Karen Sim
@ksimartist.bsky.social
Creature artist and illustrator from Nanaimo, Canada. Dog-mom to a fur-missile, caffeine-fueled bibliophile, and a Tamer of Squonks!
Open for commissions
Traditional and digital. NoAI (*hisss)
Creator of “Oliver the Squonk”
http://www.karensimart.com
Open for commissions
Traditional and digital. NoAI (*hisss)
Creator of “Oliver the Squonk”
http://www.karensimart.com
It’s my last event of the year- good ol’ Nanaimo ArtWalk! I’ll be haunting the atrium of the Harbourfront Library once again, along with a couple of other fantastic artists, this Saturday and Sunday.
And I have a new illustration from my “Tales From Ænim” to showcase!
And I have a new illustration from my “Tales From Ænim” to showcase!
November 19, 2025 at 1:45 AM
It’s my last event of the year- good ol’ Nanaimo ArtWalk! I’ll be haunting the atrium of the Harbourfront Library once again, along with a couple of other fantastic artists, this Saturday and Sunday.
And I have a new illustration from my “Tales From Ænim” to showcase!
And I have a new illustration from my “Tales From Ænim” to showcase!
Just me again, thriving in a chaos of my own making.
Next and FINAL show of the year is coming up:
Nanaimo’s very own 2025 ArtWalk! I’ll be setting up shop in the Harbourfront Library, so ye all can come find me there and say hello!
Nov 22/23…..
Next and FINAL show of the year is coming up:
Nanaimo’s very own 2025 ArtWalk! I’ll be setting up shop in the Harbourfront Library, so ye all can come find me there and say hello!
Nov 22/23…..
November 11, 2025 at 5:30 AM
Just me again, thriving in a chaos of my own making.
Next and FINAL show of the year is coming up:
Nanaimo’s very own 2025 ArtWalk! I’ll be setting up shop in the Harbourfront Library, so ye all can come find me there and say hello!
Nov 22/23…..
Next and FINAL show of the year is coming up:
Nanaimo’s very own 2025 ArtWalk! I’ll be setting up shop in the Harbourfront Library, so ye all can come find me there and say hello!
Nov 22/23…..
Affogato break for me and my table manager “Ty-Ty”. We got a WHOLE CORNER! Only a couple of hours left at the Haunted Holiday Market- but we’re loving the vibes!
November 1, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Affogato break for me and my table manager “Ty-Ty”. We got a WHOLE CORNER! Only a couple of hours left at the Haunted Holiday Market- but we’re loving the vibes!
Getting my Christmas/Halloween mashup spirit on! Hope you can come say hello!
Wellington Hall, Nanaimo ~~~
Wellington Hall, Nanaimo ~~~
October 31, 2025 at 6:09 PM
Getting my Christmas/Halloween mashup spirit on! Hope you can come say hello!
Wellington Hall, Nanaimo ~~~
Wellington Hall, Nanaimo ~~~
Keep a little “creepy” in your Christmas this year! One day only….
October 27, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Keep a little “creepy” in your Christmas this year! One day only….
Hot on the heels of the Victoria Halloween Markets, comes the Haunted Holiday Market, back on my home turf in Nanaimo!
Hoping to have a couple more “felt mini squonks” along for the ride this time too, so there’s another excuse for you to swing by and say hello! 😉
Hoping to have a couple more “felt mini squonks” along for the ride this time too, so there’s another excuse for you to swing by and say hello! 😉
October 27, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Hot on the heels of the Victoria Halloween Markets, comes the Haunted Holiday Market, back on my home turf in Nanaimo!
Hoping to have a couple more “felt mini squonks” along for the ride this time too, so there’s another excuse for you to swing by and say hello! 😉
Hoping to have a couple more “felt mini squonks” along for the ride this time too, so there’s another excuse for you to swing by and say hello! 😉
All set up in my little nook at the Halloween YYJ show in Victoria! Had a little time yesterday to show Oliver the Squonk around town, between downpours, and sweetened the deal with matcha and ganache.
Today’s day two- last chance to come say hi before we vanish back home….
Today’s day two- last chance to come say hi before we vanish back home….
October 26, 2025 at 3:59 PM
All set up in my little nook at the Halloween YYJ show in Victoria! Had a little time yesterday to show Oliver the Squonk around town, between downpours, and sweetened the deal with matcha and ganache.
Today’s day two- last chance to come say hi before we vanish back home….
Today’s day two- last chance to come say hi before we vanish back home….
Next Halloween show is rolling up! Back to Victoria, BC this weekend for Halloween Market YYJ! @halloweenmarketyyj.bsky.social
Some new merch, some new projects, aaand I’m currently a pain-addled baggie of human soup, so we’ll see how long I last 🫠
Some new merch, some new projects, aaand I’m currently a pain-addled baggie of human soup, so we’ll see how long I last 🫠
October 22, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Next Halloween show is rolling up! Back to Victoria, BC this weekend for Halloween Market YYJ! @halloweenmarketyyj.bsky.social
Some new merch, some new projects, aaand I’m currently a pain-addled baggie of human soup, so we’ll see how long I last 🫠
Some new merch, some new projects, aaand I’m currently a pain-addled baggie of human soup, so we’ll see how long I last 🫠
All set up and ready to rock! This place is already so beautiful, but now we get to ghoul it up!
Bonus! Come down for a sneak peek of the first ever squishy version of Oliver the Squonk! Perhaps even more to come?…. 😉
Bonus! Come down for a sneak peek of the first ever squishy version of Oliver the Squonk! Perhaps even more to come?…. 😉
October 11, 2025 at 7:32 AM
All set up and ready to rock! This place is already so beautiful, but now we get to ghoul it up!
Bonus! Come down for a sneak peek of the first ever squishy version of Oliver the Squonk! Perhaps even more to come?…. 😉
Bonus! Come down for a sneak peek of the first ever squishy version of Oliver the Squonk! Perhaps even more to come?…. 😉
It’s been a crushing last couple of weeks, and I’m now essentially a corpse, animated through the power of coffee, necessity, and spite… BUT! More importantly! I’m back in Victoria for the Crafts from the Crypt Fair!
October 3, 2025 at 7:35 PM
It’s been a crushing last couple of weeks, and I’m now essentially a corpse, animated through the power of coffee, necessity, and spite… BUT! More importantly! I’m back in Victoria for the Crafts from the Crypt Fair!
Some days, it just be like that…
Don’t forget to unplug and go breathe the outside air if ye can 🩵
Don’t forget to unplug and go breathe the outside air if ye can 🩵
September 22, 2025 at 10:57 PM
Some days, it just be like that…
Don’t forget to unplug and go breathe the outside air if ye can 🩵
Don’t forget to unplug and go breathe the outside air if ye can 🩵
Sometimes I like to ramble. And sometimes I decide to actually jot down my thoughts on the questions I keep getting from other artists at shows and workshops.
SO! This one’s for my fair friends who’re looking for good references and inspiration!
https://www.patreon.com/posts/references-aka-138533875
SO! This one’s for my fair friends who’re looking for good references and inspiration!
https://www.patreon.com/posts/references-aka-138533875
September 9, 2025 at 11:08 PM
Sometimes I like to ramble. And sometimes I decide to actually jot down my thoughts on the questions I keep getting from other artists at shows and workshops.
SO! This one’s for my fair friends who’re looking for good references and inspiration!
https://www.patreon.com/posts/references-aka-138533875
SO! This one’s for my fair friends who’re looking for good references and inspiration!
https://www.patreon.com/posts/references-aka-138533875
First event in a couple of months is coming up quickly! I have a couple little newbies being shipped, but the most fun will be playing with my ever changing setup. If you’re in Nanaimo this Saturday, dip in and say hello (and watch the chaos!)…
September 4, 2025 at 2:10 PM
First event in a couple of months is coming up quickly! I have a couple little newbies being shipped, but the most fun will be playing with my ever changing setup. If you’re in Nanaimo this Saturday, dip in and say hello (and watch the chaos!)…
The smoke has finally eased off at least, though the smell lightly lingers… It’s been an awkward last couple of months, but my next show is fast approaching, so I’m pulling things together once more.
August 21, 2025 at 2:16 PM
The smoke has finally eased off at least, though the smell lightly lingers… It’s been an awkward last couple of months, but my next show is fast approaching, so I’m pulling things together once more.
After getting most of my to-do list done today, I realized just how overheated I’d become in the house, and after some relaxing creature-doodling, the house coyote demanded time in the shade, water, wind.
August 13, 2025 at 1:45 AM
After getting most of my to-do list done today, I realized just how overheated I’d become in the house, and after some relaxing creature-doodling, the house coyote demanded time in the shade, water, wind.
Ahh the familiar feeling of needing a pencil extender… Also, why are the “blackest blacks” reserved for paint?
July 10, 2025 at 11:56 PM
Ahh the familiar feeling of needing a pencil extender… Also, why are the “blackest blacks” reserved for paint?
I’ve been wrestling down the roiling anger and frustration by turning my attention more to my community, and to outward environmental stimuli that demonstrate calm, love, and resilience. A perfectly coiling creeping vine in my garden. A wide, calm, and open summer sky. My snoozing house-coyote.
July 6, 2025 at 6:53 AM
I’ve been wrestling down the roiling anger and frustration by turning my attention more to my community, and to outward environmental stimuli that demonstrate calm, love, and resilience. A perfectly coiling creeping vine in my garden. A wide, calm, and open summer sky. My snoozing house-coyote.
The monsters of my world building project “Ænim” don’t just have humans to contend with- there is a healthy population of invasive Earth animals as well, and I’m looking forward to adding their stories to the growing pile for my ongoing collection…
June 23, 2025 at 10:48 PM
The monsters of my world building project “Ænim” don’t just have humans to contend with- there is a healthy population of invasive Earth animals as well, and I’m looking forward to adding their stories to the growing pile for my ongoing collection…
Needed to really dig into something, so I pulled an original creatures sketch scan out of mothballs, and decided to start sketching up a fresher paintover….
June 17, 2025 at 2:52 AM
Needed to really dig into something, so I pulled an original creatures sketch scan out of mothballs, and decided to start sketching up a fresher paintover….
Welph…I decided to dig in and add elements. Because…bonus puppies.
The picking away grinds on…..
The picking away grinds on…..
June 4, 2025 at 4:57 AM
Welph…I decided to dig in and add elements. Because…bonus puppies.
The picking away grinds on…..
The picking away grinds on…..
Managed to sneak off to a fantastic local coffee shop this weekend, and dig into an older sketch I’d left buried in a sketchbook…
June 2, 2025 at 4:47 AM
Managed to sneak off to a fantastic local coffee shop this weekend, and dig into an older sketch I’d left buried in a sketchbook…
Getting my work days sorted out again, mostly by doing several things at once, so that nothing gets truly accomplished in a reasonable amount of time! It’s the ADHD way! 💪🏻☕️☕️⏱️
Cuz the grind don’t stop!*
*If the grind don’t stop for more than 6 days without a finished product, seek professional help*
Cuz the grind don’t stop!*
*If the grind don’t stop for more than 6 days without a finished product, seek professional help*
May 21, 2025 at 11:25 PM
Getting my work days sorted out again, mostly by doing several things at once, so that nothing gets truly accomplished in a reasonable amount of time! It’s the ADHD way! 💪🏻☕️☕️⏱️
Cuz the grind don’t stop!*
*If the grind don’t stop for more than 6 days without a finished product, seek professional help*
Cuz the grind don’t stop!*
*If the grind don’t stop for more than 6 days without a finished product, seek professional help*
Big plans are rolling for my entire display/inventory/everything else… but I’m starting small this week, and brightening up my framed display prints. We’ll see how they look this Saturday!
May 13, 2025 at 8:40 PM
Big plans are rolling for my entire display/inventory/everything else… but I’m starting small this week, and brightening up my framed display prints. We’ll see how they look this Saturday!
Sudden change in plans = I’ll be back out with my creatures in Cedar on the 17th! So from decompression from Curious ComiCon, to back into prep mode- this time, outsiiiiiide! Ooooooo! 😳🫠
But first, some recharge time with my four footed Human Resources manager…..
But first, some recharge time with my four footed Human Resources manager…..
May 7, 2025 at 5:29 PM
Sudden change in plans = I’ll be back out with my creatures in Cedar on the 17th! So from decompression from Curious ComiCon, to back into prep mode- this time, outsiiiiiide! Ooooooo! 😳🫠
But first, some recharge time with my four footed Human Resources manager…..
But first, some recharge time with my four footed Human Resources manager…..