With millions of visitors each month, online creative community Behance (opens in new tab) is the place to be for artists of all disciplines. It's a fantastic way to see what your peers are up to as well as finding new work and creative inspiration from top web designers and agencies. And it is also part of Adobe's Creative Cloud (opens in new tab).
But with so many portfolios to browse through, it can be difficult to know where to start. To make things easy for you, we've picked some of the top illustration portfolios that are definitely worth a look.
- 45 brilliant design portfolios to inspire you (opens in new tab)
You can also find brilliant 3D artists (opens in new tab), typographers (opens in new tab)and graphic designers (opens in new tab) to follow on Behance, right here on Creative Bloq. But right now, here's the start of our selection of illustrators – and don't forget to tell us who we've missed out in the comments!
01. Aaron Blaise (opens in new tab)
Artist Aaron Blaise has worked in the animation industry for over 20 years – 17 of which were spent as a director at Disney Feature Animation and Digital Domain's Tradition Studios. In this Behance portfolio he shares some of his beautiful concept art, with a focus on one of his great passions: animals.
02. Therese Larsson (opens in new tab)
Another big fan of animal art is illustrator Therese Larsson, who often posts the various stages of her character development process. A freelance illustrator based in Stockholm, Larsson specialises in character design and realism, working mainly in the field of advertising. Her clients include Adidas, Google, McDonalds, Disney and Coca-Cola Zero, to name a few.
03. Oscar Ramos (opens in new tab)
If character illustration is your thing, then you should definitely check out Oscar Ramos' awe-inspiring portfolio. This guy is a master of creating amazingly expressive characters and portraying emotion in his work. The amount of detail in his illustrations will keep you entertained for hours.
04. Antonina Aleksandrova (opens in new tab)
Based in Kiev, Antonina Aleksandrova's portfolio is overflowing with incredible illustrations. Her distinctive illustrative style is eye-catching and intriguing. Her career has seen her create various posters and advertisements for newspaper campaigns, but we particularly like her personal work, such as this 'Sukkub Dance' piece.
05. David Sossella (opens in new tab)
Illustrator David Sossella has an enviable talent, which you can pore over for hours on Behance. During his creative career, Sossella has collaborated with leading clients on various pieces, including this one for Ray-Ban.
06. Charlotte Smith (opens in new tab)
Paris-based illustrator Charlotte Smith is a master of pretty, delicate designs. Her illustrations ooze sophistication and along with her expert pastel colour picks, you'll fall head over heels for her creations. We particularly enjoyed her excellent Moonrise Kingdom GIFs.
07. Llew Mejia (opens in new tab)
Based in New York, illustrator and surface designer Llew Mejia loves colour. These illustrations are full of surreal characters with packed with so much detail that you'll certainly want to look twice at each creation.
08. Nate Kitch (opens in new tab)
Nate Kitch's distinctive designs use a mix of hand-drawing, collage, typography (opens in new tab), photography (opens in new tab), and digital imagery, often combined with beautiful geometric patterns. Based in Winchester, Kitch is represented by the Eastwing Illustration Agency and has worked with the likes of Ted Baker, New Scientist magazine and Virgin.
09. Andy Hau (opens in new tab)
Andy Hau likes to explore the interface between architecture and graphic design in his work. A qualified architect, Hau got his break in illustration and graphic design when he won a competition to design the packaging for a promotional copy of Imogen Heap's 2009 album Ellipse. Above is an example taken from Hau's ongoing series of illustrations following the adventures of Harlequin 'Quinn' the fox.
10. Ben O'Brien (opens in new tab)
Having worked in the design and illustration world for over a decade now, Ben O'Brien – aka Ben the Illustrator – takes inspiration from nature to create inspiring, epic and ethereal landscapes. He has worked with Smart Cars, Pixar, Westfields Shopping Centres and The New York Times.
Next page: 10 more incredible illustrators
