An interview with Illo artist Buse Kaçar

Buse Kaçar is an illustrator from Istanbul, Turkey, currently based in Germany. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Plastic Arts & Painting. After graduating, Buse also received a pedagogical formation.

Buse's work mainly focuses on children's toys, books, puzzles, and the editorial markets. She aspires to create art to celebrate cultural diversity and to craft a world free from bias. Buse is inspired by the cartoons she watched as a kid, and tries to create a similar experience of warmth and attention to detail so the audience can find something new with every viewing.

Buse has been a part of several international exhibitions and was a finalist in the Golden Pinwheel 2023 in the commercial category. Buse is a proud pug mom and an introvert, and is always excited to continue creating!

Here’s where we find out a little more…

What would you say is your best piece of work / collaboration to date, and why?

I think it’s definitely the Meet My Neighbours XXL Floor Puzzle I illustrated for moritoys. Everything about the project was so interesting and fun for me. Making something that size is challenging in a good way. After we finalized the project, it felt like the outcome was something I would have really enjoyed as a kid. I felt I had made the kid inside me proud. I also love drawing all kinds of people and crowded scenes, so this was a perfect way to showcase that. Of course the team makes all the difference. I’m always very proud of anything we do with moritoys.

Where do you like to go to be inspired and how do you find your inspiration?

I think inspiration is a constant thing. Most artists say they are inspired by anything and everything around them. This is very true. Since I was little, I have taken notes about people or scenarios to draw later. Now, I look for the little details that resonate with people. When you draw from imagination, sometimes you forget the little details that makes the illustration feel authentic and unique. You may start to fall back on what you know. Like a pose you studied many times and memorized. But in fact, there are so many things to explore further and little details that make illustrations and art resonate with the viewer. These may be different facial expressions, an item of clothing, or a personal object. The best way for me to get inspiration is to people-watch and take notes :)


What do you like to advocate for?

I am very passionate about the representation of diversity and women’s rights. I also have been vegan for 8 years now and I love to illustrate animals as part of our lives, as our friends and companions. Once I became vegan and learned how our ways of living impact the planet, that kind of thinking spread into other areas of life as well, such as avoiding fast fashion, recycling, and not consuming things I don’t need. Basically, eliminating consumer culture and not causing harm on an individual level.

What would you say sets you apart from other illustrators? Something you feel is unique to you?

For sure the number of different characters I can illustrate on each new project. There are all kinds of charts in my head for all the details of the people I illustrate. I feel like I can mix and match them to the end of time and get endless possibilities. I like seeing and illustrating all kinds of people from different endless combinations from facial features, cultural backgrounds, families, and so much more. This diversity and variety is what is exciting about life. I also feel like I understand the important points the client wants to hit visually very clearly. Which comes in handy :)

If you have done paid commissions prior to joining the agency, what would you say clients tend to come back to you for?

I think the clients come to me for two things. The first is illustrations that have warmth, depth, and a diverse range of characters and settings. The second is the detail with which I present and plan my work. I am very organised from the beginning of a project, which means the client and I have an easier time later on. In addition to these aspects, I really do my best to make sure that the final product is perfect. It’s very important for me that the final product looks just as we imagined it together and checks all the boxes we wanted to check. I will make sure that it does.

How would you describe your style?

I describe my style as colourful and skillful. I aim to celebrate cultural diversity and craft a world free from bias. I get inspired by the cartoons I used to watch as a kid and try to create a similar experience of warmth and attention to detail so the audience can look and find something new every time.

What project would mean the world to you, if you were offered it?

I think every project is exciting in its own special way but it would be really fun to do something on a bigger scale. I also would love to do a series. I think I’m really good at board books. A project that requires me to dive into a field I don’t know about is also interesting to me. I love researching. Lastly, maybe something that involves a bit of humour. Something I’m allowed to be silly with and that lets me brainstorm funny ideas to draw. Of course, illustrating a vegan cookbook or vegan kids' book would be amazing.

Are you working on any personal projects you can share with us?

I am working on a personal project which is roughly about friendship. I am embarking on this project with my best friend and my twin sister. The project will take a long time to finish but is steadily moving forward.

Finally, if you were to illustrate a book related to a real life person, who would you choose?

If I had to illustrate a book related to a real life person, my thought process would be not to choose the person who I admire the most, but to choose a person whose life involves the things I want to illustrate the most. Maybe David Attenborough, I’m not sure. His way of storytelling really gets my imagination going. Even thinking about it now, so many creative ways to set up pages comes to my mind.

If you’d like more info, please contact: [email protected]

At illo agency, we pride ourselves in representing a collation of global illustrators, distinctly diverse in creativity and uniquely celebrated by like-minded clients across a range of commercial markets.