Illustration for National Journal

I had the pleasure of working with the National Journal a couple times recently. In the most recent issue, I have a piece in about the Heels And Helmets movement, which is using sports to empower women in the business world.

 I used a little more ink wash on this one, to make shapes more organic and painterly. Trying to mix things up!

Here's the original sketch we went with. There was still some tweaking to do.

And here's the printed piece. Thanks so much to Art Director Erin Aulov!

American Express Commissions

I was commissioned by American Express to create illustrations inspired by their credit cards, illustrative interpretations of their designs, to be used on Social Media, especially instagram. The subject matter was entirely up to me, as long as the card elements were present. So used this opportunity to create some futuristic cityscapes: a Green City, a Gold City, and a Platinum City.

The Green City was inspired by lost civilizations in the jungle, though mine was very much alive. The Gold City is high in the mountains, inspired by places such as Machu Pichu. The Platinum City was originally set in the Antarctic Ice, but I decided it should be on another planet, to end the series on an even more futuristic note.

First sketch for the Green City

Pencil stage

A look at the finished line-art, I'm using my trusty blue line method.

It was a great assignment, thanks very much to the awesome team at Alldayeveryday who brought me on board for this project, and to American Express for working with me!

Illustration for WallStreet Journal

I have a new illustration in today's WallStreet Journal, about Quasi Franchises. Here's the article. 

This new proposed direction for franchises supplies the infrastructure and backbone for the individual franchisees, while they can brand the place their own way and have much more independence. From the outside, it looks like a stand-alone business.

Here are some of the other sketches. The kitchen scene would have been fun but perhaps too complex for a small spot. I also liked the octopus franchise, but it was perhaps a bit negative.

The astronaut was a nice iconic solution that would be a lot of fun to draw. The biggest challenge was how much or how little detail to give to the astronaut's face.

Thanks so much to Art Directors Orlie Kraus and Sheryl Dermawan for the fun assignment. Always a pleasure.

New York Times Sunday Business Cover

Had the pleasure of illustrating a cover and interior spot for the Sunday Business section of the New York Times. Art Director Minh Uong, with whom I've worked since his time at the Village Voice, asked me to do something sequential.

The story is about Shanesha Taylor, who was arrested for leaving her children in a car during an important job interview. It's written by Shaila Dewan and you can read it here.

The challenge with sequential editorial pieces is that the image is a bit fractured and cannot be as bold as one single image.

After a first round of sketches, we tried to increase the graphic impact by using one large panel and a few smaller ones.

As the project progressed, we rearranged the panels several times, till everybody was content with the flow of the story.

For the interior, we did a simple comic-strip of 3 images. For the cover, we used one large, loud image and and four smaller panels.

Thanks again to AD Minh Uong and the New York Times!

Full page for Canadian Business Magazine

This one is for Canadian Business magazine, a map to the best and worst"tax havens" around the world. So listen up rich people! You can read the corresponding text here.

For these kind of tasks, I love to have as much layout info as possible, so I can draw around the text and make it fit well. (Click to view the elements larger).

Many thanks to art director Glenn Taylor!

New York Times Sunday Biz Cover

I have a piece in today's New York Times, on the cover of the Sunday Business section. It's about nutritional supplements and the lack of oversight over them; and the responsibility that retailers such as GNC have towards their customers. You can read the whole article here.

Below you can see my sketches and how the piece evolved. Sometimes it takes a bunch of drawings to get to the core of it. The idea to break the border came to me just before I started inking.

Many thanks to Art Director Minh Uong!

Ways Out of the Recession

There's no question America is on its way back to the top
in the global economy.

Panama Independence Day – workshop in Stuttgart

I had the pleasure and privilege to go to Germany for a special event with Panama, an advertising agency in Stuttgart, with which I go waaay back.
The "Panama Independence Day" consisted of workshops, brainstormings and strategizing, as well as fun and games.

As key-visual, I had created a "cover-version" of the famous Turnbull painting of the signing of the declaration of independence.

My task throughout the day was to visualize all the ideas and results in an enormous "mind-map" ("Visual Facilitating").

Panama had supplied me with all necessary tools, including a giant foamcore board.

I had a great time and it was nice to get to hang out with some old friends and make new ones. And incidentally, I got to visit my parents real quick. Many thanks to the entire team of Panama for inviting me!

New York Times Sunday Business

I have a new piece in today's New York Times, about behavioural scientists and how they can help inform political decisions. Many thanks to Art Director Minh Uong! You can read the full article here.

New York Times Sunday Business

This is for the Career Couch column in the Sunday Biz section of the New York Times, illustrating a Q & A about workplace etiquette regarding personal electronic devices.





















Here are some of the sketches that I submitted to Art Director Minh Uong, who guided me along to the best solution. I still like the guy under the table, but the finished piece suits the article best since it's more about obnoxious behaviour.

In the finish, I went for a bit of a bolder line this time around, done entirely in brush. Also, it was decided not to have the phone in front of his crotch, hehe…

Mobile Franchises for Wall Street Journal

My latest WallStreet Journal illustration, this one is about recent trend for mobile franchises that require no office and come to the customers.

When I work on editorial illustrations, I like to print out the layout (if available) and draw the sketch directly into it. Especially since I needed to allow space for the statistics.

Many thanks to Art Directors Orlie Kraus and Sheryl Dermawan for the nice project and the great collaboration. You can read the full article here.

Miami Herald Business Section

This is for a story about serial entrepreneurs, people who not only start one company, but at some point move on and start another one, and continue creating new businesses. I really enjoyed working in this wacky machinery, and chose to be a bit more vibrant on the colors.



Here are the two sketches that led to the piece, first version and last version. Many thanks to Art Director Chris Melchiondo for the great assignment!
You can read the article here.

Four Economic Horsemen for the NYTimes

Here's my latest for the New York Times, Sunday Business section. The image is illustrating an opinion column about recent economic crises and problems, pointing out the economies of Zimbabwe, Greece, Japan and France as cautionary tales for the United States. It raises serious points, but I couldn't help but being a little amused about the French example, whose economy apparently mostly suffers because the French like to enjoy life too much. That is the most harrowing of the four horsemen, for sure!

AD Minh Uong

Frozen Yogurt Chains for Wall Street Journal

A new fun project for the Wall Street Journal. Frozen Yogurt Chains are giving power to the people: Serve yourself, and serve as much as you like! Many thanks to Orlie Kraus and Sheryl Dermawan! The full article is here.

How to Raise an Entrepreneur for Wall Street Journal

I have a new illustration in today's Wall Street Journal, in the Special Report section.

This time it's for an article that gives advice how to encourage the enterpreneurship in your child. In this case the solution was so clear to me that I only did one sketch, which I stayed very close to.

Many thanks to Art Directors Orlie Kraus and Sheryl Dermawan for the great assignment!

Wall Street Journal Illustration

A new illustration for today's Wall Street Journal, about home-based franchises… You can read the entire article here.
Many thanks to Art Directors Orlie Krauss and Sheryl Dermawan for this fun assignment and helping to develop the idea!