Powerful Illustrations Offer a Poignant Mirror to Our Modern World

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Illustrator Stephan Schmitz creates digital art that reflects the trials and tribulations faced in modern life. His work describes different facets of ourselves, from how we view our bodies to our relationship with technology to dealing with family and navigating our career. The images are often poignant and don’t shy away from the things that are hard to talk about. But they aren’t overly dramatic, either. Schmitz’s understated conceptual work offers a way to for us to hold a mirror to ourselves and to consider how we relate to the subjects that he’s illustrating.

Schmitz is a clever illustrator who doesn’t think too literally about his subject matter. Looking at his work is akin to solving a puzzle. He provides us with a set of visual clues, and it’s up to us to connect the dots. This also allows for a more emotional response; in an image about depression, Schmitz refrains from making someone simply look sad. He instead illustrates a person who is drowning in the depths of their own head. While it still implies depression, it also speaks to isolation, loneliness, and a force that plunges you into places that you never anticipated. The result, as in similar works, is a powerful form of communication that resonates with many viewers.

Schmitz sells a small selection of his work as prints through the Folio Illustration Agency.

Stephan Schmitz creates digital editorial illustrations that offer a mirror to the modern world.

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Editorial Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Editorial Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Editorial Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Editorial Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Editorial Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Editorial Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Editorial Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Digital Illustrations by Stephan Schmitz

Stephan Schmitz: Website | Instagram | Facebook

My Modern Met granted permission to use photos by Stephan Schmitz.

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Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled 'Embroidered Life' that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
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