Mr. Tom Froese is an award-winning illustrator, teacher, and speaker. He loves making images that make people smile. Tom’s is known for his lively maps, characters and scenes, created with expressive shapes, bright colours, and printmaking-inspired textures. Since 2013, Tom has worked for brands and businesses all over the world. Esteemed clients include Yahoo!, Airbnb, GQ France, and The Wall Street Journal. He graduated from NSCAD with a Bachelor of Design (honours) in 2009.

Teacher, Speaker and Podcaster

Tom is a Top Teacher on Skillshare, where over 120,000 students (and counting!) have learned his unique and accessible approach to commercial illustration. Tom has been invited to present workshops and talks to creative audiences across the US and Canada, including ICON, Skillshare, and DesignThinkers. In 2022, Tom launched Thoughts on Illustration, a podcast about showing up and growing up as a commercial illustrator.

Husband, Father, Runner

Tom works from his backyard studio in the village of Yarrow, British Columbia, just outside of Vancouver. He lives with his wife, Amanda Froese, their two highly creative daughters, and the family cat, Blueberry. Tom is an Aspiring Dog Person and has agreed to share his living space with Bobby the Costco Doodle. In his spare time, Tom loves to get outside and run.

Awards and Honours

Communication Arts Illustration Annual 60, BC Beer Awards, 3x3 Professional Show Annual No. 14, Communication Arts Illustration Annual 58, 2016 World Illustration Awards (Shortlist), Communication Arts Design Annual 55, Communication Arts Design Annual 54

Select Clients

Abrams Appleseed, Airbnb, BC Liquor Stores, British Museum, Canadian Tire, Capital One, Chipotle, Condé Nast, Esquire UK, GQ France, Harvard Business Review, Jazz at Lincoln Centre, Kit & Ace, Laurence King, McDonald's, Monocle, Nosy Crow Publishing, Penguin Random House, Pentagram, Polaris Music Prize, Publix, Reader's Digest, The Globe & Mail, The Laughing Cow, The Wall Street Journal, The Walrus, Vienna Symphony Orchestra, White Spot, Yahoo!

Speaking and Workshops

DesignThinkers (Vancouver, 2023)
Skillshare Live Sessions (Online, 2023)
ICON 11 (Kansas City, MO, 2022)
DesignThinkers 2022 (Vancouver, 2022)
Skillshare HQ (New York, 2019)
ICON 10 (Detroit, 2018)
Type Brigade 38 (Vancouver, 2017)
ICON 9 (Austin, TX, 2016)
Adobe Creative Jam (Vancouver, 2015)