About Me

Hi, I'm Mara!

I'm a compulsive illustrator.
Since I was a little girl, I preferred notebooks and scribbling materials to playing with dolls. When there were no notebooks to draw, there were storybooks, walls, sofas, furniture...

Formation
In 2009, I completed a degree in Design at the School of Visual Arts - IADE, and the following year I decided to do a Master's degree at the same School in Design and Visual Culture.

In 2011 I completed my Masters and went to work for an information technology company, INSTICC, where I stayed for 4 years working as a Visual Designer.

In 2015 I entered the typical age crisis and decided to change my life with André, my life partner. We ran away from the hustle and bustle of the city to the peaceful life in the countryside. We started working as freelance illustrators for a well-known image bank. I finally dedicated myself full time to my passion. And so I started to gain greater skills with watercolor, digital painting and vectors. At the same time, I opened a shop on Etsy and started selling custom hand-painted rag dolls.

In 2017 I won the highest illustration award in Portugal , the 4th Pingo Doce Children's Literature Prize, in the illustration category. ❤

Today, I live in a house in a hill in the Alentejo where almost nobody knows where it is, with Balu the dog, chickens, guinea pigs, ducks and Dora the sheep, on a plot of land where, together with André, we dedicate ourselves to Permaculture in our spare time. And full-time illustration, of course!

I consider myself a "dependent illustrator" , so I need clients who offer me new challenges to put my creativity and skill into practice.

some references

4th Pingo Doce Children's Literature Prize:
https://www.pingodoce.pt/responsabilidade/premio-literatura-infantil/vencedores/ha-monstros-no-tunel/

Article Observer:
https://observador.pt/especiais/sempre-gostou-de-desenhar-este-premio-e-para-si/