Maggie Stephenson Editorial & Advertising Illustrator

ABOUT

This project was created for Director Magazine (Spring 2026) for a feature exploring forecasting and why we tend to be poor at predicting the future.

The brief called for a lead illustration to open the feature, along with a secondary element that could sit within the article and work flexibly across the layout. The direction allowed for a more conceptual approach.

My starting point was the idea of forecasting as something we try to grasp but never fully control. I centred the main composition around a globe like form, referencing the idea of looking ahead. Rather than presenting the future as fixed, the image leans into it as something fluid and evolving.

The secondary illustration builds on this idea, using the same tone in a more distilled way so it could sit comfortably within the text without competing with it.

The artwork was initially sketched by hand and developed in Procreate. The finals were delivered in both CMYK and RGB with all elements on separate layers. This allowed the client to adapt and reposition components across the feature as needed.

The final illustrations were used across the opening spread and throughout the article.

MADEIT CREDITS

  • Director MagazineClient

Who pooled - Director Magazine - How to See the Future