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“May a beacon of light guide you through your darkest hours — lighting aflame in you, a new hope;
A dance of dreams across the stars, a waltz to reach the skies above.”
Hold the most delicate of tales close to your heart, as these adventures are indispensably precious. Prepare to journey on with Kathrin Honesta’s dreamy heroine on her quest of hopes and dreams!
A big Mossery welcome to illustrator slash visual storytelling extraordinaire — Kathrin Honesta! She weaves her stories of earnest longing through vivid imagery and whimsical illustrations that compel viewers to just pause and take it all in.
Read on to uncover her process creating these covers, her unwavering faith, her unlikely inspirations and more—
Hi Kathrin, we’re so excited to be working together! Please introduce yourself.
Hello! I’m so grateful for the opportunity to work with Mossery. I have been a fan of your beautiful journals, so I was really excited for this project :)
My name is Kathrin Honesta, an illustrator based in Jakarta, Indonesia. My works revolve mostly around book-related projects, but I also create illustrations for packagings & brands. I love to put a touch of whim & symbolism in my work. I’m also fascinated by stories so my work always try to convey that.
What was your creative process like throughout this project?
The process was great. The theme ‘Delicate Beings’ really sparks a lot of ideas to explore. The team at Mossery are also always open for ideas & suggestions. All in all, it was a fun process!
As you were designing these covers, were there any surprising challenges you encountered along the way?
At first, I had too many ideas in mind, which made it really hard to narrow those down to a few. But I guess it was a good challenge to have! Other than that, it’s a struggle of adjusting timing to hand work & family. I’m was a new mom! So when I was working on these covers, I was just learning to balance both aspects. These covers turned out to take longer that what I expected. Thank you for your patience!
For these covers, what sort of emotions do you hope to convey with these dreamy characters?
I want to convey a feeling of calm peace and blissfulness in solitude. As an introvert, I really like spending time alone. Within that quiet time, I reflect, dream and create. I truly wish people could relate to that feeling through these covers :)
Your faith is very prominent in your body of work! How has your spirituality inspired or influenced your art?
Yes, it is. My faith affects all aspects of my life, including work. My work motto is “Soli Deo Gloria”, which translates to “Glory to God alone”. It means that all that I have, my talent included, is given. I can’t take credit for myself, but only to use it for a better purpose according to my calling.
With that, I tried my best to always give my best (Eventhough it’s hard to be 100% at all time!). I also create illustrated stories & poems inspired by my Faith through my personal project under “Shadow Stories”. It’s a collaborative project with my writer friend, Kay Jen Ong, who is a Malaysian! :)
What themes do you find yourself going back to whenever you start working on a new project?
I always start with what I’m experiencing or feeling at the time. My personal projects and my life are intertwined with each other. It reflects what I’m going through at a particular moment in my life. That’s why I feel that my works also grow together with me.
As one-half of the duo that runs Shadow Stories, where did your love for storytelling begin? Have you always been a natural storyteller?
I love books! I think my fascination with stories is inspired by other storytellers. My favorite stories makes me think, ponder and have impacted me deeply. I really want to create stories as such too :)
As a new mother (many congrats!), has motherhood changed or inspired your art in any way?
Thank you so much! Yes definitely… Being a new mom, it’s really hard for me to focus and I wasn’t as productive as I used to be. At first, I beat myself and forced myself to get back to work as soon as possible. But now I’ve learned to embrace this new season of my life. Being a mom means putting my family first, work can wait. I should take my time, and it’s really okay.
Any upcoming projects you’re particularly excited about? Give us a hint as to what's next for you!
I’m currently in production of making some new stuff for Shadow Stories! Hopefully it would be finished soon and I can share it with you all :)
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Hailing from Jakarta, Indonesia, Kathrin Honesta is an illustrator and visual storyteller who concocts visual narratives of hope and longing. Connect with her on Instagram here.
Her delicate covers, Hope & Dream, are now available for Planners, Notebooks, Sketchbooks and Twinbooks. Browse her collection here to find the book fit for you!
“The surest way to make your dreams come true is to live them.” — Roy T. Bennett
Don’t forget to tag us on Instagram at @mosseryco in your pictures or unboxing clips when you receive yours, we’d love to see them!
