Annika Leese

One line, plenty of space, nothing superfluous: Annika Leese reduces her graphics to such an extent that only the essentials remain — a tuft of grass, hanging wisteria, a horizon — paths to abstraction.
She uses ink, coffee, and graphite sparingly and precisely, often directly in front of the subject. Many works are created while traveling—most recently on a year-long journey through Europe (2023/24), during which she drew an unbroken horizon line all the way to the Black Sea.
Born in Duisburg in 1970, the artist studied art history and fine art in Marburg; this dual perspective shapes her work. She was a lecturer in drawing at the Alanus University of Arts and Social Sciences near Bonn and works as an illustrator, including for the Federal Agency for Civic Education and the children's television program "Die Sendung mit der Maus" (The Show with the Mouse).
In 2025, she exhibited her travel drawings in the exhibition "HORIZONS" at the Burgbrohl Art Pavilion; further works were shown at the Bonn Art Museum. Her drawings bring tranquility to a room without being static.