But regardless of what he's working on, Skwish is always concerned that his illustrations fairly and accurately portrayed the story. Skwish said the amount of leeway he gets in developing an illustration depends on the client. While some require a straight approach with minimal interpretation, others are more willing to let him try new things. Although advertising would pay far more than most of the work he does, Skwish said the control factor is one reason he has never done it. Skwish judged the recent Society for News Design annual contest.
Advertising is a different animal.
With about 30 art directors and editors whom he considers regular clients, Skwish was able to give the future designers a glimpse into the compensation and deadlines to expect. Skwish also spoke about his recent experience as a judge for the Society for News Design annual contest. He was exposed to thousands of illustrations as one of the five judges for features and illustrations. Although he described the process as very arbitrary, he said the experience helped him enormously as an artist. Although he isn't sure what he will do in the future, the Chicago-based artist said he likes the fact that his job will allow him to go anywhere.