Nayia Balatsou is a multidisciplinary artist working across illustration and graphic design. She holds a First Class Honours degree in Illustration from the University of Wolverhampton and has worked across publishing, editorial, branding, and collaborative exhibitions. Her illustration style merges traditional and digital media, often combining gouache, collage, and pastels with digital composition to create vibrant, textured visuals with narrative depth. Alongside her freelance illustration work, Nayia has worked in-house as a designer at a graphic design studio based in Greece, and collaborates on branding and social media campaigns. She also takes on freelance design commissions for print and digital platforms. Some of her clients include LUSH Cosmetics & Sea-Watch, The British Art Show 9, Mander Centre in Wolverhampton and Woop-Woop Magazine. Finally, Nayia has been longlisted for the AOI World Illustration Awards 2022 for New Talent in the Site Specific Category.

Nayia Balatsou

Twine

Nayia Balatsou is a multidisciplinary artist working across illustration and graphic design. She holds a First Class Honours degree in Illustration from the University of Wolverhampton and has worked across publishing, editorial, branding, and collaborative exhibitions. Her illustration style merges traditional and digital media, often combining gouache, collage, and pastels with digital composition to create vibrant, textured visuals with narrative depth. Alongside her freelance illustration work, Nayia has worked in-house as a designer at a graphic design studio based in Greece, and collaborates on branding and social media campaigns. She also takes on freelance design commissions for print and digital platforms. Some of her clients include LUSH Cosmetics & Sea-Watch, The British Art Show 9, Mander Centre in Wolverhampton and Woop-Woop Magazine. Finally, Nayia has been longlisted for the AOI World Illustration Awards 2022 for New Talent in the Site Specific Category.

Available to hire

Nayia Balatsou is a multidisciplinary artist working across illustration and graphic design. She holds a First Class Honours degree in Illustration from the University of Wolverhampton and has worked across publishing, editorial, branding, and collaborative exhibitions.

Her illustration style merges traditional and digital media, often combining gouache, collage, and pastels with digital composition to create vibrant, textured visuals with narrative depth.

Alongside her freelance illustration work, Nayia has worked in-house as a designer at a graphic design studio based in Greece, and collaborates on branding and social media campaigns. She also takes on freelance design commissions for print and digital platforms.

Some of her clients include LUSH Cosmetics & Sea-Watch, The British Art Show 9, Mander Centre in Wolverhampton and Woop-Woop Magazine.

Finally, Nayia has been longlisted for the AOI World Illustration Awards 2022 for New Talent in the Site Specific Category.

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Language

English
Fluent
Greek, Modern
Fluent
Korean
Intermediate

Work Experience

Freelance Illustrator at LUSH Cosmetics x Sea-Watch
November 20, 2025 - February 20, 2026
As an illustrator for Lush’s campaign in collaboration with Sea-Watch, I developed the visual assets for the window installations and printed leaflets for multiple countries across Europe. The campaign supports Sea-Watch’s mission to carry out civilian search-and-rescue operations in the Mediterranean and raise awareness around migrant rights . The illustrations translated complex humanitarian themes into an accessible and emotive visual language, aiming to engage the public and transform retail space into a platform for awareness and action.

Education

BA Hons Illustration at University of Wolverhampton
September 23, 2019 - July 11, 2022

Qualifications

BA (Hons) Illustration
September 23, 2019 - July 31, 2022
CBTS RAD RDT
October 3, 2022 - September 26, 2024

Industry Experience

Professional Services, Education, Media & Entertainment
    The letters project
    A series of letters in collaboration with Rachel Thomas for the Wolverhampton Art Gallery, 2022. illustrator designer
    The letters project
    A series of letters in collaboration with Rachel Thomas for the Wolverhampton Art Gallery, 2022. illustrator designer
    The letters project
    A series of letters in collaboration with Rachel Thomas for the Wolverhampton Art Gallery, 2022. illustrator designer
    The letters Project
    A series of letters in collaboration with Rachel Thomas for the Wolverhampton Art Gallery, 2022. illustrator designer
    A sense of place 2
    2nd Editorial Illustration for a food and travel magazine. illustrator designer
    You make me bloom
    You make me bloom series, Digital, Self-Initiated, embracing the power of love, 2022. illustrator designer
    People 2
    Embracing Wolverhampton Character Generation proposal for BID, Wolverhampton, Digital, 2022 graphicdesigner illustrator branding designer
    People
    Embracing Wolverhampton Character Generation proposal for BID, Wolverhampton, Digital, 2022 branding graphicdesigner illustrator designer
    The house
    illustrator House illustration series