Hege chose the academic path over the artistic subjects when she went to high school, and she put aside her pencils for many years. It was only when she had her own children, and they started drawing, that she rediscovered her passion for sketching. “I sat down with them and started making a few sketches, and it was like finding a long-lost love,” she recalls.
She decided to take her skills to a new level, and a few years ago she signed up for drawing classes for beginners. There, she learned different techniques and skills that helped her develop her own style. She started by finding interesting photos on the internet and copying them, but soon she began to add her own touch and personality to her drawings. “I would draw almost anything in the beginning, but I found myself drawn to animals and portraits more and more,” she says. “They are the most enjoyable and challenging for me.”
Her drawings are stunningly realistic, with a level of detail that is hard to believe. She uses A3 paper and pencils to create artworks that look like photographs. She spends up to 30 hours on each piece, paying attention to every strand of hair, every wrinkle, every shadow. “I am greatly inspired by the style of Hyper Realism, especially as practiced by Juliane Berge, a famous Norwegian artist who makes amazing photorealistic drawings,” she says. “I am always trying to develop myself in that direction, but I don’t compare myself to her. I have so much left to learn.”
Hege started drawing as a hobby but soon realised that she could turn it into a business. She sold her first portrait and began to receive commissions from people who saw her drawings on Instagram. She hopes to set up her own webshop in the future, where she can showcase and sell her artwork.
She finds inspiration from everywhere, but especially from people and motifs that she knows or relates to personally. She has a list of ideas that she revisits whenever she starts a new drawing. She begins by making an outline with a soft pencil, then fills in the details, always starting with the left eye on a portrait. She does not know why she does that, but it gives her a sense of familiarity and order.
Francis Atterbury once said, “It is the attention to detail that makes the difference between average and stunning.” That sums up the work of Hege Corneliussen perfectly.
