Four SVA alumni are in Print‘s “The New Visual Artists 2015,” a feature in the magazine’s summer issue. Joey Cofone (BFA 2013 Design), Daniel Fishel (MFA 2011 Illustration as Visual Essay), Tina Ibañez (BFA 2007 Graphic Design) and Anna Laytham (BFA 2013 Design) all made the annual list of 15 notable artists under the age of 30.
In her introduction to the feature, MPS Branding Chair Debbie Millman, who is also the editorial/creative director of Print, notes how well past “New Visual Artists” lists have predicted future success: former inductees include Eddie Opera (now a Pentagram partner), Allan Dye (now creative director of Apple) and BFA Design faculty member Jessica Walsh (now a partner, with MFA Design faculty member Stefan Sagmeister, in Sagmeister & Walsh). This year, each inductee designed a cover for the magazine; the covers run on the opening pages of the issue.
Joey Cofone is co-founder of Baron Fig, a line of notebooks and sketchbooks that began with a successful Kickstarter campaign and has gone on to sell thousands of notebooks in more than 50 countries. “Every single day we interact with objects and interfaces that we don’t pay mind to—they just work,” Cofone says in his profile. “Someone had to make all of these things, and those are the people I tip my hat to: the silent champions of efficiency.”
Illustrator and hand-letterer Daniel Fishel has created a set of tarot cards for The Portlandia Activity Book (McSweeney’s, 2014), drawn book covers for bestselling author Nick Hornby and illustrated stories for publications like Los Angeles Times, The Village Voice and The Washington Post. “A bad illustration is one that tells you 100% everything you’re about to read,” he tells Print. “[Good illustrations] should leave a breath of wonder.”
Inspired by memories of her father’s vinyl collection, Tina Ibañez has designed album covers for such popular contemporary acts as Alabama Shakes (Boys & Girls), Kings of Leon (Mechanical Bull) and The Strokes (Comedown Machine). Her design philosophy, as reported to Print? “Stop thinking and make things that feel good.”
At just 23, Anna Laytham is one of the two youngest artists on the list. A designer and illustrator, her personal and professional projects have ranged from DOOMIVERSE, a board game based on the twisty career and many alter-egos of the hip-hop artist best known as MF Doom, to an illustration library for Makerbot, which the 3D-printer company can use for branded merchandise and multimedia communications. Asked by Print to describe her dream job, she answered, “No job! Working for myself and drawing all day. That’s the goal.”
Congratulations to all.