Australian Illustrator Binny Talib on the Award Winning Jungle Song, IFC Mall Installations and Jasper

Binny Talib is the renowned Australian Illustrator behind this exclusive design- "Jungle Song". She brought our concept to life with a vibrant jungle scene, including birds of paradise flowers and various plants in contrasting colours. Binny won an Honorable Mention in the New York 3 x 3 Contemporary Illustration Awards for this textile design and we're so fortunate to have it exclusively for Indie Boho!

Here we interview Binny about children’s books, IFC mall installations in Hong Kong, her border collie that knew 100 words and Jasper her cat!

Indie Boho – How long have you been illustrating for?

Binny – I have been drawing since I was a child, I studied illustration at university and have been illustrating for 15 years.

Do you do any other kind of work in the creative field?

Yes I am also a designer, I create wallpaper, branding, print packaging and book design. When I was in Hong Kong I was also doing some 3D insulation event design.

What is your favourite medium to illustrate with?

I love pencils, pen and ink, and now I do a lot of work digitally with a cintiq. I love the iPad Pro and Apple Pencil too.

What are your best-known illustration jobs or ones you are the most proud of?

I did a cute baby range for Bonds. My children’s books, in particular my book, Origami Heart was published here and Europe. My Hong Kong job for Orient Unlimited for the famous IFC mall brought my illustrations to life in a giant Christmas installation!

I have illustrated many children books by other authors, when I wrote and illustrated my first one, "Origami Heart" was a break through moment for me. Writing the story as well allowed me to really feel and go deeper with the characters I created.

What do you love about living and working in Australia and how would you compare it to working in Hong Kong? 

I recently returned from a few years living in Hong Kong. It's such a fast-paced city a diverse range of work which made it a fantastic place to design and illustrate. There was always an art opening and events to attend in this city that never sleeps. The international community there sees lots of different styles blending, particularly in the detail and hospitality areas. But Hong Kong had me working in a tiny desk space and although I loved my studios there, Sydney allows greater space, fresh air and blue skies! Now that I’m back in Sydney, I love recharging at the beach after an assignment or lying in the park. I will never take our beautiful city for granted again.

Do you have any observations about the creative talents coming from Australia?

I think the illustration industry area is Australia is coming into its own. There is so much amazing young talent and the internet is allowing us to work globally. I think the distance we had from the world used to mean you had to work locally, now there is a whole world ready to hire you.

What inspires you in your work? 

I am inspired by travel, my creative family, art galleries, interesting films, Pinterest, books, the internet, nature and of course by my pets!

Binny on her own pets:

I grew up on a farm so have largely been a dog person, my best dog ever was a gorgeous border collie called Charlie, so clever, she actually knew 100 words! I once had a very naughty labradoodle who ate literally everything not under lock and key, she was very naughty and ate whole cakes ready to take to an event, or all the food ready for a dinner party.

I now live in inner city Sydney so I have a splendid RSPCA rescue cat called Jasper, he is a complete gentleman. He even curls up with my kids if they ever cry to comfort them!

See more of Binny's work here.

Binny’s exclusive illustration for Indie Boho is called Jungle Song and is available in M/L/XL as a Regular Bed and as an Eco Bed.