This was the #1 pick among all of the judges in the New Talent category, without debate. As a collection of nostalgic illustrations, these pieces of artwork evoke a bold and vibrant design style that truly demonstrate the unspoken satisfaction of eating at Master Bao’s. No words are required to complement these pieces, as the exhilarating expressions on each of the character’s faces fully convey everything that anyone needs to know about the overall flavour experience. We love the inspiration the artist drew from classic ‘80s and ‘90s cartoon styles, and they’ve perfectly captured the beautiful imperfections and grittiness that this era of illustration is known for. Out of all of the submissions in this year’s competition, Master Bao’s was by far the easiest to declare as the overall winner.
Anna Loveland – Mid Weight Art Director at TBWA MCR
New Talent Animation – Category Winner& SAA Cross Category Award Winner
Absolutely love this! Totally novel and charming use the format, and really creates a sensory experience of being on the Tube. Work wonderfully as illustration, animation, and cinema. I love the sound design. This is the winner for me.
Josh O Neil – Publisher / Editor, Beehive Books USA
New Talent Children’s Publishing – Category Winner
We asked Strawberrie Donelly, Art Director at Bloomsbury Children’s Books for their thoughts on these gripping cover designs for Lizzy Metcalf’s project:
I loved the friendliness and sense of character in these pieces; the sense of love which has gone into making these small stories and imaginings simply shines through. They have a wistful but wonderful quality, and the small animated parts really help to bring an extra sense of special energy to the pieces. Some lovely, clever detailing in the palette, and strong sense of personality and interaction between the main character and golden cat. A charming and evocative entry!
New Talent Design, Product and Packaging – Category Winner
They are just so eye-catching, tactile and appealing. The spare, graphic style is perfect for these multi-layered sequences-within-a-sequence, and the artist has cleverly composed each card with balance, fluidity and some unexpected choices – all within a very limited space. There is great thought in each composition — the four pieces each telling their own small stories, whilst still working superbly well as a four-part whole. Using limited palettes, special inks and the letterpress production further elevates this entry beyond ordinary postcards to a creative, covetable collection. Superbly done.
Strawberrie Donnelly, Art Director at Bloomsbury Children’s Books
Editorially wise, it fits the brief really well. I think the illustration shows a strong technique and an interesting style, appealing to the popular Manga art followers, but it also is a unique way to show the subject (Asian Games 2023) without being an obvious ‘sportsperson’ style of illustration and has great movement and interest.
Kelley Sheenan – Founder, Editor-in-Chief and Designer of Peppermint
The illustrator has developed an entire world for viewers to immerse themselves in. Their style and technique blends multiple different references in an original way, and the details within each illustration work together to convey the sense of a complete world whose characters you want to get to know. It’s quite rare to see this level of authorial style in an entry level illustrator and I think that’s worth celebrating.
Anna Ridley – Head of Children’s Publishing, Thames & Hudson
Very sophisticated work for a student. Thoughtfully resolved and designed to a professional standard, including use of scale variation (dynamic change) across single pages, covers and double page spreads, extended/inventive use of two colours.
Jenny Grigg – Senior Lecturer, Communication Design, School of Design, RMIT University Melbourne
What I especially enjoyed in this image is the strong composition and style. The composition feels dynamic, almost as if the fishes are in motion. The analog feel of watercolour, though digitally created, enhances the retro-futuristic style, both of which contribute to the artist’s concept. This visual also prompts us to consider our use of technology and how we dispose of old equipment, which often ends up in the seas, affecting marine ecosystems.
Engaging idea with a successful balance between form and function. Strong vibrant pallet and well executed use of space particularly on the car park wall. I love that the bare wall has been incorporated into the first design.
Neequaye Dreph – Visual artist and Educator
A big thanks to our judges for sharing their thoughts. You can explore the full WIA2024 Winner Showcase here.
