A master of mixed media technique, Amyisla McCombie never fails to delight us with her rich textural interpretations of the natural world.

Hi Amyisla! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your journey into becoming a full-time freelance illustrator?

Hey! I studied illustration but after University I wanted to explore other areas of telling stories, so I went into the direction of Set Design, and worked as the Senior Window Designer at Selfridges. After being there for a while and illustrating as soon as I got back from work, I decided to take my chances and do illustration full time, which I am doing now and absolutely love.

Your work is so beautifully textural and expressive, and seems to incorporate a number of different artistic mediums. What is it about this mixed media approach that you love to work in?

Yes I love working with mixed media, I feel I’m able to express myself more with a mixture of art materials. I often use watercolours, pencil, ink and lots of collage. Often my illustrations are happy mistakes, there is a lot of playing and experimenting in my studio space.

We particularly love your floral illustrations and seed packet prints! The way your interpret florals has a wonderfully surreal quality whilst still capturing their unique characteristics. Is this something you conciously work towards?

Thanks so much. I don’t purposefully try and create surreal illustrations, I just think my drawing style always leads me to exaggerating elements and the playfulness I have with my work also adds to that.

You cover no end of subject matter in your work, from landscapes to people to food and table settings. How do you decide where to start with a new piece and is there anything you love to draw the most?

I draw all the things I love, and the things that surround me, which happens to be people, food and landscapes. I always take a sketchbook with me which is usually the start of a new illustration. Whether that’s overhearing a conversation in a cafe or view I have seen at the weekend. I feel very passionate about nature and would love to work on more illustrations that help to change the world for the better.

Editorial illustration is also something you are frequently comissioned for with your work being featured in a number of great publications. How does this differ from working on other illustration briefs?

I love working to a brief, and editorial illustration briefs are great because you are given a topic you may not have ever thought of before. There is a lot of sketching and concept experimenting which is my favourite part. Usually briefs like this also involve working closely with other people to ensure they are happy with the outcome, which I always love, I love bouncing ideas off other people.

What’s next for you, do you have any upcoming projects you can share with us?

I do have some exciting projects coming up but I need to keep them a surprise!

You can find more from Amyisla here