The works of illustrator and author Elham Mbeygi are characterized by a consistent dedication to subtle observation and the narrative condensation of silence. In the field of contemporary illustration, Mbeygi establishes a personal style that, according to her own statements, aims to “draw quiet stories in a loud world.” Her portfolio, which ranges from children’s books and novel illustrations to contributions for online magazines, documents a constant interest in visualizing nuanced emotions and ephemeral moments. This article analyzes Elham Mbeygi’s artistic career, the development of her visual language and thematic focuses, the philosophical concepts behind her work, and her positioning within the current discourse of illustration and literature.
Biography & Origins – Background, Career, Early Influences
Elham Mbeygi’s artistic genesis is significantly shaped by an early affinity for storytelling. She names her mother, a skilled narrator who opened up new perspectives to her by reading old picture books, as a formative figure in her childhood. The works of Hans Christian Andersen, particularly “The Little Match Girl,” stimulated her interest in writing at a young age and contributed to giving her “mental images more complexity and color.” This early engagement with narrative structures formed a foundation for her later professional direction.
According to her publisher, Austin Macauley Publishers, Elham Mbeygi was born on February 25, 1998. She graduated from university in 2011 and subsequently dedicated herself intensively to painting courses and writing short stories. After her marriage and the birth of her son, she decided to publish her written works. In an interview from 2023, she also mentions her son and family as important sources of support.
Her interests in the visual and narrative manifest in various projects, ranging from her own book publications to commissioned illustrations for other authors and media.
Artistic Development – Transitions in Style, Techniques, Materials, Themes
Elham Mbeygi’s artistic development is characterized by a remarkable versatility in illustrative styles and narrative strategies. Her stated goal is to freely express thoughts and feelings through images and stories.
As an author and illustrator of children’s books, she has created a fantasy world for young readers with the series “The Little Traveler of The Magic Land” (Volumes 1 and 2). Her concern here is to “educate children and adolescents and bring smiles to their faces worldwide.” The illustrations in her books, likely in line with her early fascination with Andersen , are probably defined by imagination and a rich visual language that visually supports the magical elements of the stories.
Her illustrative work also includes collaborations with other authors. For instance, she created the illustrations for the novel “Rose et Phil’s little love afflictions!” by Stéphane Theri, which was published on the online platform Terhoma.fr. Descriptions of these illustrations suggest an atmospherically dense style that uses light and shadow effects to create romantic and mysterious moods.
Another facet of her portfolio is the series “Le dessin de la semaine” (The Drawing of the Week) for the magazine Terhoma. In this series, she presents weekly drawings that are often figurative and expressive and feature a symbolic layer. The accompanying texts, some by herself and some by other authors, address aspects such as time, waiting, hope, self-discovery, and dreams. Stylistically, these works are often characterized by a monochrome or severely limited color palette, which creates an introspective, sometimes melancholic, basic mood.
On her personal website eliwords.art, Mbeygi presents her works in thematic collections such as “Poetic Animal Stories (The Quiet Wilderness)” – poetic animal stories, illustratively realized – and “Elham’s Illustrated World,” a space she describes as a place where “logic dissolves, and symbols take root.” Her website characterizes her as a “dreamy storyteller” and “quiet observer.” She articulates the attempt to “hold stillness, or a silent scream, or a feeling that never got the chance to be.” Her artistic approach aims less at explanation and more at encouraging pause and reception.
Mbeygi’s artistic development documents a fluid movement between different illustrative techniques and narrative forms. This is always guided by the aspiration to generate emotional resonance and to convey stories in a subtle yet penetrating manner.
Analysis of Key Works – Interpretation, Context, Impact
Elham Mbeygi’s artistic profile can be exemplarily understood by examining some of her central projects and work series, which illustrate her thematic focuses and stylistic characteristics.
“The Little Traveler of The Magic Land” (Volumes 1 & 2) This children’s book, published by Austin Macauley Publishers , forms a core piece of her work as an author and illustrator. The story follows Batis, a boy who, on his seventh birthday, travels to a magical land with the help of a fairy. There, he searches for forgotten memories, confronts evil, and strives to return to his parents. Volume 2 continues Batis’s adventures as he must now flee celestial pursuers and face a new quest, guided by his grandmother and a suitcase full of stories and truths. Central themes include magic, memory, the conflict between good and evil, and the importance of love and family ties. The illustrations are, appropriate to the genre, imaginatively and colorfully designed to support the magical atmosphere of the narrative. Mbeygi reports positive reactions from young readers who wrote her letters and eagerly awaited the second volume.
Illustrations for “Rose et Phil’s little love afflictions!” For this illustrated novel by Stéphane Theri, published on Terhoma.fr, Mbeygi developed the visual narrative levels. Descriptions of the plot and illustrations suggest an atmospherically dense and emotional style. The images capture romantic and mysterious moments, with lighting and shadow play taking on a significant role in mood creation. The illustrations are conceived as an integral part of the narrative and contribute to visually accompanying the emotional development of the protagonists Rose and Phil.
“Le dessin de la semaine” for Terhoma This weekly series of drawings, published on Terhoma.fr, demonstrates Mbeygi’s ability to convey complex moods and reflections with single images and associated short texts. The illustrations are often figurative, rendered in monochrome or reduced color palettes, and permeated by symbolic elements. Themes such as hope, waiting, time, loss, self-reflection, and the ambivalence of dreams and reality are negotiated here visually and textually. Quotes like “I got lost looking for someone to find me. Alas, he was so lost he couldn’t find me..” (May 6, 2024) or “Tired of waiting for a train that, in the end, won’t pass.” (February 19, 2024) underscore the introspective and often melancholic character of these works.
Collections on eliwords.art Her personal website eliwords.art serves as a platform for various illustrative projects.
- “Poetic Animal Stories (The Quiet Wilderness)”: This series presents poetic animal stories visualized through illustrations. An example is the depiction of an illustrated, poetically rendered frog under raindrops. The series shows her ability to attribute human emotions and thoughtful traits to animals.
- “Elham’s Illustrated World (Where logic dissolves, and symbols take root)”: This collection aims to create moments into which the viewer can immersively enter. It concerns “a flicker, a figure, a shadow shaped like memory,” that do not explain but wait and let the viewer recognize something “you thought only you had felt.” This underscores her focus on symbolically charged and emotionally resonant visual worlds.
- “Visual Storytelling”: Under this heading on her portfolio page , examples of a surreal-seeming visual language can be found, such as a teapot with a face being held in hands. The description reads: “Where silence becomes story, and teapots carry forgotten dreams.”
A connecting element of these different projects is Mbeygi’s intention to capture the elusive and fleeting in images and stories and to build a profound, often silent connection with the recipient.
Philosophy & Worldview – Beliefs, Intentions, Statements
Elham Mbeygi’s artistic work is closely interwoven with her personal philosophy and worldview, which she communicates in interviews and on her website. A central motif is her stated aspiration to “draw quiet stories in a loud world.” Accordingly, her art is not primarily intended to explain, but to encourage contemplation and reception. She describes her endeavor to “hold stillness, or a silent scream, or a feeling that never got the chance to be.”
She regards honesty as a fundamental value: “I have always tried to stay away from lies and the older I get the more convinced I am that honesty is the best choice even if it hurts me.” She also pursues this sincerity in her art by following “what feels true, even if fleeting.”
Mbeygi attributes essential importance to love and kindness. Her greatest fear is “forgetting love and kindness,” as a “depressed and tense society is born from families who have forgotten love and kindness.” She articulates deep compassion for the suffering of other living beings. She describes her ideal of happiness as a “green land with healthy and happy residents.”
A strong belief in her own capabilities and continuous effort characterize her attitude to life: “I believe in myself that I will achieve whatever I want with continuous effort.” She interprets the motto “Passion Never Retires” to mean that passion, while never ending, changes its form and color over time, becoming more mature and deeper.
According to her own statements, she finds inspiration ubiquitously, “even in a scent,” but particularly in observing nature near her home, under plane trees, and when looking at the sky and clouds. The freedom to express thoughts and feelings in images and stories is what she values most about her work.
The role of stories is of fundamental importance to her. She interprets the statement “You are the storyteller of your own life” as the necessity for deep self-understanding, the recognition of strengths and weaknesses, and the ability to make decisions to proudly shape one’s own future. Her mother’s narratives significantly influenced her in this regard. She describes her family as her most treasured possession and greatest support.
Reception & Presence – Critiques, Awards, Exhibitions, Collectors
Elham Mbeygi’s public presence is primarily constituted by her publications as an author and illustrator, as well as her online activities.
Her children’s books “The Little Traveler of The Magic Land” (Volumes 1 and 2) were published by Austin Macauley Publishers. Mbeygi reports positive feedback from young readers who sent her letters and eagerly awaited the second volume, which she describes as particularly joyful moments in her work. The books are listed on platforms such as Apple Books and Goodreads. It should be noted that Austin Macauley Publishers is classified by organizations such as the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) and the blog Writer Beware as a vanity press, where authors often have to make financial contributions for the publication of their works. This classification is relevant to the context of her books’ publication.
Her illustrations for the novel “Rose et Phil’s little love afflictions!” by Stéphane Theri, as well as her weekly series “Le dessin de la semaine,” are presented on the French online platform Terhoma.fr and reach their audience there.
Interviews with Elham Mbeygi are documented on platforms such as “The Heroine’s Journey” and Terhoma.fr. These provide insights into her artistic philosophy, her creative process, and her personal views.
Her own website eliwords.art functions as a central point of contact for presenting her various illustrative projects and collections, including “Poetic Animal Stories (The Quiet Wilderness)” and “Elham’s Illustrated World.” She is also active on social media such as Instagram and LinkedIn to disseminate her works and stories.
Specific exhibitions of her illustrations or awards are not detailed in the available information; her focus appears to be primarily on the publication and online presentation of her narrative and illustrative works.
Integration into the Art Context – Significance in Contemporary Art, Influences, Positioning
Elham Mbeygi positions herself in the contemporary art context as an illustrator and storyteller with a clear emphasis on emotional depth and subtle narrative structures. Her work operates at the intersection of children’s literature, book illustration, and digital art.
She cites the works of Hans Christian Andersen as a literary influence that shaped her early interest in writing. In the field of visual arts, she expresses admiration for the American artist Jeffrey Lynn Koons – a reference that, given Koons’s often bold and pop-culturally influenced aesthetic, forms a noteworthy contrast to Mbeygi’s own focus on “quiet stories.” This might indicate an appreciation for artistic innovation or broad impact rather than a direct stylistic influence on her own illustrations.
Mbeygi’s artistic approach, which highlights the intimate, fleeting, and emotionally resonant, corresponds with a growing societal importance of authenticity and engagement with inner worlds of experience. Her works can be understood as offering a counterpoint to the fast pace and sensory intensity of the modern environment by creating spaces for contemplation and quiet observation.
Her concentration on “quiet stories” and capturing unspoken feelings can be interpreted as a conscious artistic positioning. Within an illustration and literary scene that encompasses a wide range of styles and themes, Mbeygi occupies a niche that foregrounds the subtle and symbolic. Her activity as an illustrator for online magazines like Terhoma and her own book projects attest to her ability to operate both in collaborative contexts and as an independent author and artist.
The publication of her children’s books with a publisher classified as a vanity press sheds light on the challenges and diverse strategies that artists and authors can pursue in today’s publication market. Regardless, the positive response from children she mentions suggests the direct connection her stories can establish with their intended audience.
Future & Outlook – Current Projects, Visions, Plans
Elham Mbeygi pursues concrete plans and visions that suggest a continuous development and expansion of her creative work.
Following the anticipated publication of the second volume of her children’s book “The Little Traveler of The Magic Land” (as of September 2023), she planned to begin working on a new story. Her weekly illustration series “Le dessin de la semaine” for Terhoma represents an ongoing project that documents her current works.
Her artistic visions extend beyond her previous fields of activity. She expresses a desire to collaborate with animation companies for her stories. Similarly, she can envision collaborations with musicians for her (implicitly illustrative) works, as she believes that “the feeling of a picture is enhanced by accompanying music.” These ambitions underscore her interest in interdisciplinary projects and new forms of mediation for her narrative and emotional worlds.
A personal wish is an extended stay in Kyoto, Japan, although she considers the entire Earth her home.
Thematically, it is to be expected that Elham Mbeygi will continue to focus her work on the exploration of emotions, memories, storytelling, and the “quiet” aspects of human experience. Her philosophy that passion, while transforming, never extinguishes (“Passion Never Retires”) suggests that she will continue to seek new forms and means of expression for her artistic visions in the future. Her work will likely continue to be characterized by the endeavor to establish a connection with her audience through subtle and empathetic art.
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