HK DESIGN FORCE

Karen Aruba Art is an art brand founded by Karen in 2015 with a back-story as unique as the illustration it produces.

Karen Aruba is an illustrator in Hong Kong specialising in sketching related to travel and cultural theme. As a self-taught artist based in Hong Kong, Karen’s learning process is mainly through observation and practices, with a good doss of enthusiasm thrown in. She derives inspiration from everything she comes across: from nature and sky to building and architecture, from traditional culture to creative doodle. Her creativity takes inspiration from the one year she spent growing up in Aruba, the “one happy island” near Caribbean Sea as a child with her family.

In 2017’s DesignInspire Fair, Karen was the sole Hong Kong representative among ten international designers to present her story and creativity in “Design without Boundaries” zone. Her recent illustrated product “Travel Mahjong City” has achieved the Judge Award of Hong Kong Smart Design Awards in 2018. Influenced by her family mahjong business with talents passed from grandfather, her illustrations are centered on the traditional Mahjong craftsmanship, bridging the gap between traditional culture and modern lifestyle, to pass skills and know-how from old to new generations. All her creative work contribute to the art value “Draw life to happiness. Paint life in colors”.