The Australian-based team at World Illustration Awards 2020 Editorial Category sponsors Procreate have curated their highlights of entries from across the whole shortlist that uses their software to create the work.
The diversity and range of digital work is exciting, and Procreate helps illustrators to bring their ideas to life quickly.
“Illustration is all about bringing the theme of a story to life in a visually exciting way. Artists need to interpret a story and develop their pieces, often under strict deadlines. Procreate admires and appreciates all artists producing sharp, insightful work on the run.” – Procreate Team
The energy and vibrancy of the initial ideas really shine though in these pieces. Everything from shape, composition and color are beautifully balanced and crafted. You can tell Yiffy has worked quickly, but very deliberately.
Procreate team
Yiffy Gu is an illustrator who is initially from China and now based on the United States. She graduated with Bachelor’s degrees of illustration from Columbus College of Art & Design in 2019. Yiffy is represented by Anna Goodson agency.
Trang’s clever use of natural colors and astute brush choice gives these pieces a very organic feel. The wonderfully naive style combined with the classical composition means most people would struggle to identify these as digital art pieces.
Procreate team
Trang Pham focuses on bringing original perspectives and interpretations of the subject matter in her illustration. Her artistic style, is characterised by a soft quality and fun textures and patterns.
Strong geometrical shapes and palette make this classic editorial illustration style sing, but it’s the clever use of animation that helps take it to another level.
Procreate team
Simone Virgini is a freelance illustrator who has been living between Italy and Spain since 2014. Today, he works as an editorial illustrator for magazines, including Plansponsor, Planadviser, Graffica, and El Pais Retina.
The keen sense of light and shade give these illustrations a tense almost sci-fi feeling. Working back into the photography gives these pieces an extremely stylized and stylish hyperrealistic sensibility.
Procreate team
Mal is a California born, New York City based fashion illustrator with a focus on menswear. A Parsons School for Design graduate, holding a BFA degree in Fashion Design, Mal has previously worked in the fashion industry. From this past experience, Mal uses her expertise to create hyperrealistic depictions of runway looks, without the wearer being depicted.
The strong reds and blacks combined with the simple, clean lines and composition give these an almost traditional Chinese feel. There is a great sense of narrative thought and the palette and brush work could easily be mistaken for pigment on paper.
Procreate team
Grace is an illustrator based in South East London, she recently graduated with a degree in illustration from Arts University Bournemouth, where she lived for four years. Since then she has moved back to London to pursue her illustration career. Grace is represented by Illustration X Agency.
The perspective in these is so sharp it is hard to believe they started out as pencil. The palette choice and coloring helps add a dreamlike quality to the subtle surrealist execution. There is clever visual story-telling in all of these pieces.
Procreate team
Dion MBD works primarily on books, editorials, and tv commercial projects. He enjoys clouds, the park, and observing everything else around those two things.
A really interesting take and comment on self portraiture. The style is a homage to the doe-eyed portraits of the early 19th century, but this is subverted by making the subject a beautiful black child. Clever and timely.
Procreate team
Olivia is an illustrator both from and based in London. She studied Graphic Communication and Design at the University of Leeds and upon graduating decided to pursue a career in illustration. She has worked on illustrative projects with HarperCollins and The Walt Disney Company. Olivia is represented by Lemonade agency.
The artist’s journey through these pieces is both self exploratory and fantastical. The clever use of a restricted palette and brush selection makes these feel more like oil pastels and textured paper than pixels and adds to dream-like quality.
Procreate team
Jane is a freelance illustrator based in Shanghai and New York. She graduated from Guangzhou Academy of Fine Arts and has spent one year at Syracuse University for the MFA program of Illustration.
A very strong idea and piece of visual storytelling in a classic editorial illustrative style. Nothing gets in the way of this piece’s narrative about the British self sabotaging their appointment of the UK’s most powerful unelected job. Razor sharp wit and observation without using words.
Procreate team
Jake Hawkins is a London-based illustrator and in-house designer at The Telegraph, with a first class honours degree in Illustration from Falmouth University.
A great piece of illustrative story telling that drips with Asimov’s science fiction inspired vibes. The stark palette and textures gives it a lovely 60s magazine print feel, and the contemplative pose of the robot is enhanced by the geometric shapes floating around its ‘mind’ in the background to visualize the thinking process at work.
Procreate team
Gabriel is a Brazilian freelance illustrator living in London working in editorial, advertising, branding and animation.