AOI Year in Review: 10 Highlights
Here’s everything we’ve been up to in 2024!
2024 – what a year it’s been! At a very quick glance, we could summarise it in the following stats:
- We responded to and advised on 3,100+ queries and contracts sent by our members
- We welcomed 5500+ attendees across 120+ AOI Events and Meet ups
- 500+ illustrators, agents and colleges joined us as new AOI Members in 2024
- Almost 10,000+ of you listened to our Inside Illustration podcast across all platforms
- 5,000+ entries from 84 countries were entered to the World Illustration Awards
Nevertheless, we want to go beyond numbers and take a deeper look, sharing 10 highlights we are incredibly proud of in 2024.
We hope to continue building on them and provide the best possible support to our illustrious community in the year to come. 2025, here we come!
1. Free Member Events – AOI Discusses
Having originally introduced AOI Discusses as a series of physical panel discussions back in 2016, we brought the format back and re-fitted it to be delivered more widely and accessibly online.
Since kickstarting it on January 2024, we have invited 14 illustrators and creative practitioners to share on different areas of the illustration industry, discussing how they diversify their incomes, apply for funding opportunities, showcase works creatively and much more. The response has been wonderful, and we thank everyone who’s been part of these conversations!
We are planning more AOI Discusses events next year, so stay tuned. These will remain free for AOI Members to attend and catch up on our (new!) Recordings section, with a portion of tickets available to non-members at an accessible price.
2. Expanding our local Meet Ups
How could we leave our Meet up groups out? Every month we love seeing what our hosts are organising for their next community event, always going above and beyond to provide the most relaxing and encouraging spaces for all illustrators to connect with each other. From fun drinks & draws to insightful workshops and discussions, there’s always something for all illustrators to take advantage of.
This year we’ve welcomed new hosts and expanded into more cities across the UK including Brighton, Falmouth, Kent, Newcastle, Plymouth and York. Our first international community also launched last month in Copenhagen, Denmark. Hopefully the first of many!
We can’t wait to see more of you at our fantastic Meet ups next year. Check our Events page for updates. And if you feel 2025 is the year to start a new Illustrators meet up in your area, let’s make it happen!
3. New inclusivity focussed events
2024 saw the growth of two key AOI event series – ‘Drawing Diversely’ and ‘Neurodivergent Narratives’ – which both brought fresh perspectives and broader representation to the illustration community. ‘Drawing Diversely,’ led by AOI Board Director Montana Forbes, emerged as a dynamic platform for illustrators who champion diversity through their boundary-pushing work. The series featured inspiring talks from speakers like Justyna Green, James Childs and Murugiah, each sharing their distinct approaches to inclusive visual communication.
The launch of ‘Neurodivergent Narratives,’ a thoughtfully curated quarterly series led by AOI Board Director Jhinuk Sarkar, proved equally significant. This initiative created an essential space for conversations about neurodiversity in illustration, with talented artists such as Ananya Rao-Middleton and Hayley Wall offering honest insights about their creative journeys and the transformative power of accessing the right support systems. Together, these events demonstrated the vital importance of diverse perspectives in illustration.
4. The 2024 Mentorship Scheme
The AOI Mentorship Scheme celebrated another successful year in 2024, continuing its mission to foster diversity and opportunity in illustration. Now in its fifth year, the scheme matched 21 promising mentees with accomplished industry professionals, forging meaningful connections through focused one-to-one sessions across six months.
This year’s participants showed remarkable growth, developing stronger portfolios, broader professional networks, and greater confidence in pursuing their creative ambitions. We’re grateful to the 2024 mentors for their commitment to nurturing emerging talent within our industry. The scheme’s impact grows year on year, creating pathways for diverse voices and fresh perspectives in illustration.
5. Championing creators through AI Campaigning
2024 marked a pivotal year for the AOI’s advocacy work. We joined forces with organisations across the creative sector to protect creator’s rights in the age of AI.
Our sustained dialogue with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) amplified the voice of the illustration community in key policy discussions.
Through comprehensive responses to government consultations, we made sure that illustrators perspectives feed into the development of AI regulation. Working as part of Creators Rights Alliance, the European Illustration Forum and Creative Rights In AI Coalition, we’ve championed a crucial message: the creative industries are not just cultural assets but significant economic contributors that deserve protection and support alongside the growth of the tech sector.
6. New Inside Illustration seasons
Inside Illustration has continued expanding this year, adding two new seasons to its library of informative and practical content: Illustration for Publishing (Book Covers) and Fashion Illustration.
Each season has provided us with opportunities to learn more about these fantastic sectors in the illustration industry, reaching out to specialist illustrators to share their insights and expertise with the AOI community. Our Creative Practice Course remains a popular initiative, with members taking advantage of live briefs to create new commissioner-focused works and expanding their commercial portfolios; but it doesn’t stop there! Our articles, How-To guides and Podcast continue to receive much love, and are permanently available for AOI Members to discover and revisit.
We really want to thank all our guests, contributors and freelancers for helping us infuse each season with so much passion and inspiration for all to enjoy. All seasons of Inside Illustration can be explored here, and our next instalment will arrive in Spring 2025.
7. Launching our updated website
In October 2024 we proudly re-launched the AOI website under a brand new skin, optimising its navigation and accessibility to achieve an improved web user experience.
Our new design puts AOI Members at the centre stage, featuring our community daily through our Homepage and Folios. Not only that, we took this opportunity to commission a brand new animation which encapsulates and communicates our mission (wonderfully done by Kezia Gabriella and Plastic Horse).
We worked incredibly hard to review, refine, edit and polish each area of our extensive website, and we are so proud of the final result! This project wouldn’t have been possible without the input and support of AOI Staff and Board, Deckchair UX, Brand Warrior, tlc holdings, and (of course!) our fantastic AOI Members. We wholeheartedly thank you all for helping us deliver (quite literally) the best version of ourselves this year.
8. New in-depth Animation Resources
Just as the AOI evolves, the illustration industry continues to also grow and reach new heights. With an increasing number of illustrators venturing into animation (and vice versa) we recognise the hybrid nature of both disciplines and the ways our industries compliment and crossover with each other.
Wishing to support our Members every step of the way, this year we commissioned new Animation Resources highlighting key considerations when creating new animated commissions or illustrated assets intended for animation. They include step by step processes, types of animated commissions, how to work with an animator and much more. We again thank contributing agencies and AOI Board Members for providing their expertise in this brand new category.
We have even more resources coming very soon, so watch this space!
9. Publishing our 2024 Pricing Survey
In December, we published the results of our 2024 Pricing Survey, a comprehensive market research study conducted in partnership with Kudos Market Research Agency. Drawing insights from 25 leading UK illustration agencies, this study covers various areas of industry, including publishing, editorial, advertising, products and packaging.
This resource reflects our commitment to supporting AOI members with market knowledge, while respecting each illustrator’s right to determine their own rates. We extend our gratitude to the participating agencies for their contributions to this initiative.
The full results, now available on the AOI resources page, serve as a vital tool for members navigating pricing in today’s dynamic illustration market.
10. The World Illustration Awards 2024 (and 2025!)
The World Illustration Awards reached new heights in 2024, culminating in an inspiring showcase of global creative talent. The programme celebrated 500 longlisted entries and culminated in an annual awards ceremony recognising exceptional projects across publishing, editorial, site-specific, advertising, animation, and more. Kayla Salim emerged as the New Talent Overall Winner award, while Mark Smith secured the Professional Overall Winner title.
As we close this remarkable year, we’re thrilled to announce the opening of our 2025 Call for Entries — a milestone 10th anniversary edition of our awards programme. To mark this occasion, we’ve launched our new website worldillustrationawards.com. The early bird deadline is set for 7th January 2025, and we eagerly anticipate another year of celebrating creative excellence within the illustration community.
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