I draw for print first, and the screen follows

I'm Sol Ibáñez, a freelance illustrator. I've spent eleven years drawing for magazines, publishers, packaging and public signage, and I still prefer starting with a pencil and finishing with a proof in my hand.

I studied printmaking before I studied illustration, and it shows. I think in layers and inks: what happens when two colors overlap, how a fine line behaves on rough paper, whether a drawing still works at the size of a thumbnail. Most of my work is painted in gouache or drawn with brush and ink, then scanned and finished digitally.

My work splits roughly evenly between editorial and publishing on one side and brand, packaging and wayfinding on the other. The first keeps me fast and sharp; the second keeps me thinking about how illustration lives for years in other people's hands. I write guidelines and build source files so clients can use the work without calling me every time.

I work alone, with a small network of letterers, printers and production designers I trust when a project needs them. That means you talk to the person drawing, every time. I take on a limited number of projects each season so each one gets proper reading, thinking and drawing time.