It’s always fun to see my work being used around town. My friend Bob Wertz and I have done the branding last several years for Columbia, SC’ s big annual holiday event. I make the pictures and Bob does the hard stuff. They used these illustrations on flagpole banners, advertising, billboards, beer cups, etc!
2022 SECAC Award for Excellence in Design
I have been attending the South Eastern College Arts Conference (SECAC) since 2005 and have learned so much from my academic peers at this annual event. It’s taken me to some great campuses across the country and I’ve made great connections. So it was very rewarding to receive this award fro the conference this year.
Dot Rides a Bike + Cocky's Reading Express
During COVID, I worked on a great project illustrating a children’s book for the University of South Carolina called Dot Rides A Bike. Learn more about it below! I visited AC Moore with Cocky’s Reading Express and the team that worked on the book for story time with the students.
COLA Today Interview
Check out this fun interview I did with COLA Today. Click HERE.
Creative Boom Selects Valdes as one of the "20 of the Most Exciting illustrators to Follow in 2022"
I was selected for this list of exciting illustrators. Read the story here. Creative Boom is one of the UK's leading platforms dedicated to the creative industries. Founded in 2009, Creative Boom delivesr news, inspiration, insight and advice to six million creative professionals every year.
2021 American Graphic Design Award from GDUSA
Bird Break received an American Graphic Design Award from Graphic Design USA. The award was for book design. Way to go birds!
2021 Solo Exhibition at Aiken Center for the Arts September 9 - October 15
2021 World Illustration Awards Shortlist!
Profile Video for the World Illustration Awards
Awards 2021- Whoo Hoo!
I am happy to report that my work for the MUSC Children’s Hospital has gathered 3 honors this year including:
• Graphic Design USA Health and Wellness Award
• American Illustration Chosen Winner for The Archive
• The World Illustration Awards Longlist (stay tuned to see if we made it to the finals in September)
Six Feet, Please.
We sold over 800 stickers promoting social distancing during this pandemic. All the holographic stickers are gone but there are some mini sticker packs available on my Etsy store.
MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital Wins American Graphic Design Award from Graphic Design USA
The installation at the MUSC Children’s Hopsital was selected for an American Graphic Design Award from Graphic Design USA Magazine’s 57th anniversary competition. For the seventh consecutive year, they saw more than 10,000 entries; only the top 10 percent were selected as a winner.
MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital Wins Health and Wellness Award from Garphic Design USA
Nationally, my grant funded project with MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children’s Hospital received a 2020 Health and Wellness Award from Graphic Design USA in New York. According to their press release, “This has quickly emerged as the most selective of design competitions; there are just 250 winners chosen from roughly 2,500 entries”. Some of the other winning brands included CaliforniaChoice, Children’s Minnesota, City of Oakland CA, LA County Department of Mental Health, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Mass General Hospital, Michigan State University College of Medicine, NIKE, PEPSICO, Pfizer, Robitussin, San Francisco Department of Health, United Nations, United Way, US Department of Health & Human Services, and US Postal Service.
GOLD Award for Illustration in the UCDA Design Awards
I was awarded the Gold Award in Illustration for the USC Slfie Wall Project by the 2020 UCDA Design Awards, a part of the UCDA Design Awards Show. This year’s show will be part of the UCDA Design Conference. Out of 823 entries, only 7 were awarded gold from 181 selected pieces. Theproject was a UofSC Selfie Wall created for the art festival Artisphere in Greenville, SC and revolved around the theme of the art of healthy living.
These annual awards honor the best work in educational design—in print, digital, illustration, photography, and student competitions. These coveted awards are judged by a hand-picked panel of peer jurors composed of designers, design educators, photographers, and illustrators working in or doing a significant portion of their work for educational institutions.
American Illustration 39: The Archive
Marius Valdes had two pieces of art chosen for American Illustration 39 as part of The ARCHIVE collection at ai-ap.com. These artworks were two of only a few hundred images selected from over 7,000 entries and therefore eligible to appear permanently on The ARCHIVE.
This year’s distinguished jury included: Milan Bozic, Senior Art Director, HarperCollinsPublishers; Maëlle Doliveux, Creative Director & Designer, Beehive Books; Christine Foltzer, Associate Art Director, Tor; Emily Glaubinger, Senior Designer, Anthropologie Home; Rodrigo Honeywell, Art Director, The New York Times; Anton Loukhnovets, Creative Director, 30 Point; and Carolyn Perot, Creative Director, Mother Jones.
The acclaimed American Illustration competition is the first and foremost go-to resource for art directors, designers, and art buyers who insist on assigning only the best original, thoughtful and compelling pictures.
American Illustration 38 Archive
Associate Professor (Studio Art), Marius Valdes, had one of his illustrations selected to appear online as part of The ARCHIVE at ai-ap.com for American Illustration
It was one of only 413 images from over 7,000 submitted eligible to appear permanently on The ARCHIVE – AI-AP’s exclusive online juried collection.
This year’s distinguished jury included: Chris Brand, Crown Publishing; Hannah K Lee, The New York Times; Janet Michaud, Politico; Dennis Huynh, Buzzfeed; Maria G. Keehan, Smithsonian; Aaron Rinas, Art + Mechanical; and Marianne Seregi, National Geographic
Time Lapse of my Process
Watch me draw and paint really fast!
AC Moore Elementary Mural (In Progress)
I was invited to be the Artist-In-Residence this year for AC Moore Elementary. This includes a fun commission to create two 40+ feet murals for their school library. Each grade developed an idea for a character and I worked them into the overall design. There are also family of Bobcats (school mascot) hiding in the mural for the kids to find. I drew all the pictures by hand, scanned them, collaged them on the computer and redrew each mural using a Cintiq tablet. Color was added digitally. The final art will be printed and mounted on the library walls above the book shelves. In addition, we will be making stand alone cut outs of the different animals that will go around the school. Here are some images from the mural in progress. We hope to install and have an opening reception in December. Click on each image below.
Creative Quarterly Runner-Up
The Richland Library Project was selected as a runner-up for Creative Quarterly Magazine's illustration competition.
American Illustration Competition
My work for the Richland Library Doodle Freely Mural was selected to appear in the upcoming American Illustration 37 annual award hardcover book. From over 8,000 submissions, the jury selected, by a majority vote or better, only 367 images to appear in the book and represent the best illustrations from 2017.
This year’s distinguished jury included: Damien Correll, Google; Jim Datz, The New York Times Op-Ed; Phoebe Flynn Rich, Rachel Ray Everyday; Alison Forner, Simon and Schuster; Na Kim, Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Michael Mrak, Scientific American; and Ivylise Simones, WIRED
The American Illustration 37 winning collection will be presented in print and digital media for maximum visibility. There will be an event for the winner sin New York in November. Count me in!