Illustrators and Graphic Designers

Love at first fight by Fortuna Todisco

Eyes, many different eyes, looking at the world, enclosing desires and hopes that arise from dreams. They are those of Rêve, one of the new projects delicately hand painted on leather by the Mexican multidisciplinary artist and designer Gildo Medina (watch the interview). A path of excellence for him, which led him to collaborate with luxury brands in the fashion sector, including Louis Vuitton, and to travel extensively between Mexico, his homeland, France, Spain and the USA, where he has also developed his latest creation. Without forgetting Italy, where Medina - who in 2020 was included by Taschen among the 100 best illustrators - attended the IED Master in Arts Management in Florence.

Two eyes from Medina's last project

Lines, colours and a look projected to scrutinise and tell what is happening all around. This is one of the powers of illustration, an art that captures the attention of readers and users, discovering other universes, even alternative interpretations of the world itself.

From the cover of a book to drawings made for prestigious international magazines. Some of the most extraordinary illustrators of today learned on desks of the European Institute of Design, and are among those reported in an article by Ad Design, focused on the 10 best illustrators to follow at the moment. Like Fortuna Todisco, an Apulian born in Bari on Bastille Day, who gained experience in publishing and advertising after graduating from IED Milano where she has taught Illustration for Fashion, as well as collaborating with world famous newspapers such as The Economist and The Sun. In that article there is also Andrea Mongia who, like Fortuna, in IED Roma went from learning to teaching Editorial illustration. At 22 he became one of the founders of the creative agency Studio Pilar, two years ago Forbes included him in the 30 Under 30 - Europe - Art & Culture list. Mongia boasts collaborations with major newspapers and one of his latest projects saw him working on the campaign created by Publicis Italy for Barilla, in collaboration with Spotify. His illustration, called “Simply Classic Linguine”, is in fact the cover of one of the eight "playlist timers" available on the famous digital music service and developed with the aim of entertaining consumers in the kitchen while waiting for the pasta to cook.

Simply Classic Linguine by Andrea Mongia and Timeless Emotion Fusilli by Emiliano Ponzi

While the young man by Mongia listens to his favorite songs on the sofa in his living room, the girl by Emiliano Ponzi is absorbed in her thoughts, her eyes gazing outside the window in her bedroom, to the tune of a song. Born in Ferrara, Ponzi studied at IED Milano and in his curriculum he boasts contributions for newspapers such as The New York Times and The New Yorker. Another important project consists of the extraordinary murals that fill with color and art the Tre Torri underground station in Milan in the CityLife district, a redevelopment project of the former fair grounds.

A photo of Ponzi's work inside Tre Torri underground station in Milan

If illustration accompanies us from the kitchen hobs to our office by metro, creativity generally does not stop keeping up with the times, even transforming the Italian President into a pop icon during the latest political turmoil. This was achieved by the very young graphic designer Margherita Fruscoloni Morello, who in 2019 graduated from IED Torino and works in Rome for The Skill communication studio. The Icon President was born from a message of hope, that is what the Head of State brought to young students of a city that was the symbol of the Covid-19 pandemic in Italy, during an official visit for the inauguration of the school year. Made using Illustrator, the work was printed on a butterfly panel in twenty copies, one of which was sent to President Mattarella himself.

Icon President by Margherita Fruscoloni Morello