Emilia Ilke
The Swedish artist Emilia Ilke has created the collectionSea Sea Sea for Fine Little Day – A collection celebrating the sea and all its treasures.
The Swedish artist Emilia Ilke has created the collectionSea Sea Sea for Fine Little Day – A collection celebrating the sea and all its treasures. Ilke was born in Uppsala in 1984 and raised by Swedish-Polish parents. The family’s eye-catching surname she got from her grandfather who fabricated it to stand out from the crowd. She is educated at Gerlesborgsskolan and works and resides from Stockholm as an artist. We praise Ilke’s artistic language and her productivity that is greater than most. Emilia Ilke is just as she describes her pattern VÅG (Wave) – a force beyond the ordinary.
The collection Sea Sea Sea is about the eye-catching finds under water. A dream of being that little fish swirling the waves, hiding among shells and escaping slimy jellyfishes. And as for a moment take a swipe across the surface of the water to enjoy the beautiful sight of sunbathing people under red-striped umbrellas and then disappear in the big blue again.
The collection consists of several patterns on textile; cushion covers, fabric by the meter, tablecloths, curtain, wool blanket, muslin blankets, trays and more.
" The shell, a symbol of travel. Not only beautiful to the eye, they are bearers of memories and an ear away from the sound of the beach, the sea. For Emilia, they take her back to the summers spent outside Oskarshamn as a child with grandfather Ilke."
Q: Have you always known that you would pursue art and what was your childhood like?
A: I wasn’t that kind of kid that was constantly drawing growing up. My childhood was more about playing the violin and choir singing. Something I was more or less forced to and kind of learned to like but never felt very strong for. I started to paint a lot when I was about 15 yo and that’s also when my dream about being an artist or illustrator woke up.
Q: If you would change road (other than art) today, where would you go?
A: Oh shit, no idea! Working with women and kids, midwife maybe? But I wouldn’t make it through the education so I must say something else. I think I would be great at working with charity. Or start my own gallery promoting other artists.
Q: Are there any rituals you have while working?
A: First thing is to make sure I have a lot of painted canvases to build on. And then I have to have a lot of shapes in different styles, shapes and colors to choose from. Step three is to move around my shapes and try out color combinations on the canvases until I find the perfect compositions. And I always work on multiply motifs at the same time, you have to be efficient you know.
Q: Tell us about some of the highlights of your art career so far.
A: Exhibiting at Lilla Baren at Riche when I still was studying and being no one in the art world was big for me. That was 2015 and I’m so thankful for that opportunity. Making my first children’s book last year was special for me since I’ve been dreaming about it for 20 years. And when the stylist Marie Olsson Nylander contacted me and wanted to buy some paintings to her Palazzo Cirillo in Sicily was something I even couldn’t imagine could happen.
Q: Have you ever felt artistically stuck? If so, how did you work through it?
A: I actually do now and I have had this feeling many times before. So far I didn’t really had the time to stop and think more about it. When there is work that has to be done there is no time for crisis. But I’m longing to take a break, go through the shit and come back stronger. I think I would love to have a mentor, I just have to find one.
Q: Are there any artists or others that are an inspiration to you at the moment?
A: I have a lot of artists that I love and admire but no one that inspires me right now. I’m kind of lost and feel sensitive for impressions atm, I just get stressed if I look at how good everyone else is.
Q: If you suddenly got unlimited money, what would you do with it? Would it change your everyday life much?
A: First I would panic and feel like I’ve had an enormous responsibility to do the right things. I wouldn’t tell anyone in the beginning. Number one would be to save the world!!?! No idea how but I guess money solve things... Sounds super naive I know, but that’s whats on top of my mind. Then I would question my own everyday life, and I’m pretty sure I would come to the conclusion that I want to keep on working with art as hard as I do today. And one thing I would do the very same day is to finally buy us a house by the sea!
