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Silas Notes

Where are the Illustrations?

A continuing investigative report
Posted by michael on February 21, 2007
10

For sometime now (ten years) I’ve been trying to humanize the web experience with hand generated illustrations or effects. It is one lonely crusade out here. Since before “graphic design” was termed, illustrations have been used to visually communicate message, tone, desired audience and so on.

However the web is void of this expression - this human skill. I have seen an increase in illustrations being used in television commercials. Even print design seems to be using it more than a few years ago, but the web is awash in stylized photos and shiney graphical elements. No illustrations to be found.

I have a few ideas why but before I launch into theories, I am going to go investigate. Ask around. Why, why, why. If you have a theory please share. If you think i’ve missed an underground movement of illustrations (not microsoft clipart) being used on websites - please send an URL!

  1. illustration isn’t dead. it’s just not the easy way out. you have to have skill to illustrate.

    a couple of examples:
    http://nosepilot.com/nosepilot/18/
    http://www.gorillaz.com/Scene.php

    Posted by laura Feb 21

  2. Nice links laura. now i challenge you to find commercial or ministry sites that use illustrations. airline tv ads use them. health insurance brochures use them. but those same companies don’t use them on their website.

    Posted by michael Feb 21

  3. Not long after I read your post I found myself at the Laity Lodge site (currently on the queue for an updated design from Silas Partners). They are fightin the good fight with you Michael– handdrawn illustration in the header art. I’m curious to see how that element lives on when we help them with their site design :)

    But yeah, in general, outside of particular niches (portfolios, bands, artists …) it is harder to find sites that really use illustration as a design element (not as content).

    Posted by Jessica Feb 22

  4. It makes me sad to think about my craft and all the humanity that has been sucked out of it by the computer. I’m sure someone lamented the arrival of the pencil because suddenly anyone could write anything, carelessly, with no thought to finding a quill, or understanding words and their meaning. It seems the computer, with it’s super speed and mechanical efficiency, has done what no pencil could—extracted flesh and blood from the communications process. What is more precious than love? What communication is more precious than a love note? Imagine having to click on a link at the end of a mass email that get to that note. Why doesn’t that work? As designers, we can’t right all the wrongs of our world, but in our own way we can affect change. We will never completely eliminate the bad, but to the degree that we can create honest, skillfully crafted communications with people, for people, then we can create something precious, something good.

    Posted by scott livingston Feb 23

  5. stock bad. custom good.

    Posted by scott livingston Feb 24

  6. A few I’ve seen around:

    Lost and Found

    The irritating Esurance ads

    The whole packaging/campaign for Airborne (which looks like a less edgy take on Gary Baseman’s illustrations)

    HP’s Personal Again campaign (which absolutely steals from Jon Gray’s cover for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close.

    Microsoft’s baffling-but-fun Clearification campaign (nice write-up here).

    It just comes down to reference: Illustrations have moved out of the public perceptive sphere of “serious,” so using them (for the most part) is making a strong statement about the fun-ness/hipness/charm of your product or business. A good measure of design trends is looking at book covers in the front three aisles of a Borders…what we consider ‘illustrations’ seem confined to the covers of modern “chick” lit; books about stylish people doing stylish things with tiny dogs.

    Part of this trend might be that making a seriously classy/artistic illustration is serious work, and work that allows the illustrator to hold a company hostage as far as future branding/website expansion. No one wants their illustrated identity to be compromised, but putting all your stylistic eggs in one basket might be a bad move for businesses with big aspirations.

    Posted by Doug Nelson Feb 27
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  8. United.com and Zoloft.com are a few more websites. :) Both also came out with illustrated TV spot commercials.

    Posted by Rhea Mar 02

  9. have you seen “the” illustration blog: http://drawn.ca/

    sorry, the second or third one there shows some nudes. overall, they mostly feature online portfolios of illustrators and other inspiration for illustrators.

    Posted by Connie friend of Rhea Mar 07

  10. One more to the website+illustrations list, this time, its a website that’s about faith: http://www.somareview.com

    Posted by Rhea Mar 12

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