Illustration
As a creative discipline Illustration at RISD is defined by purpose, not media. While using the same tools as in painting, photography, film, graphic design and other disciplines, in Illustration you learn to make imagery with the intent of conveying specific meaning and messages.
Degree programs
In the Illustration BFA program you gain a broad-based sense of what’s possible within the field and enjoy opportunities to master traditional and advanced skills for creating effective, communicative work.
The MFA in Illustration encourages you to reflect on the illustrator‘s role as an influential social actor and readies you to turn your practice to the benefit of society and transformation of the field.
In the studio
Whether painting at the easel, drawing on a computer screen or making 3D characters, Illustration majors learn to master the skills and techniques needed for effective visual storytelling.
Student work
For more than 20 years, Shepard Fairey has critiqued and shaped popular culture through guerrilla art campaigns of global proportions. A graphic designer, entrepreneur and fine artist, he’s perhaps best known for his ubiquitous 2008 Hope poster of Barack Obama, which is in the permanent collection at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. He also works in the commercial realm through his LA-based agency Studio Number One.
Malaysian-born Singaporean Sonny Liew has built a successful career illustrating creator-owned comics as well as monthly titles for Marvel, DC and other comics publishers. With works including critically acclaimed DC series Doctor Fate and Eternity Girl, he is best known for The Art of Charlie Chan Hock Chye, a deconstructive graphic novel about the history of modern Singapore. “I’m trying to make history more inclusive,” Liew said of the book that won three Eisner Awards in 2017, including one for Best Writer/Artist.
Julia Rothman combines disparate interests into a career of her own making. She freelances as an illustrator and pattern designer, creating products, designs and branding for clients like Anthropologie, Crate & Barrel, The New York Times and others. In addition, Rothman runs the design studio Also with two RISD friends and has published a growing number of books, including Drawn In, The Exquisite Book, Farm Anatomy, Hello NY and Nature Anatomy.
Featured stories
A mythical lion cub stuck in the modern world must harness the power of stories to save his family and return home.
A jury of professional illustrators and art directors selected the winning pieces out of more than 4,000 entries.
Faculty members Sara Jordenö and Pouya Ahmadi and alum Nina Martinez view forced migration through unique lenses and present radical and creative interventions.