Svetlana Molodchenko

Svetlana has vast experience working in the creative industries as a graphic designer but her passion for illustration, illumination and calligraphy is what drives her. Book covers, packaging, home décor – clients come to her for a whole range of projects requiring ultra-premium treatment. From the mosaics of Byzantium to heraldic engravings and on to Celtic illuminations like The Book of Kells, inspiration steps out of the mists of time. Svetlana’s dedication to accuracy, which includes deadlines, will astound you.

Approach

You won’t find an artist with a process more authentic than Svetlana’s. She creates everything by hand using traditional materials – paper, parchment, watercolours, sheet and shell gold, silverpoint, brushes and nibs. Her paints are made with natural pigment, and every detail is considered from the earliest sketches. By glazing her watercolours with translucent layers, she builds volume with each stroke to capture the effect of medieval lighting. To process images and prepare final files for clients she uses the Adobe software package: Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign.

Style

Whether it’s truly traditional or infused with modern themes, each illustration Svetlana creates is delicate and sophisticated. The beauty and the grace of the past, alive again in the modern world.