Author: Thomas James
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Recent Illustrations for Fun and Profit
Here’s a new illustration I’m really excited about for blog post I put together with the help of Michelle Kondrich on Illustration Age called 14 Art & Design Podcasts Hosted by Women. Conceptual self-portrait called “Aging with Style”. I had fun experimenting with ways to portray the creeping white hair that shows age in my…
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Personal Project – Food and Music Festival Poster
This is a simple case of getting a visual concept stuck in my head and feeling a desperate need to execute it, even if it means inventing a fictional festival in my home town. I really love the big bite taken out of the guitar and how it mirrors the scoop in a “cutaway” guitar.…
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A Few Recent Fun Illustrated Things
Thought I’d share some recent illustration projects I’ve created over the past few months, some personal and some commissioned. It has been liberating to work in a looser variety of styles and approaches. The Robot DJ above was created for a drawing app. The illustration below that I affectionately call “Winebrella” was commissioned by Financial…
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New Illustration for Billboard Magazine – Protect Your Bling
I got the call a couple weeks ago to complete a quick turnaround illustration for Billboard magazine for an article about how celebrities can “protect their bling”, a sort of professional advice article in response to Kim Kardashian’s recent robbery. It’s always fun to illustrate something currently relevant, and the imagery for this one worked…
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Logo Illustration – Death to the Internet
Here’s something a bit different from my usual fare. It’s a logo design for my latest blog Death to the Internet. Since the main two websites I run (Illustration Age and Illustration Friday) are so illustration-focused I’ve been developing a concept devoted to a much wider range of topics such as music, film, tv, design,…
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Double Page Spread in Communication Arts
About a month or so ago I was thrilled to find out that my series of illustrations for Intelligence Squared US was being honored alongside amazing work by many talented artists in this year’s Communication Arts Illustration Annual. Fast forward to last week when I was surprised to see that they gave it a double…
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New Illustration – Hoping the Iran Nuclear Deal Works
I’m really excited to share this latest illustration for an Intelligence Squared US debate on whether or not the Iran nuclear deal is good for America. You can’t ask for a better visual overlap than crossed fingers and the atomic symbol. (Credit to fellow illustrator Pete Ryan for the term ‘visual overlap’) Thanks for looking!
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Recent Adventures in Art and Robotics
I’ve had a very busy couple of months in terms of artistic ventures, between illustration commissions, working on some customizations on my boat, and marching in the local Apple Blossom Parade as part of the BEEP BOOP BEEP Robot Brigade! So here’s a quick look at some highlights, starting with the illustration above for Johns…
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Roundup of Recent Work
It has been a busy few months, on many levels, and so I thought I’d take a break and share a collection of some of my favorite recent illustrations for a variety of clients. That fun rocket man above was created for a Harvard Business Review article about government assistance for startups. The image they…
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Work Accepted into Society of Illustrators Annual
Exciting news! I’ve just received word that a series of illustrations I’ve created over the past year for Intelligence Squared US has been accepted into this year’s Society of Illustrators Annual in the Institutional category. I’m really proud of the work I’ve been doing in collaboration with Clea Connor Chang and Dana Wolfe for IQ2US…
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Recent Illustrations – 1 Dog, 1 Mouse, and 1 Ghost
I’ve been really fortunately busy lately and it has been a while since I’ve shared new work, so here’s a collection of some recent editorial pieces. The first one above was created for Barron’s in collaboration with Art Director (and fellow illustrator) John Tomac, who I’ve been wanting to work with for a long time.…
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More Intelligence Illustrated
Common Core Education Standards I recently completed a new series of illustrations for the upcoming season of Intelligence Squared US debates. It’s always a pleasure to work on such stimulating topics and see the images appear onstage as well as in programs and other promotional materials. Thanks again to Art Director Clea Chang for the…
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New Illustration for HYDROCHLORIC
I was honored to be among the list of talented illustrators invited to participate in the latest issue of Daniel Zender’s HYDROCHLORIC zine. It was really fun to work in greyscale for a change, and to come up with a clever concept for the theme of Summer Vacation. On a related note, you can read a…
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New Personal Piece – Breakfast on the Go
Here’s a new illustration I’ve had a lot of fun working on bit by bit in between commissions. I really enjoyed geeking out on the little details, especially those sweet shoes. Now I want a pair for myself.
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New Illustration – Money as Political Speech
The Latest in an ongoing commission for Intelligence Squared US, for a debate about the constitutionality of unlimited spending as a form of political speech.
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New Work for the Cannes Issue of Variety
Last week I got the call from Art Director Cheyne Gately for a quick turnaround on this illustration for Variety. The article is about filmmakers learning to be better at budgeting their movies. I fired off a handful of ideas quicker than I have in a long time and we moved forward with this idea.…
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Summer Reading Promo Prints and Products
Summer is approaching fast, and so I was inspired to create this personal piece that I’ll be sending out as promo postcards over the next week. I chose the theme of Summer Reading because I’ve always wanted to do one of those for a client and decided to just go ahead and make one for…
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In Print and In Good Company
It’s always a thrill to receive a contributor copy in the mail featuring an illustration I’ve created. It really gives a sense of closure, of things coming full circle. And as an added bonus, you get to see the other artists that you’re sharing the issue with. And when it’s a double-page spread it’s that…
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Rejected New Yorker Easter Cover
I submit cover ideas to the New Yorker from time to time, and I thought I’d share this one because I still like it. It’s a very rough mockup of a proposed Easter cover featuring the city of New York as colorful Easter eggs. In this case the basket is actually a piece of stock…
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Conflict of Interest for BYU Magazine
Here’s a straight and simple image for a BYU Magazine article about the ethical complications of receiving a sizable wedding gift from someone you’re doing business with. Always fun to work with a limited color palette to let the concept shine through.
THOMAS JAMES 
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