Looking for some inspiration? We’ve put together a list of some our favourite illustrators for you to check out!
1. Esra Roise
Norwegian illustrator Esra Røise works mainly with pencils, watercolours and ink on paper. She says she enjoys the juxtaposition of analogue and digital combined saying that although she tries to always maintain an analogue starting point, most of her works are a combination of the two. Esra is inspired by seemingly trivial everyday situations, as well as by the spontaneity, poor cropping, and unusual angles often seen in snapshot photographs. Røise’s growing list of clients include Vogue China, Nylon, Wallpaper*, Levi’s, Nike, and Glamour, to name a few. Needless to say, she is very talented at perfectly using shadow and light to fully model her figures.
2. Dr. Lukas Brezak
Dr. Lukas Brezak is a renowned artist, illustrator and a graphic designer from the Czech Republic. Each and every image created by Dr. Brezak is unique. The breathtaking use of color, light and shades and forms creates a unique world of graphic world which is so very different from the world we know around us. When we think about the art of Lukas Brezak, the first thing that comes in our minds is the unthinkable cocktail of reality and fantasy in his quirky form of art.
3. Mark Powell
London-based Mark Powell uses nothing but a simple Bic Biro ballpoint pen to create incredibly detailed portraits of the elderly. His chosen canvases are antique documents dating from 1763 onwards. His aim is to portray what can be produced with the most basic tool whilst creating a relationship between the canvas and image.
4. Conrad Roset
With minimal lines and well-placed spots of dripping color, Conrad Roset’s vivid illustrations of naked, languid women simply oozes the slippery and carnal essence of sex. Conrad has previously stated that, ‘I search for the beauty the body exudes. I like drawing the female figure.’ One of Roset’s most widely recognised collections is Muses, which highlights his fascination and love for the female figure.
5. eboy
Undisputed sovereigns of pixel art, The graphic collective Eboy has developed throughout the years a sophisticated artwork where you can see rampaging robots climbing big buildings next to tanned bikini girls, all of it in a complex and fun looking 3D world.
6. Ruben Ireland
London-based Ruben Ireland produces images that are haunting and omber, with faces and bodies that at first glance seem normal but upon closer inspection reveal themselves to be altogether out of harmony with the standard proportions of a Human figure.
7. Andreas Englund
In his ongoing series of photorealistic oil paintings called the Aging Superhero, Swedish artist Andreas Englund takes us into the humorous life of an anonymous superhero who has probably seen better days. Though he still puts up a tough fight, the wear and tear of battling crime has taken its toll on this elderly action figure.
8. The White Deer
Peony Yip, who works under the pseudonym “The White Deer”, creates minimalist portraits rendered in pencil and superimposed with nature, insects or animals are fresh and full of energy. Her illustrations captivate delicate simplicity, technique and colour.
9. Sasha Unisex
Sasha Unisex is a tattoo artist from St. Petersburg, Russia. Her tattoo work is amazing in the way that it all looks as if it were painted on with watercolors, watercolour being the main medium used in her illustrations. Unisex is clearly inspired by nature but she manages to put her own spin on the animals and plants that she tattoos by using unconventional colours and often doing other designs within the silhouette of a design.
10. Eduardo Recife
Eduardo Recife is an artist, illustrator, graphic designer, typographer and creator of Misprinted Type, a website featuring his personal works, collages, drawings, and typefaces. His work is characterized for its old era style. Eduardo reuses worn out objects, faded photos, and misplaced and broken stuff.