KAMILA WOJCIECHOWICZ-KRAUZE
Kamila Wojciechowicz-Krauze is a freelance illustrator based in Warsaw, Poland, who specializes in animal and wildlife illustrations.
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CREATIVE STATEMENT
My name is Kamila Wojciechowicz-Krauze, I’m a professional book illustrator. My great passion is animal & wildlife illustration, observing animals and sketching them from a distance. My interest in animals began when I was a child, I was always fascinated by nature. I enjoyed spending time outdoors and watching wild animals, such as insects and amphibians, I also read a lot of bird guides, Gerrald Durrell books, and watched science documentaries such as Animal Planet, and my favourite narrator was, and still is Sir David Attenborough. I even kept a diary on the growth of my tadpoles, from fertilized eggs to fully developed frogs. If I weren’t an illustrator, I would have most likely become a zoologist. I nurture this focus by continuously sketching wildlife whenever I travel, I also sketch my pets, observe their behaviour and try to capture the numerous poses they make. What I love most about animal and wildlife illustration is its ability to capture the essence and likeliness of the selected animal species. It is also a challenge, to make sure not to “humanize” them too much, as in the case of children’s books. To create a successful animal illustration, I believe it is important to spend time observing the animal in real life, which isn’t always possible. However, if there is a possibility of seeing the animal in a zoo, it’s crucial to take as many photos from different angles as possible. And bring a sketchbook. Don’t rush it, just sit down, and watch the specimen move from place to place, observe its behaviour, its personality. For me, the two most important qualities of a successful animal and wildlife illustration are finding the balance between scientific objectivity and a sense of wonder for the selected creature.
RECENT CLIENTS
- K. Kampeas-Rittenhouse (Author)
- Tim Shaull (Author)
- Beijing Double Spiral Culture & Exchange Company Ltd.
Q&A
What is your favourite animal?
I love many animals, such as cats, dogs, rats, parrots, but my favourite is the Indian rhinoceros. I fell in love with this creature the moment I saw it in real life, but I also really loved Albrecht Durer's etching depicting the Indian rhino.
What is your biggest dream?
I'd love to someday go swimming with a whale shark in the ocean. Whale sharks are the biggest sharks in the history of the Selachimporpha clade (whale sharks are bigger than Megalodon) and yet they are gentle giants, who feed on plankton. I'd also love to visit the Comodo Island, Mauritius and Galapagos Isles.
Which animal would you like to be brought back from extinction?
There are many animals I wish were brought back from extinction, but here is a small selection of the ones I wish I could see in person: the Tasmanian wolf, the woolly mammoth, the dodo, and the moa.