Photo by Dawn Kim
Select Clients
Airbnb, Etsy, British Airways, Royal Bank of Canada, HP Canada, Google, Uniqlo (Canada), OpenTable, Linkedin (Toronto), LCBO, N26
The New York Times, The New Yorker, NPR, Reader's Digest, Resy, The Walrus, The Globe and Mail, The Economist, The Washington Post, Variety, Smithsonian, Scholastic, Macmillan, Pavilion Books, Penguin Books
For a broader archive of work, click (here).
Hello!
I'm Jeannie Phan, a full-time Toronto freelance illustrator with years of active experience in the field. I've had the pleasure of working in editorial, book, advertising, and social media. I work with a broad spectrum of subjects with a personal interest within travel, lifestyle, health, wellness and science.
I welcome work big and small; from spots to full campaigns.
Education
Bachelor of Design / Honours / OCAD University
Awards
National Magazine Awards / Applied Arts / American Illustration / 3x3 / Society of Illustrators
I'd love to work with you! Feel free to get in touch:
write@jeanniephan.com
Full Bio
Jeannie Phan is an internationally published Vietnamese-Canadian illustrator who's work appears in editorial, book, and branding. Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Phan eventually relocated to Toronto to attend OCAD University’s Illustration program, graduating with honours. She is actively practicing illustration in Toronto.
Phan is primarily a digital illustrator with a keen interest in new ways of art-making while pulling from traditional foundations. Her work is influenced by graphite textures and layered printing which becomes re-interpreted in a digital space. Known for her colorful palettes and bold characters, Phan's pieces invite a sense of playfulness rendered in vibrant hues. Often referencing the real world, Phan reduces objects and settings to their basic forms, which are then rebuilt using considerate line and texture, believing in “the simplest images take the most decision-making'“.
Jeannie Phan is mostly known for her wide range of editorial work that encompasses subjects in the lifestyle, health, business and general interest field amongst others. Phan is often commissioned for her conceptual work, but is also tasked with stories needing particular sensitivities met such as those involving mental health and the female experience.
Phan is personally interested in the marriage of urban living and the basic desire to be in nature. As a person rooted in Toronto, Phan is observational of city life and its impact on the human condition. Work spaces, personal relationships and the need to enjoy natural surroundings are particular realms of exploration in her work.
Licensing
Many of these illustrations are available for licensing - if you see an existing portfolio piece you’d like to republish or use in any way, feel free to email me to check on its status. Please include the usage you have in mind in the email.
Background
For clients looking to assign projects relevant to an artist’s lived experience: I am a woman of colour (Southeast Asian; Vietnamese), born in Canada but raised by immigrant parents. I’m also a millennial living in the city.
File Type
I’m a digital artist and work with high resolution raster in Photoshop in order to achieve the right texture and personal quality to the work. I’m able to deliver a master .PSD file with layers upon request if useful for the designers.
Unfortunately vector files are not available at this time.
Process
The first step is to send me an email! If you need rush work, please indicate so, so I can expedite my reply. Replies in general are given within 1-4 hours during business hours. At the latest, you’ll hear back from me the following business morning. I don’t work weekends, but have exceptions if the project needs it (please mention if you need overtime hours, thanks!).
Business Hours: 9-6pm EST, Mon-Fri
After the introductory email exchanges and the work has been booked, we proceed with the following:
Discussion of a brief (your illustration needs!)
Sketches in black and white
Choose sketch of choice, revise if needed*
Final artwork, minor revise if needed (at this point, the work doesn’t deviate much from the sketch, and revisions are often colour tweaks)
*Depending on the project, coloured sketches and additional revisions stages are available for larger-scale projects requiring a more in-depth approval process.
The Studio
I illustrate in a live-work space in Toronto. I’m in a dedicated studio room that fosters not only my business but all the side-projects I do! It’s full of natural light, quietness for creative thinking and of course it has plants. This space is also shared with my partner and two cats.
I’m a firm believer in a work/life balance so when I’m not illustrating I few hobbies I enjoy are cycling, camping, gardening, and fermentation (we’ve got about 30 million ✨beneficial microbes ✨ living in our kitchen). If you catch me on break, I’ll usually be at a local park or along the lake shore side-stepping geese.
Support Staff
Odin:
As an near-founder of the studio, Odin is responsible for keeping company morale up. He is the rock that centres the flow of the day.
Juniper:
A new member to the team, this tuxedo kiddo is our starry-eyed intern. Just "'okay” at making coffee but great at social media.
Personal Blog
I run a project called Fieldnotes that focuses on experiences beyond the studio. Mostly, these are outdoors trips, city explorations, gardening and home projects. As of 2024, this is regularly updated, so you can see what I’m up to off-duty!
