Nina Izycka

Based in Barcelona, Nina Iżycka works across illustration with a practice rooted in storytelling. Originally from Warsaw, her work draws on Polish visual culture, particularly poster art and illustration from the mid to late 20th century, which continues to inform her approach to image-making.

“My work is poetic and symbolic. I create with the aim of awakening sensitivity and empathy,” she explains. Alongside this, her illustrations also engage with broader themes, using visual language as a way to express both personal reflection and social commentary. Working across disciplines as an illustrator, tattoo artist and teacher, she moves between collaborative and solitary modes of working, each feeding into the other.

Process, Colour and Motif
Nina works primarily with analogue techniques, combining gouache, cut-outs, screen printing and risography. Her process moves between structure and freedom – beginning with detailed research, sketches and composition studies before opening into a more intuitive way of working. “At the start of the process, I analyse all the elements in detail, but then, as I create, I allow myself plenty of freedom and space to feel at ease and follow my visual instinct.”

Nature plays a recurring role in her work, both as subject and source of inspiration, with animals and organic forms appearing throughout. “I often draw on motifs from nature and the animal world. Lately, I’ve also been drawing a lot of caterpillars.” Colour is approached in a similarly exploratory way. Often working within a limited palette, she focuses on how tones interact, utilising colour “in a very intuitive way,” shaped by both her surroundings and the constraints of her chosen techniques.