Hannah Jilk
The June 2023 cover of Isthmus.
When Isthmus returned to print in 2021 we decided to switch from showcasing our main story on the front cover to presenting a piece of unrelated art by local artists. Though generally a fan of the idea, art director Tommy Washbush misses some things about our traditional format.
“I love typography so I’ve been somewhat ambivalent about losing type as a cover design element,” he says. But the annual SummerTimes issue seemed like the perfect opportunity for him to revisit that approach.
“A hand lettering specialist, Hannah Jilk felt like the ideal person to create a piece of art that could carry the cover on its own and also be reusable throughout the inside as branding for our special section content,” he says. “The SummerTimes package holds together well and Hannah was instrumental to creating that cohesion."
Hannah Jilk
Rough drafts of Hannah Jilk's 2023 Isthmus cover design.
The initial pencil sketch and a second draft of an alternate color scheme of Hannah Jilk's motel-themed SummerTimes cover.
A graduate of the Savannah College of Art and Design, Hannah specializes in illustration, painting and murals as well as hand lettering. She based her cover illustration on the retro motel signs you can find across the country, particularly the ones close to home in the Wisconsin Dells. She says she has a passion for color, especially bright ones.
See more of her work on her website or in person at her solo gallery show, “Mixed Messages,” which is on display at State Line Distillery from June 5 to July 25.
