark-making in our final drawings. It’s an ongoing challenge for me to maintain the liveliness of my quick life sketches in my main work.
For every picturebook project, I always have at least one dedicated sketchbook (or more, if needed). These are filled with sketches, notes, and research.
I currently have seven sketchbooks in progress, each serving a different purpose, and several dozen completed ones.
The Black Pond, 2024
Ada Augustyniak
Markers and coloured pencils in sketchbook, 21 x 29 cm | 8.26 x 11.41 in
Josephine: Have you ever had a period of stagnation in creativity? If so, what helped you overcome it?
Ada: I think I’ve never experienced a period of stagnation or complete burnout, probably because art has never been my only work. However, I do go through periods of self-doubt and questioning the value of my work. When these moments arise, I still draw and create narratives in my mind, but I struggle to find the motivation to submit my work to publishers or competitions. Drawing, painting, and storytelling are essential for my well-being – I can’t live without them.
Even when I injured my right elbow in 2017 and couldn’t draw with my dominant hand for a long time, I started drawing with my left hand, which turned out to be a very liberating experience. During that time, I also created a picturebook using collage. I realised then that nothing could stop me – even if I were to lose my eyesight, I would probably start writing books exclusively with words.
Ada in her home studio holding one of her sketchbooks.
Josephine: Are there any specific artists or mentors who have inspired you?
Ada: It’s very difficult to list just a few; I have many typical, almost “popular” inspirations like Edward Hopper, but I decided to mention some less obvious ones and limit myself to categories.
I think picturebooks from my childhood had a great impact on me, especially the work of Polish illustrator Janusz Grabiański. I particularly admire the liveliness of his watercolours.
During my teenage years and into my twenties, I was deeply interested in photography, which greatly influenced me and is visible in my work, particularly in how I perceive light and framing.
In terms of visual narrative, Shaun Tan is one of my favourite artists. I admire his world-building skills and his approach to creating picturebooks.
Illustrator Sydney Smith has been a major influence on me, particularly in terms of liveliness and spontaneity.
Among historical master painters, I greatly admire Vilhelm Hammershøi for his ability to convey emotions.
Recently, I’ve also been inspired by the way Japanese watercolorist Toshiyuki Abe captures light.
Finally, I would like to mention Iwona Chmielewska and Joanna Concejo, two wonderful Polish picturebook creators who have been my mentors and teachers. Their ongoing support and unique visual language have always been incredibly motivating for me.
From Above, 2022
Ada Augustyniak
Markers and coloured pencils in sketchbook, 21 x 29 cm | 8.26 x 11.41 in
Josephine: How did it feel to realise you had won the Drawing award?
Ada: I couldn’t believe it. I had secretly hoped to make the longlist and was completely surprised to get that far. Making the shortlist was a shock, and winning the award was beyond anything I expected. But I felt incredibly grateful and honoured, and it has been very motivating. Awards are a significant boost, especially for those of us who rarely work in the commercial world and often struggle to believe that the work we’re doing makes sense not only for a few people.
I’m accustomed to participating in illustration and picturebook competitions, but this was the first time I entered an “art” competition. I think it reflects the growth of my confidence. I don’t believe in boundaries between different art forms, and I wanted to broaden the audience for my work. One of the reasons I participated in Jackson’s Art Prize was the opportunity to write an artist’s statement and explain how I connect philosophy with visual language. My enjoyment of writing about my work likely stems from my background in philosophy. I also have a lot of text on my website.
Another reason for participating was that one of the jury members was Joey Yu, an illustrator I admire.
Memory of a Day (from the picture book Waves, 2019), 2012
Ada Augustyniak
Markers in sketchbook, 20 x 15 cm | 5.9 x 7.87 in
Josephine: The judges loved the unique process of this drawing – turning over the paper to the marks that have bled through to the back. What inspired this technique, and do you use it in your other work?
Ada: I’ve been using this technique for a long time, especially in my picturebook projects. I first thought of it when I started using markers in my daily visual diaries in 2008 and immediately loved the bled-through image. However, I didn’t consciously use it at the beginning – I just enjoyed how the reflection corresponded to the following drawing in the sketchbook. The first time I used it intentionally was in 2018 when I couldn’t draw with my right hand, and I decided to create an entire picturebook (Waves) using only the bled-through images from one of my old sketchbooks. The book hasn’t been published yet, but it was selected for the Unpublished Picturebook Showcase, an important competition in the picturebook world. Since then, I’ve been learning to control the bleeding by using specific paper and markers at different stages of freshness. Sometimes I use only the bled-through reflection, sometimes both images, but almost always, my goal is to create a narrative, as I did in my new accordion book Dear Mountain, which has also been selected for several competitions.
Rheumatology Hospital, 2019
Ada Augustyniak
Markers in sketchbook, 12 x 18 cm | 4.72 x 7.08 in
Josephine: Your award winning piece is called Memory of a Forest. Do you work from memory or has it been observed from life?
Ada: Memory of a Forest is actually an image from one of my sketchbook-artbooks. For such detailed drawings, I usually work from my own photos, which I take specifically for this purpose. I edit the photos in Photoshop first, trying to make them fit my idea. I often add people to a picture, remove certain elements, and adjust colours or framing. Then, I sketch the composition in my sketchbook and add markers. I flip the page every few minutes to check the bleeding. Sometimes I finish the drawing with coloured pencils, so the main image differs significantly from the bled-through reflection, as coloured pencils do not bleed through. I try not to copy the photograph, it just helps me to start drawing what I want.
I rarely draw from memory, and when I do, it’s not with this level of detail. The title comes from my background in philosophy: I usually try to find a visual method to convey philosophical ideas or even to create visual ideas that stand on their own. I think the bleeding best conveys the idea of memory: it’s blurred and overexposed, and you can’t see the details, but the more you look, the more you see–the brain starts to fill in the blanks. I’m always amazed at how this works.
I try to draw from life as much as I can, but mainly to practise and stay connected to the world around me.
Deep listening, 2021
Ada Augustyniak
Markers and coloured pencils in handmade sketchbook, 24 x 32 cm | 9.45 x 12.59 in
Josephine: What’s coming up next for you?
Ada: I’m currently working on a book cover illustration instead of my new picturebook, but I hope to return to it in the autumn. I’m also going to have a solo exhibition in Kraków in November, and I’m very excited! I’ll be showcasing one of my artbooks. I feel incredibly motivated and inspired! I also can’t wait to paint more with watercolours in the near future.
Further Reading
A History of the Artist’s Book and How to Make Your Own
Artist Insights: Shanti Panchal
Inside the Sketchbook of Lisa Takahashi
The Art of Silverpoint Drawing: History, Materials, and Techniques
Shop Drawing Materials on jacksonsart.com
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