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From charming street corners to horizons stacked with rooftops, artist Elora Pautrat creates windows into dreamy, ethereal worlds. Her portfolio of Japanese cityscapes and interiors depicts quiet corners of life where there are no people, allowing viewers to place them directly in a variety of beautiful, pastel-colored places.
Pautrat traces her love for sceneries to growing up in the French alps, which sparked a passion for capturing places over people and characters. When she discovered ukiyo-e, or Japanese woodblock prints, she resonated with its strong interest in portraying specific locales from new and interesting angles. This inspiration can be seen in Pautrat’s own work in the way she focuses on unexpected small streets, unassuming little shops, and specific features that come with living in urban environments. These illustrations not only shine a light on these sleepy areas but celebrate their beauty.
In addition to the subject matter, Pautrat’s color palette is another important element in her style—using primarily pinks and blues. “A lot of my color palette has its root in color therapy, so there are a lot of pastels, purples, blues. They have a soothing effect on you,” Pautrat explains to My Modern Met. “What started as very personal illustrations and photography work to help me relax and calm my anxiety as a student, became an amazing work and life adventure as soon as I started to share it on social media, and I couldn’t be happier to know that it has the same effect on a lot of people.”
You can purchase prints and merchandise of Pautrat’s work via Society6, and keep up to date with her latest projects by following the artist on Instagram.
Artist Elora Pautrat creates pastel illustrations inspired by ukiyo-e, or Japanese woodblock prints.
Her immersive illustrations depict quiet scenes of everyday life in towns and cities.
Pautrat renders all of her art in a soothing color palette made up of pastel pinks, blues, and purples.
There are no people depicted in these works, so viewers can place themselves directly in Pautrat’s environments.
