25 Websites With Irresistible Illustrations
All designers were not created equal.
Some possess illustrative abilities that put simple page layout to shame. Today we’ll honor these artists and take a look at 25 beautiful sites from all over the world that feature incredibly creative illustrations.
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Illustrator Spotlight
Rather than merely place 25 websites on display, I want to take the time to give credit to a few of the illustrators behind these sites.
Carol Rivello
Carol’s amazing work is full of feminine themes, highlighted by abstract curves and lots of repeated shapes. Her mastery of color is quite impressive and is one of the principal ways the illustrations in her portfolio grab your attention.
Artist Bio:
I have a degree in Design, but I love art direction and illustration as well. I’ve worked in Brazil and Italy, creating for clients such as SPFW, Ferrè, Rolex, Yakult and Mitsubishi Motors. Now I live in Florianópolis, a pretty island in the south of Brazil, and just started to work as a freelancer. Pigs, internet, music, movies, travelling and ice cream are my passions.
Ricardo Gimenes
Ricardo runs a popular blog titled “Behind the Websites” which features a daily illustrative interpretation of a popular site. I love his fun cartoony style and have featured his work on Design Shack more than once.
Artist Bio:
I have now had over fourteen years of experience in design, art direction, illustration, video making, and production of creative materials in five different countries, multiple platforms (both digital and analogue), and for a variety of different clients. I have always focused on turning my deliveries into commercially successful graphic design pieces, websites designs, audiovisual media, digital media production and motion graphics initiatives.
Andrew Bell
Andrew Bell runs a crazy website called “The Creatures in My Head” which features a daily single panel comic containing bizarre (and often gross) creatures. The comics usually contain a humorous one line caption that is almost always good for a laugh. Andrew is a very talented character illustrator with a style all his own. Be sure to check out his site if your sense of humor is a bit on the twisted side.
Artist Bio:
Andrew was born in England in 1978. His family moved several times until settling into the eastern US in the mid 1980’s. He has lived and worked in New York since 1996. Andrew’s work spans a wide spectrum of mediums from illustrations and paintings to toys and sculptures. Much of his work is brought together by a sense of humor that often belies a more serious and sombre message. His work has been featured in solo and group gallery shows from LA to Paris and has been covered by publications such as The New York Times and Wired.
Dan Vuletici
Dan’s portfolio is full of great hand-drawn style illustrations of people and architecture. You can see his illustration talent mixed in with strong Photoshop skills and even some 3D work.
Artist Bio:
Hi, I’m Dan Vuletici, from Timișoara, Romania. I’m a creative dude with 12 years of formal training in drawing, painting, sculpture, composition, aesthetics and later graphic design. That’s from the fifth grade untill I finished the Fine Arts University majoring in graphic design. I started working as a graphic designer way before I finished Uni at the best agencies in my home town and in 2007 I decided that wasn’t enough so I moved to London for 2 years where I had the privilege of working with some amazing bunch of people at some really cool agencies. I’ve had experience in working with lots of different media, from paper to digital and interactive to social.
However, everything I’ve ever created started as a scribble on a peace of paper (or whatever was close), and so my life passion has to be drawing. Nothing comes close to the satisfaction from rendering something from your imagination onto a flat space. It’s sometimes easier to draw somthing than to say it out loud…even if it sounds weird.
Zara Picken
Zara is an incredibly talented artist from England. As you can see in the pic above, her work has a unique retro feel that is accomplished through muted colors and noisy textures. Stop by her portfolio to look at her work in greater detail.
Artist Bio:
My name is Zara Picken and I have been working as an illustrator since graduating from the University of the West of England with a First class honours degree in Illustration in 2008. I am influenced by mid-century modern design and have a passion for old paper-based ephemera. I also find inspiration in vast collections, large cities and obscure music. My work – retro-tinted with textured blocks of colour – combines digital and handmade elements. Projects begin with pencil drawings and are completed using Photoshop in a distinctive style. My work is ideas-led, approaching each brief with an open mind and focusing on conveying concepts and messages with a striking aesthetic.
Anton Peck
Anton has a cool, comic book style that utilizes dark thick lines and beautifully bright colors. His work ranges from people to animals and even some exploration into combining the two.
Artist Bio:
Born from the dust of a graphite planet, armed with a unique sense of creativity, and driven with the desire to be always unique, Anton is no stranger to nonconformism. His desire to be different is a dynamically strong influence on both his lifestyle and his work. From the beginning, he was always drawing. Setting daydreams to life on paper at any opportunity. This artistic desire inevitably led him into the design industry, where he currently works happily in the field of web design and development. You can find out more about his career background on his LinkedIn account.
Dave Mott
Dave is a commercial artist that runs an illustration company called Monkeyworks. His character illustrations are undoubtedly impressive and span several visual styles.
Artist Bio:
Growing up in the 70’s, I was bombarded with pop culture. Everything from the cereal we ate to the TV we watched on Saturday morning was colorful and loud. When I was about 4 I started drawing, and I have never wanted to do anything else. Then came comic books and I was obsessed with the big bold letters, I didn’t know it but this was my introduction to typography. After that, the rise of the arcade cabinet, which led to a passion of pixels. All these things have helped lead me into illustration and design. If you’re looking for a unique creative visual, drop me a line.
More Sites with Irresistible Illustrations
Los Colores Olvidados
Piipe
Ramp Champ
Ewout Van Lambalgen
Black Harbor
N.Design Studio
XIXI NO BANHO
New to York
Ali Felski
COO/COO CORE Graphics
Morphix
Sir Patroclo
Eric Steuten
Hugs for Monsters
Mark Forrester
Black Moon Design
Cog’aoke
Somos La Pera Limonera
Conclusion
Well I hope I’ve given you a renewed respect for the art of superb illustration and how it can be integrated with great web design. Now grab a pencil and get to work!
If you’re an illustrator or know of a site with amazing illustrations, use the comments below to post a link or two.