Mateusz has a playful feel to his illustrations but maintains an edge on his work through the subject matter. I like both the bright colors and the softer color sets which where used for the Coco Rosie pieces. I’m particularly fond of Tokyo Rain and Yakuza – almost ended up buying one of these pieces!

I hope you enjoy his illustrations as much as I have!

His work is lucid and technically brilliant. I have selected 3 of Nigel Cox’s art works and you may see the rest on his site.

Xabier Collette has a brilliant imagination especially when it comes to fantasy and creating magical worlds. I love his take on Alice in Wonderland and his other mystical creatures! Enjoy!

ultraelectrical phenomenon

Based in New York Tomer Hanuka is an illustrator and a cartoonist. He works on a range of projects for magazines, book publishers, ad agencies and film studios. In 2008 he won the British Desgin Museum award as part of the Penguin Classics Deluxe Editions. Currently he teaches at the School of Visual Arts and is working on a graphic novel with his twin brother Asaf.

On his blog he shows his illustration process from sketch to final artwork: www.tropicaltoxic.blogspot.com. Find below a selection of his work:

Every now and then there is an illustrator that blows you away and for me Sam Weber is one of those. We have posted Sam Weber before a long time ago – middle of last year. His new work is fantastic. I find them deeply physiological which make his illustrations absolutely captivating. Definatly worth adding to our Illustration Blog.

He has done a wide range of editorial as well as book illustrations. He was born in Alaska but has since moved to New York and lives there with his wife.

I hope you enjoy this selection:

She was born with a twin sister in Ávila and after spending a few years in Edinburgh she went back to Spain to study illustration.  Raquel also attended one year at the illustration Academy in Florida.

Enjoy her beatiful illustrations:

Julie Morstad’s work can be thought provoking, whimsical, fun and even psychological.  Simple lines, delicate depths and a great mix of colors make Julie’s illustrations all in all delightful, even charming. I would love to get my hands on one of her prints.

I hope you appreciate these lovely illustrations as much as we did:

Alexandra and Sascha

Brian M. Viveros illustrations are sexy, provocative and dark.  The below illustrations are Brian’s trademark: Sexy, dark, feminine yet strong women who have a cigarette in the corner of their mouth. Despite the seemingly macabre air and batted state of the women their expressions are filled with lust and sovereignty. The overall effect is sexy and powerful. (ps: Compared to some of his other work this selection is less hardcore.)

On my way to work this morning, at around 8, I came across Nathan Bowen who had been illustrating for at least 1 hour. Now that’s dedication for you! As per Eddy’s comment Nathan has got work dotted around london incl Brick Lane.

In this instance had painted the strips white and then created the set of super urban characters you see below. He said his motivation was simply to make the temporary building wall more attractive. I thought it was great.  (He would pop by here later this week).

Working from Florida Dan May creates timeless worlds of silence occupied by haunting yet whimsical creatures. Although deeply sad and  eerie, May’s creatures draw the viewer towards them with their friendly disposition.

This last weekend I had the pleasure of visiting Norway – it was a short but sweet trip. We spent our time in the small town of Tofte in a comfortable wooden cabin. Our cabin was neatly placed right next to the Oslo Fijord with an awesome view over the water. Just on sunday I was running through a quite forest which was followed by a lengthily swim in the sea. I could have easily spent couple months there just relaxing and taking my time about my daily sustenance!

I had the time to look through some illustrations and stumbled upon Theodor Ketlesen (April 27, 1857 – January 21, 1914) who is one of the most famous artist in Norway. He was famous for his nature paintings but also for his illustrations of fairy tales, legends and trolls.

Below are some of Theodor Ketlesen illustrations:

S

The author of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Hunter S. Thompson, gave birth to Gonzo journalism which is a type of ‘fictional’ journalism. It often includes the reporter in the story and is in the first person. By blending fiction and fact the journalist is able to engage the reader whiles expressing certain facts about a situation. Gonzo journalism tends to favor style over accuracy and often uses personal experiences and emotions to provide context for the topic.

Hunter S. Thomas was good friends with a british artist called Ralph Steadman who provided visual representaiton for Gonzo journalism.  Ralph Steadman has won multiple awards and is renowned for his political illustrations, social caricatures, cartoons and also for illustrating a number of picture books.

Below is a collection of Ralph Steadman illustrations:

Hunter S. Thompson with Ralph Steadman Illustrations: A good collection of Hunter’s life

Psychedelic candy-coated colour madness- fun fun fun I say!
Japanese artist d’Holbachie Yoko is a master at creating rich, multicoloured and stimulating worlds populated by decorative, playful, cute and yet mysterious and manic creatures. With these digital artworks, Yoko manages to use colour intensely, rousing the eye of the viewer without overdoing the viewers experience.

And her whimsical creatures?
d’Holbachie Yoko expresses her work as follows: “Animals, insects, fish, and toys… These things used to be close to me when I was a child. I like to take these in my design. Maybe it is because my childhood memory is vivid, or I am still childish. I love long tentacle-like shapes with stripes or dappled patterns, such as octopus tentacles. They look as if they are presenting something gently, or as if they are looking for something.”

Enjoy the journey into one bold, playful universe of colour.

Blogging in a sense is more about exploration then it is about purveying what you already know. It ebbs me on to find new things and what I find I share and then in turn people share their ideas and knowledge about that topic. A similar thing is happening with our Facebook Group, which has been growing steadily. People are actively discussing/sharing their favourite illustrators and artists.

Ok so yes this is how I found Utagawa Kuniyoshi. He was one of the last great masters of the Japanese ukiyo-e style of woodblock prints. I am aware of Katsushika Hokusai and I have posted about him. What is interesting about Utagawa Kuniyoshi is that I think that there is a correlation to the well known contemporary illustrator James Jean - (note the previous post). 

Here are some of Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s art works:

I thoroughly enjoy the way James Jean takes different organic, physiological, social and emotional elements and with his brilliant imagination mashes them into this wonderful art work. Death defeating life and life defeating death. Social messages illustrated with savvy depth. Ignorant evil. Depicting our struggle through clever metaphors.

You have probably seen some of James Jean’s illustrations if so it’s always worth another look as there are many layers to his art. If you haven’t heard of James Jean you are in for a treat!