Sensa x Forbes
Forbes is a magazine specialized in the intersection of finance and business, founded in 1917 in the USA by B.C. Forbes, and headquartered on the Fifth Avenue in New York City until 2014, when they moved to Jersey City.
Each year they feature their signature lists that generate great interest, with the Richest People in the World being the most popular since 1986.
For several years, we have been working with them, illustrating some of their different publications around the world.
Scope
The Forbes team commissioned us a set of illustrations for their special edition featuring the most visionary CEOs of the Japan, and the professions of the future.
We had to illustrate 36 characters differentiated by roles (hackers, CEOs, millennials, robots ...), from 3 countries (Japan, China, and the United States).
In order to identify them, we unified the color of their clothes based on their nationality. Blue for Japan, orange for China, mustard for Americans. We didn't make any differences in their skin color though.
Some professionals represented (doctor, sailor, astronaut, chef...) didn't have a distinction of nationality. On these cases, combined the blue, orange and mustard of the previous ones.
Sketching
Without further ado, we went to the work table and sketch the first strokes. We draw several characters, doing a small exploration so that the Forbes could see the style we were proposing.
Love it! Thank you for your very very hard work. Let’s make a wonderful article.
– Ayumi Okido, Forbes’ art director
After Ayumi’s approval, we went straight to drawing in Illustrator. The clock kept moving forward. Once on the computer, we did an exploration of solid shadows vs. use of gradient.
The final collection
Conclusion
Each new Forbes commission is a great challenge considering, it is a large publication with little time for execution. We used all our capabilities and energy to meet, once again, the high expectations of Forbes. We thank them for their trust, that keeps solidifying our relationship.
At Sensa, we work with companies that changed the world such as Facebook, and with those that help us understand it like BBC, Forbes, and Condé Nast. More on our portfolio →
