Pleased to meet you: rika bos

Now that the first few posts are up, I figured it is time to share a bit more about myself. As you might know, I'd like to call myself a Dutch girl with a Nordic soul. I was born in the year depicted by George Orwell and I'm a writer by day and an artist by night. As a child I love making things, baking (I learned very early on, Rika was my teacher -and yes, Rika is not me, but I do use her name, more on that later on-) and collect things from our garden, pretending the garden was a forest.

Dutch girl with a Nordic soul

When I was sixteen I traveled to Finland to study at a Finnish high school, or 'Lukio'. From the moment I set foot on Finnish soil, I never wanted to leave. I spent a year living in Vantaa and Helsinki, going to a Finnish school, living with a Finnish family. Perhaps it was the age, perhaps it's just me, but my stay there shaped the rest of my life so far.

The year depicted by George Orwell

1984 is the year in which I was born, on an early Monday morning. This year I will receive thirty white long stemmed roses. The tradition of giving me the amount of white roses equal to the years I spent on earth, is one kept by my parents. I don't feel anywhere near thirty, but I'm excited to have a very good excuse to throw a party.

I grew up in a small town in the middel of Holland. Surrounded by wide green fields, a windmill and opposite of a home for the elderly. The window of my room looked out on their apartments. As such, I've had many 'neighbours' over the years. We waved and smiled at each other, until one day the room was empty and someone else would move in.

Once I came back from Finland, I never really moved back home. I finished my high school diploma in Haarlem. Moved to Amsterdam, later to The Hague. Eventually I moved back to Finland, but now I once again live in the Dutch capital city and I couldn't be happier. Well, a girl can (and must, if you ask me) always dream. And I sure do. Amsterdam is just a stepping stone to the rest of the world and who knows where I'll be next year. For the time being I'll make due with travelling. This year I will visit ~~Berlin~~ [march 2014], Cuba, Paris and New York City. Apart from a visit to a Nordic country and a day trip or two to Antwerp, for sure.

Writer by day artist by night or why I use a pseudonym

I once wrote a short bio that included the line 'writer by day and night'. Which is, true. I always write, but I also love to draw. Or doodle. Whatever you want to call it. Writing is my profession. It's how I earn a living and I do so, freelance. Which is why, when I started exploring the illustrated life, I chose to use a pseudonym. I don't want to be hold back in any way when making art, nor do I want to confuse my clients as to what it is that I do for a living.

Rika Bos

Rika Bos was born in 1924. She was my grandmother, my best friend, a fantastic seamstress and always had the best cookie selection. She died a couple of years ago. When I think about illustrations I always think about the birds and gentlemen with top hats she used to draw for me. Or about the beautiful geometric patterns she drew in her workbook when she studied to become a seamstress. This, amongst other reasons, is why I chose her name as a pseudonym for this blog and my illustration work.