Andrew Swainson – Designer

After spending all my professional life as a graphic designer in the music industry, I began creating illustrated work as a hobby around 2013 and it has steadily grown to become my occupation. Over recent years I've provided illustration work for Disney, Pixar, Sony, Warner Bros, Coca-Cola, Amazon, 20th Century Studios and Netflix for projects such as Stranger Things, Indiana Jones, Star Wars, Toy Story, Alien, Justice League, Kong: Skull Island and Jaws. I also produce limited edition, licensed art prints with galleries around the world.

I prefer to treat every project as its own thing rather than impose my own style on it. My work ranges from the minimal to highly detailed illustration and pulls from many different influences. I'm most at home mimicking the styles of past eras - from the Bayeux Tapestry, 19th Century Magic posters, Pop Art through to comic books and classic film posters of any era making me particularly suitable for period literature. I love my work to include an element of storytelling - sometimes it's blatant, sometimes it's subtle.

I work digitally but always like to have the look of natural media, or, in the case of comic book style images, give the work authentic printed effects and aging textures. I never use AI to produce imagery and do not work from A.I generated ideas provided by potential collaborators.

If you do reach out to me, while examples of other books in the style you'd like to achieve are welcome, please do not attach any AI generated "ideas" or sketches. Regardless of "skill level", I'd much prefer a rough scribble with stick people done with a crayon on the back of a till receipt to get your idea across.

To save some time in advance, my standard fee for an illustrated book cover through Reedsy is going to be around £900 (GBP). My minimum fee for other illustrative work is going to be £400. I only provide illustration and design services for the outer covers of books. I cannot provide EPub formats for entire publications.

Thank you for taking the time to find out about me.