About
Who?
I’m Ayla Marika, a visual artist and illustrator based in the rural Southern Tablelands NSW Australia, near Canberra and Goulburn. I specialise in hand-drawn illustration using ink and charcoal, as well as traditional painting. The illustration I produce is 100% hand-drawn using traditional mediums (eg pen on paper), which is then subjected to various degrees of digital manipulation. I appreciate classical drawing technique including anatomy and portraiture, and I consider good craftsmanship and technique essential to my art production and illustration. I am excited by the artistic possibilities of books, marketing and public relations and tie these into my art practice.
Style
I am inspired by music (psy, rock, metal), surrealism, graphic novels, cartoons, psychedelia, and pre-modern imagery. Topics I am interested in are the subconscious mind, energy healing, plant medicine, esoteric spirituality, and the natural environment. Visual artists I am influenced by include the Old Masters (esp. Van Gogh, Monet, Cezanne), M.C. Escher, Dalí, Hokusai, Chris Ware, Alex Grey, Brian Blomerth, Dr. Seuss, and Akseli Gallen-Kallela. In addition the visual arts, I find music to be a major source of inspiration and conceptual fodder, in particular Thom Yorke, Björk, Sigur Rós, Tool, Massive Attack, and Nine Inch Nails. I am drawn to psychedelic and ‘outsider’ art because of its purity of inner expression, Scandinavian design and folk art, and excellent music album art.
Services
As well as visual art and illustration, I am an experienced graphic designer and SEO WordPress website developer, which I carry out through my business Forssa Light Publishing. For more information on these services, visit forssalight.com
Qualifications
Bachelor of Arts (Fine Art) 2017 Curtin University of Technology
Advanced Diploma of Public Relations 2014 Canberra Institute of Technology
Certificate IV in Screen and Media 2014 Canberra Institute of Technology
Certificate IV in Business Administration 2012 Canberra Institute of Technology
Diploma of Music Industry (Technical) 2008 Canberra Institute of Technology
Diploma of Music Industry (Business) 2008 Canberra Institute of Technology
Exhibitions and Achievements
How Food is Made book released 2021 Published by Forssa Light Publishing
Finalist: SFL (Modulii) music video 2020 Canberra Short Film Festival read more
Review: SFL (Modulii) music video 2020 BMA Magazine read more
Installation: Mythinterpret Triptych 2010 Burning Seed Festival (Burning Man Australia) read more
Interview
Southern Tablelands Arts ‘Stories from the Studio’ interview (2023):