Loveis Wise
BFA '18
Illustration is the best thing in the world. It is everywhere. I studied art at a community college in Washington, D.C., and then I transferred to UArts. I knew I wanted to actually become a professional artist, and I knew I had to go to UArts, because that’s where I would get the best education. It’s a huge family in the Illustration department. The faculty is very caring. They are basically like family, as well. The best thing about my education is the ability to pick up on things that I’d never even thought about.
Shortly after graduating, University of the Arts alum Loveis Wise BFA ’18 (Illustration) accomplished a professional feat that eludes many illustrators over the entire course of their careers: they were commissioned to illustrate the cover of The New Yorker magazine. Loveis also collaborated with bestselling author Ibram X. Kendi on Magnolia Flower, a children’s book based on a story by acclaimed 20th century author Zora Neale Hurston. In 2023, they designed a Pride-themed Doc Martens boot.
Their The New Yorker illustration, “Nurture,” graced the June 4 – 11, 2018 issue of the publication, which also featured a Q-and-A style interview with the Washington, DC-born, now Los Angeles-based artist.
“For an illustrator, the cover of the New Yorker is the pinnacle in an editorial career,” said Mark Tocchet, director of the UArts School of Design. “For a recent graduate to receive such an opportunity is unheard of.”
Wise was recognized with UArts’ President’s Award at the May 2018 commencement ceremony. During their senior year they completed commissioned work—motion graphics, hand lettering, surface design, product design and editorial illustration— for clients as wide-ranging as The New York Times, Vice, Cartoon Network, Buzzfeed, Penguin/Random House books, and Planned Parenthood. Since graduating, Wise has also worked with clients including Toms, Warby Parker, COACH, Pressed Juicery, TIME, Google, Harper Collins, Disney Hyperion, Adobe, Instagram, Dr.Marten, Birchbox, Mural Arts Philadelphia, L'Oreal, REI, Target, Cartoon Network, and Apple.
In addition, they also completed a large-scale mural for The March of Dimes in Washington, DC, and their work was selected for inclusion in the 2017 and 2018 Student Award Competitions at The Society of Illustrators, the leading organization for professional illustrators.
