London-based artist Aysha Tengiz is one of the three artists who were invited as part of the Helsinki Curious project to illustrate Helsinki based solely on their imagination and on stories they hear.
When you first heard about the Helsinki Curious project, what did you think?
“I was super nervous! Whenever I begin a project, the first thing I do is go on Google Images. So having to refrain myself from getting any picture referencing was really hard. However, the idea sounded so creative and interesting, it didn’t take me long to get very excited about the project.”
Could you tell a little about your work of art?
“My illustration is set in my depiction of Helsinki, from the streets down to the water edge. I wanted to include both summer and winter elements, so the drawing begins in a summer setting at the top, and below the tram it switches to winter!
I wanted to create an illustration that was crammed with many characters, so you can get a real feel for the people who live there. It is put together from the stories I read and had spoken to people about, from the shapes of buildings, to the colours, to the energy of the characters.
Elements that I felt were important to include were somebody being naked, seagulls with stolen chips, swimming in the freezing sea, coffee drinkers, saunas and karaoke taxi.”
Do you think Helsinki is an interesting city?
“Helsinki pulsates an energy that I haven’t experienced before, and everyone who has been there seems to have fallen in love with it. I can’t wait to explore it for myself.”
What time of the year would you like to visit the city?
“I think the summer sounds like a fantastic time to visit. I’ve never been somewhere where it stays light for so long. I think this would be incredible to experience. However, I am also intrigued by walking on frozen sea!”
Aysha Tengiz, 28, is a London-based illustrator, animator and textile designer. Tengiz graduated from Camberwell College of Arts with a BA in Illustration and has worked as a freelance artist since 2020. Tengiz won the AOI World Illustration Award for Alternative Publishing, as well as the Picturebooks From Seed to Table competition. Her self published picture book has also been shortlisted at international children’s book festivals.