Why Ben Obrien Is As Enthusiastic As Ever About Illustration

Creative Boom: Inspiration Illustration Why Ben O'Brien is as enthusiastic as ever about illustration The leading British illustrator on how he's adapting to the new realities of the creative scene while keeping it fresh at every turn. Written By: Garrick Webster 19 February 2026 Ben has been creating spot illustrations for Martin Coul's podcast, The Hushed It was the mid-noughties when Ben O'Brien – AKA Ben the Illustrator – first sauntered onto the creative scene. The creative magazines loved him and so did clients, from national newspapers to cutting-edge car brands.

He was one of the first vector graphics illustrators to break away from the cold perfection of the aesthetic and use the technology to bring out the warmth, humour and humanity in whatever he illustrated. Now, 21 years later, he's still capitalising on this aspect of his creativity. During that time, he's seen illustrators become a little bit like rock stars and then fall from grace, somewhat at least, with the rise of AI that mimics their skills. "I do believe the industry is struggling," he says. "We've gone through a real heyday in the past decade or two.

Illustrators have gone from a credit at the bottom of a page to household names, often moving from books and magazines to respected galleries and big brand collaborations where the illustrator's name is front and centre." Smart Cars – classic vector work in Ben the Illustrator style in Vice Magazine The White Stripes – one of Ben's art prints Alongside this, a whole industry has grown around illustration, with excellent courses, ever-improving creative software, platforms for illustrators to build their own audiences and a market always looking for the next big thing.

And then the crash… Ben continues: "In maybe just two years, social media became a far less positive place, and then AI happened. Software that can literally do our job for us, without us." But this isn't the end, says Ben. AI might have mopped up the kind of jobs you may have lost to a client's teenage cousin anyway – cheap icons and logos, for example. More importantly, many businesses and their customers now consciously seek the human touch. The industry might have become a bit more conservative, with many sizable clients working through agencies rather than reaching out directly.

However, there are still so many visual concepts that only a human illustrator can develop. There is much hope and, perhaps, room for optimism. Wavy Wonders - the first project to feature the Ben Draws style Ben himself has adapted remarkably well to the anxious state of limbo many creatives have found themselves in since COVID-19. Alongside his Ben the Illustrator style, which still uses the perfect shapes, colours and gradients of Adobe Illustrator, he has developed a hand-drawn, line-based style called Ben Draws.

"Around four or five years ago, I did a little experiment for a creative director friend of mine, working in a completely different illustration style. It started as development for a project he was on, and not only was it used in that project – Wavy Wonders seafood snacks – I decided to play with it more, and within a year it grew into a full portfolio," says Ben. However, this new style, based on expressive, cursive lines, languished amongst Ben's vector work for a few years.

Article truncated for readability. Read the full piece →

The article discusses a relevant perspective on the role of human creativity in branding, particularly in the context of AI, which is significant for brand strategy professionals seeking to differentiate their work.