About

Olha Protasova is a Ukrainian illustrator and designer specialising in hand-sculpted plasticine imagery

Her practice combines conceptual sculpting, photography and retouching to create tactile visuals for brands, publications, cultural and educational organisations. She works across a wide range of subjects and formats — from lettering and typography to objects, characters, portraits, metaphors and larger scenes — choosing the form that best serves the idea.

Plasticine is at the heart of her practice. Working by hand gives each image physical presence, texture and subtle imperfections that reveal the process behind it. Olha is equally interested in what happens after the sculpture is made: she experiments with lighting, photography and retouching to translate the physical object into a precise, compelling image.

Her work is grounded in a belief that beauty matters. Beauty helps people feel alive, sharpens perception and reminds us to notice what is around us. She sees craft as a form of respect: thoughtful, skilful work acknowledges the attention of the people who will eventually encounter it.

Olha approaches design as a people-first practice. Whether she is creating a campaign image, a book cover, a cultural project or a product, she looks for the visual form that can make an idea clearer, more engaging and more memorable — while adding something meaningful to the viewer’s experience.

She works with art directors, creative teams and organisations on commissioned illustration and visual projects. Her clients and collaborators have included UNICEF, Fast Company, MacPaw, Silpo, King's College London, Goethe-Institut, the Khanenko Museum, PechaKucha, Evermade and others.

Alongside her illustration practice, Olha develops work in art licensing and product design, including collaborations with manufacturers and the development of her own creative products. She also teaches and speaks about illustration and creative practice.

Olha is a project manager at Design for Ukraine, where she contributes to initiatives supporting the Ukrainian design community. Her wider practice connects illustration, entrepreneurship, education and cultural work.

Across these different areas, the common thread is a desire to create work that is beautiful, skilfully made and genuinely useful — work that invites people to stop, look closer, connect with an idea and perhaps notice a little more beauty in everyday life.

Illustration · Sculptural Lettering · Surface Pattern Design

Handcrafted illustration for brand campaigns and product storytelling

hello@olhaprotasova.com

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