About
Hello there! I'm Sara Nylund, an archaeologist and illustrator. I am passionate about illustration and graphics design! I focus on art, heritage, and culture, and I've been doing this for over two decades. I've had the pleasure of collaborating with some of the biggest names in the industry, including the National Museum of Ireland and University College Dublin. My latest projects have been about creating community outreach graphics, like info panels, booklets, and reports. I studied Archaeology, Museology & Art History at Umea University in Sweden and got my MA in the Archaeology of Art & Architecture from UCD. Let's create something amazing together!
Select publications and presentations
Select Publications
Nylund, S & Gardner, E 2019 Archaeological Illustrators - Hidden in plain site. “Now and Again: Current and Recurring Issues Facing Irish Archaeologists” proceedings of the IAI Spring Conference 2019 (forthcoming).
Bolger, T 2017 “Colonising a Royal Landscape. The history and archaeology of a medieval village at Mullamast, Co. Kildare”. TII Heritage 6. Transport Infrastructure Ireland, Dublin. (Archaeological illustrations)
Hughes, S 2015 “Illustrating the Past: archaeological discoveries on Irish road schemes” Wordwell, Dublin. (Reconstructions and illustrations)
Bolger, T, Jones, M, MacDomhnaill, D, Moloney, C & Timpany, S 2015 Through the Lands of the Auteri and St Jarlath: The Archaeology of the M17 Galway to Tuam and N17 Tuam Bypass Schemes. NRA Scheme Monograph 17. National Roads Authority, Dublin. (Illustrations)
Bolger, T, Moloney, C & Shiels, D 2015 A journey along the Carlow Corridor. The archaeology of the M9 Carlow Bypass. NRA Scheme Monograph 16. National Roads Authority, Dublin. (Illustrations)
Nylund S, 2009 ‘Artist or Specialist? Illustrating Archaeological Objects’ in Archaeology Ireland Summer 2009, Dublin.
Nylund S, 2008 The Landscape of Mottes in Co. Louth: Topography, Location and Function in “Young Irish Archaeologist Annual Conference proceedings 2007”. Dublin
Eogan J & Twohig E (eds), 2011 ‘Cois tSiúire – nine thousand years of human activity in the Lower Suir valley. Vol 1’ NRA scheme monographs 8. National Roads Authority Dublin. (Archaeological Illustrations)
O’Connell TJ, 2010 ‘Early hunter-gatherers by the Shannon’ in Seanda 2010 issue 5, NRA archaeological magazine. (Illustration and photography)
Shiels D, 2009 ‘Identifying and Interpreting Ireland’s Post Medieval Conflict Archaeology’ for the Journal of Irish Archaeology Vol. XVII, 2008 (Graphics)
Hegarty L, 2008 ‘ Archaeological and Paleoenvironmental Investigations in the Townlands of Shanacoole and Pilltown, Kinsalebeg, Co. Waterford’, in Deices. (Archaeological Illustration)
Doyle T, 2008 ‘Hair of the dog’, in Seanda 2008 issue 3, NRA archaeological magazine. (Archaeological reconstruction)
O’Keeffe P & Shiels D, 2008 ‘A More Miserable Siege Hath Not Been Seen: Rediscovering the Siege of Kinsale’ in Archaeology Ireland (Graphics)
Shiels D, 2008 ‘Dún An Óir 1580: The Potential for intact Siege Archaeology’ in Journal of the Kerry Archaeological and Historical Society (Archaeological graphics)
Tourunen A, 2008. ‘Cattle in medieval and post-medieval Turku’, in AMAF. Finland (Archaeological graphics)
Select Presentations
Gardner E, Nylund S, 2019 “Archaeological Illustrators - Hidden in plain site”IAI Spring Conference - Now and Again: Current and Recurring Issues Facing Irish Archaeologists. Cork
Nylund S, 2008 “Drawing with stylus and screen” – Finds illustration in the digital age. IAI autumn conference 2008 New horizons: Advances in technical methods in archaeology. Sligo
Nylund S, 2008 Illustrating Conflict archaeology in Ireland – Two case studies. Association of Illustrators and surveyors annual conference 2008. Cork
Nylund S, 2008 Illustrating Conflict archaeology in Ireland. WAC-6 congress, Changing identities, exploring the materiality of conflict. Dublin
Nylund S, 2008 “He built a motte in order to harass his enemies”: Anglo-Norman strategy and mottes in Ireland. WAC-6 congress, Medieval materializations II. Dublin
Nylund S, 2008 “He built a motte in order to harass his enemies”: Anglo-Norman strategy and mottes in Ireland. Medieval Identities, Borderline Conference. Cork
Nylund S, 2007 The Landscape of Mottes in Co. Louth: Topography, Location and Function’ in Young Irish Archaeologist Annual Conference. Dublin
Long P, 2008 ‘A dynamic landscape: the discovery of an extensive cultural landscape focused on the River Lerr, Co. Kildare’ IAI Spring Conference - Landscapes of Ireland Past: Discovery, Knowledge and Management, Belfast
Exhibitions, panels and Tv-programmes
2019 Medal of Honor exhibition - Design and layout displayed at Irish Veterans Museum, Kinsale Co.Cork, Iowa Irish Fest and Grout Museum Iowa, Epic, Co. Dublin.
 "Lovers of Valdaro"My take on the Lovers of Valdaro. are a pair of human skeletons dated as approximately 6,000 years old. They were discovered in a Neolithic tomb in San Giorgio near Mantua, Italy, in 2007 |  WW1 HorsesArtistic impression of the experience of WW1 horses, original produced for ‘Ever and Always: The Marvellous Story of Aleen Cust – Britain And Ireland’s First Female Vet’, a bilingual Primary School workbook publication. |  Lewis chessmen the KingArchaeological illustration of one of the Lewis Chessmen pieces |
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 Dublin Monumental Mountains timelineTimeline produced on behalf of Abarta Heritage for the Report "Dublin Monumental Mountains" |  Dublin Monumental Mountains Viking Village and typesettingIllustration of a Viking village and sample of typesetting |  Brunt mound activityDescribe your image |