This post features one of the brand new illustrations I made for my book Faraway Dreaming. The book is available on Kickstarter until 24 June, 2025. Here’s the link!
Emerald Haven is a piece about safe places, escapism and the mysterious beauty of nature. This drawing embodies feelings that I associate with trips to our summer cabin – a shabby, humble little haven on this beautiful, green island.
Those lonely moments in the late summer’s warmth, sitting quietly by the sea, watching the billions of stars light up in the sky. There is a touching combination of peace and comfort, but also aching nostalgia and awe. A strange longing to faraway galaxies, or moments that happened decades ago in the past, or those that won’t exist until far in the future.
I created the illustration with mixed media, combining traditional ink drawing, hand-painted textures and digital coloring and editing.
This piece is also featured in my new art book Faraway Dreaming, along with my other mixed media artworks from 2015–2025, including some new pieces that you haven’t seen before. The book is published by the wonderful indie press Atthis Arts.
The Faraway Dreaming art book is currently available on Kickstarter. The campaign offers lovely rewards for the backers – which rewards you receive depend on the pledge level you choose. In addition to the beautiful hardcover art book, we also offer a selection of digital treasures, and even original artworks painted and signed by me.
The higher the funding for the project goes, the more we’ll be able to upgrade and embellish the printed book as well as add more to the exclusive digital rewards which will be available for all backers. The Kickstarter campaign will end on June 24th, 2025, so you still have time to become a part of this journey. ♥
Artwork, photos and text © Ulla Thynell.