About

Hello! My name is Leena Kisonen and I'm a Finnish-born illustrator and artist based in London, UK. My bold and quirky Scandinavian style work draws its inspiration from my Nordic roots, Japanese aesthetics and folk art.
I love discovering new color combinations and channeling them to my work. The unexpected color palettes in my work stem from my personal observations of the World around me.
I create my work through a unique process of combining handmade papercuts to digital vectors. The more digital the World becomes, the more passionate I feel about having something handmade in my work to create human connection. 
My clientele includes Google, Denny's, Plan International, Cliganic, Refinery29, The Finnish Post, Facebook, Papyrus, MyToys and Isetan amongst others.
You can find the most recent updates and news about my work on Instagram.
I'm always looking to work on new exciting projects with people who want to make the World a better place. If you have a project you'd like to discuss with me, please do not hesitate to get in touch!

Photo by Outi Törmälä / Quiet portraits
Selected Clients
Google, Snap, MyToys, Cliganic, Bartlett Brands, Plan International, Denny's, Facebook, Atlassian, Refinery 29, The Finnish Post, Hakola, Anyways Creative, Papyrus, Isetan Mitsukoshi, Helsinki Design Week, Minna Parikka, Hain BluePrint, Bruce Mau Design, Unilever, Le Monde Diplomatique + many more

Talks and Classes
Chinese Picture Book Conference
Two talks at a conference in Shanghai focused on picture book illustration.
The conference was accompanied with a group exhibition at Huichuang Space.
Shanghai, China, October 2018
St. Petersburg International School of Design
Masterclass for a private design school:
Pricing for illustrators
St. Petersburg, Russia, September 2018
Arts Promotion Centre Finland
Talk in a one-day conference on funding illustration:
How to Make Money With Illustration?
View the talk online (in Finnish only)
Helsinki, Finland, May 2018
Aalto University
Talk and Q&A session: Working as a freelancer
Espoo, Finland, September 2017
Helsinki Design Week
Public talk: How to create your own illustration style
Helsinki, Finland, September 2017

St. Petersburg International School of Design
Masterclass for a private design school: Emotion in Design
St. Petersburg, Russia, June 2017
St. Petersburg Design Week
Keynote talk at St. Petersburg's annual design week:
Creating your own illustration style
St. Petersburg, Russia, June 2017
3331 Arts Chiyoda
Artist's talk about my work and craft
Tokyo, Japan, October 2014
Selected features 
Art Quarter Vol. 16
Muen Art, Taiwan, 2017
Slanted #29 - Helsinki
Slanted Publishers, Germany, 2017
Pattern Euphoria
Sandu Publishing, China, 2016
Finland Yum-Yum Kitchens
Édition Paumes, Tokyo, 2014
Worldwide Graphic Design – Scandinavia
Feierabend Verlag OHG, Mannheim, 2009
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