01 / EDITORIAL
The cover is the first conversation
A closer look at hierarchy, composition and editorial illustration.
Hello I am JK
A little curiosity.
A lot of colour.
An independent journal of illustration, editorial design and Bangkok’s creative culture. Look closer at covers, characters and the ideas that give an image its voice.
START SOMEWHERE GOOD
Open the sketchbook
Editorial thinking. Playful forms. A wider creative world.
02 / CHARACTER
Give an idea a character
How a visual character connects with a festival and its audience.
03 / BANGKOK
A city full of visual stories
Explore Bangkok’s design culture and creative neighbourhoods.
KEEP EXPLORING
Notes from the journal
THE JOURNAL · 2 MIN
Where to See Illustration and Design in Bangkok
Bangkok has one of the liveliest design scenes in Southeast Asia, and much of it is easy to visit. Opening hours and programmes change,…
THE JOURNAL · 2 MIN
How to Build an Illustration Portfolio That Gets Commissions
Art directors look at hundreds of portfolios. Most get a few seconds. The ones that lead to commissions share a few habits. Show fewer,…
THE BIGGER PICTURE
Look closer. Make connections.
Hello I am JK is a journal about illustration, editorial design and visual culture, with a focus on Bangkok and Southeast Asia. It looks at how pictures are commissioned, drawn and printed: the brief behind a magazine cover, the research behind an illustrated city, the character that becomes the face of a festival.
Case studies
Each case study takes one kind of commission and explains how it works, step by step.
- Designing a magazine cover for Computer Arts Thailand – how an illustrated cover is briefed, sketched and prepared for print.
- Illustration for design magazines: lessons from I.D. – what art directors at design magazines look for in an illustrator.
- Illustrating modern Thailand for Monocle – how to draw a country for a global audience without falling back on clichés.
- Monsters in the city: character design for Urbanscapes – building a festival character that works on posters, merchandise and the stage.
From the journal
The journal collects shorter pieces: guides for illustrators starting out, notes on Bangkok’s design scene, and observations about print, type and colour. Two good places to begin are how to build an illustration portfolio that gets commissions and where to see illustration and design in Bangkok.
Who this is for
- Illustrators and designers looking for practical, honest advice about commissions.
- Art directors and editors curious about how illustrators think.
- Readers who like knowing how the pictures in their magazines were made.