My Story

For a long time, I didn't think becoming an illustrator was an option.

I was raised in Belgium by hardworking immigrant parents who valued education, stability, and opportunity. Like many children of immigrants, I grew up understanding the importance of making the most of the opportunities available to me. Art was something I loved deeply, but it wasn't something I imagined could become a career.

Yet drawing was always there.

As a child, I spent hours sketching animals and Pokémon. Drawing became a way to observe, understand, and express things that were often difficult to put into words.

When it came time for university, I followed a different path. I moved to the UK to study Chinese, partly to reconnect with my heritage and explore questions of identity that had always interested me. Later, I completed an MSc in Education, Power and Social Change.

My academic work focused on belonging, identity, and Chinese diaspora communities. I became fascinated by the ways people navigate culture, community, and home. The more I studied, the more I realised that identity is never fixed. It is shaped by our experiences, relationships, and the stories we tell ourselves.

After university, I worked in higher education. Whether my role directly focused on these topics or not, I always found myself drawn towards conversations about race, ethnicity, inclusion, and representation. I cared deeply about creating spaces where people felt seen and where they had the agency to define their own relationship with culture and identity.

Around the same time, I received a diagnosis that helped me make sense of many earlier experiences.

At 28, I was diagnosed with dyslexia.

Many people would agree that receiving this diagnosis comes quite late. This is because I did not get the right help in time. Growing up in Belgium, my reading and writing difficulties were often overlooked since I spoke a different language at home. Instead of receiving the necessary support, I was expected to speak more Dutch.

Later, when I moved to the UK, I encountered a different set of assumptions. As a Chinese student, I often found that others expected academic achievement to come naturally to me. I received a distinction for my Master's degree thanks to the support I received for my dyslexia; however, those outside my situation often took my success for granted. As a result, I felt that neither side truly understood me.

Dyslexia has made me realise how resilient I can be. If I were able to achieve a distinction in a highly challenging subject filled with essay writing and social theory readings, then I could distil my chaotic, ever-changing thoughts into a coherent argument. I have written a total of over 20,000 words in essays—why not give myself a chance to pursue what comes naturally to me? For me, that is drawing.

Drawing had never felt difficult. Images often arrived before words. Creativity became a way of thinking, processing, and communicating. Rather than limiting me, dyslexia encouraged me to embrace visual storytelling while continuing to develop my voice as a writer, researcher, and communicator across multiple languages.

That experience reinforced something I had already begun to understand through my studies and work: people cannot be reduced to assumptions. Whether those assumptions are based on language, ethnicity, achievement, or background, they rarely tell the full story.

Throughout all those years, art remained a constant companion.

I attended short courses, filled sketchbooks, and slowly built the confidence to take illustration seriously. What had once felt impossible began to feel possible.

Today, animals sit at the heart of my work.

I am fascinated by their ability to express emotion and tell stories that feel both universal and deeply personal. Through them, I explore themes of belonging, resilience, companionship, wonder, and quiet strength. My illustrations combine close observation of the natural world with elements of magical realism, creating stories that feel both grounded and dreamlike.

After many years in the UK, I returned to Belgium with my family. It feels both familiar and unfamiliar. I am still finding my place, navigating motherhood, creativity, and a new chapter of life.

Alongside my illustration practice, I am currently studying drawing at an art academy. It feels a little like coming full circle. After years of taking the long route, I am finally giving myself permission to pursue the thing I loved from the beginning.

And perhaps that is what this story is really about.

Not arriving.

But continuing to find my way.

One drawing at a time.