The Gunn Report presents “The Art of Illustration”, selection of award-winning Print ads showcasing best illustration

The Gunn Report released a compilation of 50 award-winning print campaigns from 21 different countries spanning 15 years that showcase the very best of illustration.

In the past, illustration was the norm. Advertising art in the 1880’s consisted mostly of engravings of products in black and white on wood. By 1900 advances in photo-engraving and printing made full-colour art feasible and advertising as an art form blossomed. Now 90% of ads use photography, therefore the use Illustration is already a way to be different or intrusive.

But, Illustration, when used appropriately, becomes more than just an executional option. It becomes intrinsic to the creative idea. It can make comical ideas even funnier. It can make scary messages even scarier. It can make fantasy more fantastic.

This selection of work uses illustration not for its own sake but because it is exactly the right medium and style for the message and brand. These ideas simply wouldn’t work with photography (…) Particular favourites of mine are Guinness Extra Cold (they’re funny and actually feel cold); the graphic simplicity and power of Chrysler Jeep; and also the upside down posters for Merrydown – the same principle in each, but every single one so different from the last, and every one a work of art

Neil Dawson

UK Art Director

Neil Dawson together with his long-time creative partner Clive Pickering have recently set up their own creative agency, Dawson Pickering. Prior to that, Neil founded BETC London where he was responsible for work such as Cockburn’s ‘Pronounce Responsibly’, Bacardi’s ‘Untameable’ and Cow & Gate’s ‘Feed Their Personalities’. As Global Creative Director at DDB on the Philips account, Neil won back to back Cannes Grand Prix for Carousel and Parallel Lines. On Volkswagen he (and Clive) created ‘Wedding’ for VW Surprisingly Ordinary Prices. This was the Gunn Report’s most awarded print ad in the world for over a decade.

The Gunn Report’s Art of Illustration show is now available to view exclusively on www.gunnreport.com

The Gunn Report is the foremost independent global report for creative communications that identifies the most awarded work in the world and its creators. It combines the winners’ lists from 46 of the world’s most important awards – Global, Regional and National – to establish the annual worldwide league tables for the global Advertising industry. A unique and essential resource for advertising and marketing people worldwide, The Gunn Report brings together 15-years-worth of information, data and intelligence through its report tables, commentaries, searchable and viewable ad libraries, guest essays and playlists, creative effectiveness studies and The Gunn Report for Media.  Additionally Gunn TV features the best commercials of all-time dating back to 1962.