But, as a freelance illustrator, if someone came to me asking to copy someone else, I’d say “no.” If I’m doing it for a client and it’s part of their style guide, then it doesn’t really bother me. Does it bother you when you get asked to recreate someone else’s illustration style?Īdam: I think it depends on the context. And, without standing over that previous designer’s shoulder, it’s really impossible for me to know how he or she did the work. I do my best to create something in my style, but that has a similar tone and style to the previous designer’s. So, for some projects, it’s easier to redraw whatever the previous designer has done because it would take a lot more effort to try and copy a style exactly. So, there’s a gulf that’s probably always going to be perceptible. There are things other designers can illustrate that I can replicate, but I can’t copy exactly. When you’re illustrating, you can’t necessarily copy exactly what someone does with their brushstroke or the way that they put pen on paper to create a line. I’m also an illustrator, and that works a little differently. As a graphic designer for a client, you pick the right font, imagery, and colors from a “toolkit,” of sorts, and run with it. You’re not designing every single letter form every single time. You’re not creating a typography wholesale. In a lot of ways, you design within a sandbox. Our conversation ranged fairly widely, and I didn’t want to cut anything, so you get the whole enchilada.Įnjoy! Is there a difference between taking on another designer’s style and taking on a new client’s style?Īdam: Not necessarily. I had a few queries about design, so I took the opportunity to pepper Adam with questions and record his answers. He came to 116 & West with some pretty cool experiences, including stints with Dreamworks and Marvel Comics.

Our Associate Creative Director Adam Rosenlund is pretty awesome.

12.11.19 | The Mind of a Graphic Designer & Illustrator 116 & West

Graphic designer illustrator