Maren Amini / Cover illustration for the German magazine “der Spiegel
Biography
Maren Amini is an illustrator based in Hamburg, Germany. She graduated from the University of Applied Sciences Hamburg in 2009 with a degree in Illustration and Communication Design. Maren Amini loves to make people laugh or smile with her work. Because through humour you can open up more easily to difficult, sad or dry subjects. And once an Artwork made you laughed from the bottom of your heart, it stays with you.
Read moreSelected clients
HHLA (Hamburg Port and Logistics), Fraunhofer Institut, CIMA Financial Management Magazine, Credit Suisse, STERN, SPIEGEL, die ZEIT, GEOlino,Harvard-Business-Manager, Chrismon-Magazin, Telekom, Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung, Verdi, AOK, Greenpeace, Hamburg Wasser, Hamburg Energie, Deutscher Beamten Bund, Robert-Bosch-Stiftung, Granini, Saatch & Saatchi, Chiesi GmbH, Südtirol Marketing Gesellschaft, Dutch Uncle
Read moreAwards
- 2021 World Illustration Awards, longlist selection
- 2021 American Illustration 40, the Archive selection
- 2020 Category Consumer Magazines, German Society for Nutrition
- 2019 Winner of the competition for successful patient brochures of the Netzwerk Patienten- und Familienedukation e.V. and the University of Witten/Herdecke
- 2019 audience award „der Meefisch“ children´s book competition
- 2016 silver medal 9. international „Grafikatur“
- 2013 „LeadAward“, bronze medal in the category: newspapers, contribution of the year (die ZEIT)
- 2011 best project of the year, mdm-sponsorship award
- 2010 „Red Dot Design-Award“, category: illustration
An interview with
Maren Amini
Illustrating the future
We work with the world's most brilliant and visionary creatives to bring the boldest concepts to life.
Maren, Can you recall the first time you realized you were going to be an illustrator? What were your earliest impressions?
My dad Ahmadjan Amini, is an artist. When I was a little kid, I used to paint with him in the basement and he would say, “Maren, you’re going to be a great artist one day!” And that’s what I wanted too.
Who or what influenced your art when you were young?
As a small child my favourite book was an anthology by Wilhelm Busch, later I loved Marsupilami and Gaston by André Franquin and as a teenager I was strongly impressed by the Grafitties by Os Gêmeos and WON ABC.
Do you remember what your first artwork looked like? Do you still have it?
I used to draw a lot at home until I was 8 years old, then I stopped for many years and when I was about 14 I saw drawings of monsters in a hip hop store. At home I also tried to draw a monster like that. It was like a shock for me that the picture came out of my head, through my hand… I was very enthusiastic (I still have the picture, of course) and from then on I started drawing every day.
Why did you choose illustration as your life’s work instead of, for example, filmmaking, law, or even medicine?
I never really thought about anything else. Not for a moment. There was only this one way.
Did you study art in school?
In ninth grade, during career counselling, I found out where you could study illustration and luckily the only university in Germany where you could do that was in my hometown. At the University of Applied Sciences in Hamburg. There I mainly studied informative illustration with Prof. Reinhard Schulz-Schaeffer.
Where does your inspiration come from; your impulse to make art? Do you have a source for your ideas?
I have the feeling that the idea comes to me, like a flash of inspiration… it comes from the subconscious or something, maybe. But I love looking at pictures and cartoons.
How would you describe the process of creating art?
Do you have a favourite artist? What is it about that artist’s work you like?
I love Sempé! His work has a positive power, such beauty and a wonderful wit. And it’s such a loving humour, as if he loves all people. His pictures make me happy.
Do you have a favourite artist supply, a favourite method, or favourite location, where you like to create artwork?
I love the Caricatura in Kassel/Germany. It’s a cartoon workshop that goes on for a week and when I’m not pregnant, or the kids are too small or Corona is there, I want to be there every summer.
If you could give a viewer clues to understanding your art, what would you say?
You should not think much about it, but rather feel it immediately.
Do you think illustration has the eye of the public or could public awareness of this field be improved upon?
I think that illustration (especially the cartoon) is a special witness of the times. Illustration can reflect the political situation, everyday life and the spirit of the times.
Why does art matter to you? Why might it matter to the world?
Drawing simply makes me happy and I become unhappy when I don’t draw.
Through illustration and art, people can be inspired to think and mobilized to act.
Why does art matter to you? Why might it matter to the world?
Drawing simply makes me happy and I become unhappy when I don’t draw. Through illustration and art, people can be inspired to think and mobilized to act. But art can also support and heal.
If you could look back or forward 100 years, do you think the life of an artist was or will be better than today?
Unfortunately, I can’t imagine it like that. When all professions are replaced by artificial intelligence, an artist will be very valuable or all people will be artists!