American Illustration 35

It’s Illustration Week in New York City, and with it comes the release of the 35th annual American Illustration “big book.” I’m particularly honored to have been a jury member for this year’s very special edition.

Every twelve months American Illustration (and it’s cleverly named photo counterpart, American Photography) gathers a small group of industry professionals to pick some of the year’s most intriguing illustration work. Selections are compiled into a massive hardcover tome that cuts across a wide gamut of work styles, industries, and project categories.

The resulting book’s only real organizing principle is alphabetical order (by artist name). Student work appears alongside the output of beloved, grizzled veterans. Even unpublished work is fair game. The raw mix makes it a great resource for discovering fresh angles and new voices, and a must for any art director’s desk.

This year’s edition was designed by fellow juror Matt Dorfman, and sports a wonderfully bonkers cover illustration by Benjamin Marra. There’s a lot to like, and a lot of fun work to take in. And with gilt-edged pages it’s downright swanky, too.