Ophélie Paris balances fantasy and existentialism in her illustrations

One glance at the illustrations of Berlin-based Ophélie Paris and you’ll feel at peace. Through a combination of colour pencils and pastels, Ophélie unearths the serenity of our planet – from flora to fauna, to simply sitting on a bench in your old age. “I like to focus on shapes, patterns, enhance the volumes and the materiality of things,” the illustrator tells us. “This is something that happened when I began to work more and more with colour pencils a few years ago.” Her work evokes the folk art of Hungary and surrounding cultures, with her work being brought to life with a distinct aura that relies on the hue of her colour pencils.

In a recent comic in particular, Snail Tale, Ophélie wistfully explores the history of her grandmother in Hungary in the 1950s. “I like to play on the contrasts and to give things a special glow even if it means spending a few extra hours on a drawing,” Ophélie explains. “I also seek to find a balance between some kind of realism and a fantastic glow.” It’s no wonder that movies such as The Wizard of Oz and The NeverEnding Story influence a lot of this magical-realism in her work. Ultimately, for Ophélie, it’s all about “the mix between fantastic and existential questions.”