Introduction
My name is Miroslav Jesensky I’m originally from a small town Kysucké Nové Mesto in Slovakia and I settled in London 15 years ago. When I landed in Walthamstow I had hopes and dreams of becoming a photographer and one of my earliest inspiration was my father who was forever taking pictures of my brothers and me on our many trips to the forest and mountain hikes. So it was natural for me to follow in his footsteps and I started to take on small projects from food to furniture photography while waiting for my big break.
After becoming married and having a family the photography took a back seat as I worked hard raising my family. But I still had the urge to do something more creative, my new venture started when I noticed that my 8-year old daughter was a natural artist and I would sit and draw with her. I found myself experimenting with many mediums and techniques that is when I fell upon the art form of stippling.
Influenced by childhood adventures in the forests of Slovakia and early exposure to black and white photography I create monochrome illustrations showcasing beautiful landscapes. I think, deep inside I miss the times spent out in the hills and mountains back home, so I find this style as a way, I can return and relive it again. With every piece I create, I want people to be drawn in and feel the nature of how I remember it.
When I started to draw I was wondering if I should use my real name or an artist name. After some thinking, I come up with Libra Mons. The first word Libra is pretty straight forward that’s my star sign and the second word Mons is Latin for the mountain.
It didn’t take long to find my style. Being a true Libran I have always been a stickler for paying attention to detail and that’s why stippling came to me naturally.
People always ask me how long does it take to create one piece. It all depends on the complexity of the art and on how much time I can find to work on it. So it can take from under an hour to several hours or days. I usually don’t rush it because even if the art is finished I leave it till the next day to have a look at it again and more often I spend more time doing final touches.
With the encouragement from my wife and daughter, I took the plunge and set up an Instagram account to showcase my artwork that is where Libra Mons was born in the October of 2019 and since then the response to my work has been amazing. And I am so grateful to be on this journey of learning and exploring the whole process, as well as being part of an inspiring artist community all over the world.
I am conscious when it comes to the environment hence why all my art is drawn and printed on 100% recycled paper with fineliner pens containing archival ink. Even shipping materials like envelopes, wrapping paper or clear sleeves are made of biodegradable materials. All stippling is done with a 005 size pen which is only 0.2mm. So you can imagine it can be a very time-consuming process to create one artwork.
I find inspiration in all aspects of life, it can be as simple as just walking down the street and suddenly an idea pops into my head or I can be watching a movie with my family and suddenly I know what I want to draw. There is many inspirational artists out there like a French Neo-Impressionist painter Paul Signac, world-famous tattooist Dr Woo or many artists from online communities.
My most favourite artwork I have done so far is a piece called “The Dreamers” which illustrates two people standing, observing the night sky. One of the silhouettes in this drawing is of me a few years back in Slovakia.
I’m looking forward to collaborations with other artists, challenging projects and possible new forms of art in the future.
