How did you decide to become a drawer / cartoonist?
I had been envious long enough reading and admiring some comics. I also wanted to draw but I was unsure of my drawing skills and also I waited for some BIG idea that was good enough to start. Then, I think it was 1997, german comics artist Anke Feuchtenberger came to Helsinki at a comic festival to present her work and I was totally amazed. I instantly admired her work, I thought it was so beautiful and at the same time I thought that if she can do comics, I can do it as well.

Was it a difficult choice to make?
I never decided to be a comic artist, I always HOPED to be one. I just began to draw and believe my own stories, that was the decicion needed. When I draw more I found out that I was called comic artist and that’ s fine!

Did you go to a school for drawers or cartoonists?
Not any specific school for cartoonists but I have quite heavy basic art school studies behind me and I also studied literature for a while. Though I never did anything concerning comics at school. Drawing comics has always been kind of out-school thing to me, something privat and not assignment-like.

How do people consider comic strip in Finland?
comics in general or comic strip? I always call comic strip (“strippi”)as that short comic on the newspaper…
In general I think that the variety of comics have raised and also comics is widely considered to be art eventually. It means that working stipendiums and other conditions are now possible for comic artists too.

What comic strip/artists did have a major influence on your work?
I already told about Anke Feuchtenberger. One very early influence is Joakim Pirinen and now there are Mark Beyer and my friend Jenni Rope also.

Do you still read comic strip? Which one?
I think I read relatively lot of comics, my boyfriend buys quite a lot of them and I also borrow some from my friends. Still I don’t consider myself so much of a comic reader or entusiastic. I refuse to like comics in general, I just like some .

How could you present your work to our readers?
It is very black, and white, and so is the humor in my comics. I deal with every day life but I take it into fantasy. I love happy ends and there are many kinds of them. Usually its a girl, or a dog.

Has your work been translated yet?
Yes, also in french last autumn.The last was comics antologia called “Stereocomics 2″ edited by Alban. The first issue was in english. Le Dernier Cri -comics group from Marseille has also published my comics in “Vagina Mushroom01″ though the pages are in the wrong order… including these my comics have been translated into swedish, english, islandic and german as far I know. I am talking about single stories being translated, my own album has stayd purely finnish. Sometimes I have copied some english leaflets for my album that my english speaking friends could read it.

What are your current and future projects?
Making of new album and finishing my school (The university of art and design))at last.

Do you think that internet is the future medium for comic strip?
Not so with the comic strip but for comics society and for comics events, yes. Check our comic society link in Helsinki www.kupla.net anyway, I am a print lover for ever.

Do you still work with a pencil and a paper or have you replaced them by a computer?
Pencil and ink and paper are the best working conditions that anybody can get, why to change!! With colouring I have used computer though , but I try to avoid computerization. I try to get the colour look like silk-screen printed.