Illustrators are having a moment. Visit any of-the-moment fashion website and you’ll likely find at least one article dedicated to the fashion illustrator as the new fashion blogger. But the popularity of illustrators on Instagram transcends the fashion realm, and it’s pretty easy to see why.
After all, is there any other career more perfectly suited for Insta-fame? While we have our favorite visual artists to follow, we’ve found that installations, sculptures, and even paintings sometimes get lost in translation online, while comparatively bite-sized illustrations may be easier to appreciate on smaller screens.
See eleven of our favorite illustrators to start following right now below.
1. Gretchen Roehrs, @groehrs.
Who says fashion and food don’t mix? Anyone who falls for this old adage has clearly never seen the creations of Gretchen Roehrs, who employs colorful foods like pomegranates, popsicles, and even the occasional oyster shell to flesh out her delicate ink drawings.
With 61k followers, she’s single-handedly changing the perception that fashion folk don’t love a good meal.
2. Napkin Killa, @napkinkilla.
Okay, okay. So we’ve written about Napkin Killa before. But just in case you didn’t get the memo the first time, here’s the deal: Napkin Killa does killer (sorry, had to) observational comedy sketches on—you guessed it—cocktail napkins.
With a versatility that allows him to riff on Anna Wintour one minute and Jean-Michel Basquiat the next, he’s definitely one of the funnier artists on our feed. And if you’re a Brooklyn resident, watch out: he’s been known to turn conversations he overhears in bars and coffee shops into cartoon fodder.
3. Ambivalently Yours, @ambivalentlyyours.
Are you an angsty teengirl with a cool feminist streak? (Or maybe just an angsty grown-up with a cool feminist streak?) If so, Ambivalently Yours is the place for you. Insipidly sweet upon first glance, this rose-tinted account is actually full of commentary on sexism, gender stereotypes, and the unfulfilled expectations that define everyday life.
Wide-eyed, bow-adorned little girls and lipsticked, glammed-up women accompany phrases like “his opinions don’t define you,” and “not your mermaid.” Pink has never looked so rad.
4. Lucas Levitan, @lucaslevitan
Photo Invastion, Levitan’s project that involves hunting for photos and adding his personal touch (in the form of blob-like, pastel-toned creatures doing things like blowing bubbles, eating spaghetti, and lounging in bathtubs) has earned him a whopping 102k followers and counting.
His seamless visual mashups are adorable, and he’s excellent about giving credit to the photographers responsible for the original images, so you may find a couple of new accounts to follow while scrolling.
5. Ping Zhu, @pingszoo
Zhu’s name was added to Brooklyn Magazine’s “30 Under 30 List,” where she revealed that she’s known since the tender age of 15 that she wanted to be in illustrator. Luckily, her talent in rendering everything from dogs to surfers has made her a go-to for illustration-heavily publications such as the Wall Street Journal and the New Yorker. Her colorful feed is a mixture of commissioned designs, doodles, and process shots.
6. Gemma Correll, @gemmacorrell.
If you’re looking for a quick pick-me-up, we recommend Gemma Correll’s feed, which has both pugs and punny cartoons—often in the very same ‘gram.
For example: a drawing of a dog covered in noodles is labeled “spughetti,” while two French bulldogs take it to the next level by French kissing. It isn’t all just dog humor, either. Correll also manages to riff on everyday annoyances like putting on makeup, boarding an airplane, and feeling anti-social in a way that makes us feel just a little bit less misunderstood.
7. Joana Avillez, @joanaavillez.
If you’re not yet a front row fashion fixture, but you’re still hungry for a taste of the insider action, look no further than the drawings of Joana Avillez. In unfussy black pen, Avillez documents the street style, conversation snippets, and large-than-life personalities that make up the fashion world in such a candid manner, you’ll forget you weren’t there yourself.
“My friend Thessaly told me she’d seen a lot of windowpane prints…she was right,” reads the caption on a drawing of several women in plaid. Bonus: she’s occasionally been known to sketch at museums and at art openings.
8. Mike Lowery, @mikelowerystudio.
Children’s book illustrator Mike Lowery shares witty additions to his sketchbooks in his Instagram feed, which include everything from food drawings to a list of “everything you need to survive in the woods.” There’s also a wolf that laments that he’s itchy.
Lowery’s creativity seemingly knows no boundaries, and it seems like he’s up for tackling any subject.
9. Jeremyville, @jeremyville.
Jeremyville, an Australian-based design studio, is a place populated by ambiguous critters (think a sunnyside egg with a face or a duck smoking a cigarette), many of which have eventually been blown up into life-size sculptures gracing places like the hip Parisian boutique Colette.
In recent months, Jeremyville has exploded into a full-blown phenomenon—there’s also an online store where you can acquire t-shirts and other merchandise featuring the lovable cartoons, who do things like hike, hug, eat ice cream cones that eventually turn into birds and fly away, and ingest psychedelic drugs. It’s an awesomely strange place to be.
10. Mike Mitchell, @sirmitchell.
Ever wondered what a kitten head on a bodybuilder body would look like? How about Daffy Duck with a giant eyeball for a head?
If your answer to either of these is yes, you’ll want to follow Mike Mitchell. The illustrator is the master of mashup, creating boyish riffs on everything from superheroes to fruit. A sense of humor and an affinity for geek culture are his two greatest assets.
11. Kendra Yee, @unadoptable.
Ultra-detailed, neon-infused cultural commentary is Kendra Yee’s game. If you’re a fan of Tavi Gevinson’s beloved indie teen magazine Rookie, you may be familiar with Yee’s oeuvre, in which everything from Drake to blue jeans is addressed with the same DIY, tongue-in-cheek style.
The illustrator’s zany sense of humor even extends into her occasional selfies, which also provide a nice glimpse into her cool-kid wardrobe.