The Village Voice’s “Five Boroughs, No Waiting”

Illustration
2017

First published in The Village Voice, 2017

Hand-Drawn Maps for the Cover Story “New York by New Yorkers: A Locals' Guide to the City's Neighborhoods from Art & Activism to Bodegas & Biryani.”

I was approached by the art directors at The Village Voice to create a series of five illustrated maps for one of their upcoming issues. They reached out with my specific artwork style already in mind: black ink, plus one spot color, hand-drawn illustrated maps. Each map would spotlight a different New York City neighborhood – a true locals' guide to places that are off-the-beaten path.

The half-page, editorial illustrations ran throughout the feature article of the issue. Each neighborhood map was designed with a different spot color that was carried through in the editorial layout design surrounding the map.

Issue: March 22- March 28, 2017, Vol. LXII | No. 12
Cover Illustration (below) by Eric Drooker

Front cover of the Village Voice newspaper with Eric Drooker's illustration
Black and blue ink illustrated map of Staten Island
Drawings of Bodega Pizza, the Buddha Beer Bar, the 191 Street Subway and the Borthern Manhattan Arts Alliance
Drawing of the Staten Island Yankees Stadium, the St. George Theatre, and the Ferry on New York bay
Illustration of Melody Lanes Bowling, Botanica, Maria's Bistro Mexicano

Five Illustrated Neighborhoods:

  • Jamaica

  • Melrose

  • Saint George

  • Sunset Park

  • Washington Heights

Newspaper illustration of a neighborhood in the Bronx
Jamaica Queens neighborhood map drawing
New York City neighborhood map editorial illustration for the Village Voice
A person holds up a copy of the Village Voice looking at maps of New York
Hand illustrated maps of New York City
The George Washington Bridge and Malecon on a map of upper Manhattan
An editorial illustration shows a map of Staten Island
Person holding a Village Voice newspaper open to a page featuring a map illustration and articles about local places, including Malecon Restaurant, Bodega Pizza, and Word Up Community Bookshop.

Credits

Commissioned by The Village Voice.

First published in March 2017.

Neighborhood Maps Illustrator, Designer
Russell Shaw

Deputy Art Director
Ashley Smestad Vélez

Contributing Art Director
Sandie Burke

Cover Illustration
Eric Drooker

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