I am an artist and illustrator that lives and works in Holmestrand, a beautiful little city by the sea, an hour outside Oslo, Norway. 

 My work is twofolded,- I draw on assignments and besides that I make oilpaintings. 

A key element in my work is the light, often working with dramatic lighting that provides great contrasts.

 I have a lot of sources of inspiration; Of painters, I can highlight Christian Krogh for his powerful brushstrokes and warm motifs, Vilhelm Hammerhøj for the enigmatic and obscure interiors, and artists such as Rene Gruau for his simple, classic and timeless illustrations and Al Hirschfeld for his humorous and extremely steady stroke. But there are many places I let myself be inspired by. Both in nature and in fiction, such as films, advertising posters, music videos and old children's books and photographs.

Despite the fact that I tend to like the good object, the light that sets the mood and opens up an inner space - I like to experiment with techniques. I like to find new tools, new surfaces to paint on and combine several techniques to see what mood the combinations themselves create.

Most often I work with a limited color scale black / white with a touch of warmer tones and I love the simple, classic and clean.

Customers amoung others : Hermés, Lúomo Vogue, Unesco, Damernas Värld, Kúpe, Apoteket, American Express, Aftenposten, Adam & Eva, Cubus,  ICA, Vixen, Det Nye, Helsedirektoratet, Spar, Sølvsuper, Shell, Norsk Luftambulanse +++

Get in touch with me?  Send a message to

 +47 93 43 99 13 / mail@mariannekarlsen.no