Iskra Sale - Iskra Sale

I am Iskra Sale and I live and work in London.

I have been drawing for as long as I can remember. In my early years it was more a way of playing and discovering the world. Later, during my academic Fine Art studies, drawing became my safe space — a place I could always return to, where I would lose myself so completely that the world around me disappeared. Today, drawing feels natural, like breathing, but also a form of communication — both with myself and with the world around me.

I live in North London, close to King George’s Fields and Hadley Woods, surrounded by beautiful green spaces. Nature gives me answers to many of the questions I carry within me. Creating my own rose garden there has also become a quiet part of my process — planting, observing, and watching it slowly grow has deeply shaped the way I see and draw. What I am drawn to explore is the harmony within transformation, which exists everywhere around us.

I work mainly with graphite on paper, combined with gold and platinum, and I experiment with precious metals, using engraving techniques and the natural patina of silver as an additional layer that carries both contrast and a sense of time. The way the delicacy of graphite meets the coolness of silver and the warmth of gold is deeply compelling to me. Through these materials, I explore the quiet relationship between light and shadow, and our emotional connection to both.

I don’t draw spontaneously. The images exist in my mind long before they appear on paper. Sometimes a small detail from reality unlocks them, and I know the moment has come. My vivid dreams, memories, and the constant metamorphosis within myself and everything around me are what drive my work. My inspiration comes from silence and contemplation, and drawing often gives me answers to questions I haven’t even asked.