Creative Boom

News and inspiration for artists and designers since 2009 👀 Creative Boom is a global hub for creatives.

Since 2009, we’ve inspired and supported millions of artists, designers, illustrators, photographers, filmmakers, and makers. Our mission is simple: to uplift the creative community with fresh ideas, valuable resources, and inspiring stories that spark motivation. Through our magazine, podcast, and growing community, we showcase talent, share insights, and give practical support to help you thrive

in your career. Whether you’re starting out or established, Creative Boom is where you’ll find inspiration, knowledge, and connection.

29/07/2026

Britain's seaside towns, but not as the headlines tell them 👀

Polly Braden's new exhibition Against the Tide has just opened at Arnolfini in Bristol – portraits of young people in seaside towns, made over more than a year of visits with journalist Lisa Bachelor.

The best bit? Young residents in Weston-super-Mare, Blackpool, Whitehaven and Brightlingsea were taught to take their own photographs, and their images hang alongside Braden's.

Entry is free, and it runs until 27 September.

Full story on Creative Boom. 👇
https://www.creativeboom.com/news/mascots-mirrors-and-the-faintly-absurd-polly-braden-reveals-the-truth-behind-britains-seaside-towns-/

28/07/2026

A restaurant identity that tells the story of immigration – from Europe to Argentina and back again 👀

From our archive: DutchScot's branding for Sucre, chef Fernando Trocca's restaurant in a 310-year-old former London concert hall. Tango steps run through the collateral, Rebecca Sutherland's illustrations capture daily life in Buenos Aires, and even the wine list makes the journey across the Atlantic.

Still one of our favourite identity stories. More on Creative Boom. 👇

Read more: https://www.creativeboom.com/inspiration/dutchscots-identity-for-sucre-tells-the-sweet-story-of-immigration/

27/07/2026

Branding that makes you feel something's different, but you can't quite put your finger on it 👀

Meet Cooot, the Zhengzhou-based studio founded by Bai Mi, whose work delivers a brief sense of dislocation before it snaps into focus – cocktail booklets organised by glassware, a coffee brand coloured by ripening cherries.

For more finds like this every week, join our free Tuesday newsletter at creativeboom.com. 👇

Read more: https://www.creativeboom.com/inspiration/dont-try-to-understand-it-meet-cooot-the-studio-making-branding-feel-wonderfully-uncertain/

26/07/2026

'The grit is where it's at' 👀

Creative director Gemma Phillips left Saatchi & Saatchi after 12 years and now makes unmissable campaign work for Pregnant Then Screwed – including The Career Shredder, a machine that shreds the CVs of mothers pushed out of work. It was raised in the House of Commons.

She tells us why brands sugarcoat too much, why the real risk is being boring, and why humour might be the most respectful thing you can offer an audience.

Full interview on Creative Boom. 👇

Read more: https://www.creativeboom.com/insight/creative-director-gemma-phillips/

25/07/2026

How do you turn a 110-year-old department store into a food hall without losing its soul? 👀

When Love & War branded Shaver Hall inside the old Lord & Taylor building on Fifth Avenue, the cleverest move happened before any design work: they named it after Dorothy Shaver, the store's pioneering former president that history had forgotten.

Proof that a person can trump a mood board. The identity nods to the building's art deco bones, then the campaign has fun with Pop Art colour and playful food shots.

Full feature on Creative Boom. 👇

24/07/2026

Creative mothers are paying twice right now, and Rachel Many has made it impossible to look away 👀

Her poster series Mother Load turns hard numbers into blunt images – price tags stuck across a face like clearance stock, receipts itemising 'guilt' and 'invisible labour'. Full-time mothers earned just 74.3 cents to every dollar fathers earned, and that's before the layoffs and the scramble for AI skills nobody has spare time to learn.

A sharp warning to agency leaders about who gets designed out.

Full feature on Creative Boom. 👇

23/07/2026

Still guessing your way to a day rate? You're not alone 👀

Setting freelance rates is mostly a battle with yourself, so here's a calmer way in: work out the minimum you need to live before you set your ideal rate, ask peers directly instead of trusting broad surveys, and take part-payment upfront so scope creep never costs you.

Timeless advice for anyone who's ever undercharged.

Full guide on Creative Boom. 👇

Read more: https://www.creativeboom.com/tips/how-to-set-your-freelance-rates/

22/07/2026

Ever feel guilty for drawing something just for you when there's 'real' work waiting? 👀

Illustrator Kaitlin Brito – whose clients include Google, Disney and The New York Times – says that instinct to make for yourself is exactly what makes the paid work better. After burning out, she made protecting her 'pure making' a rule.

Full feature on Creative Boom. 👇

Read more: https://www.creativeboom.com/inspiration/how-kaitlin-brito-protects-her-pure-making-so-the-paid-work-gets-better/

21/07/2026

Stack Overflow's question volume fell off a cliff after ChatGPT arrived. So how do you rebrand a developer icon when AI is eating your traffic? 👀

Koto's answer is a smart one: stop competing on speed, and celebrate the thing AI can't replicate – a huge community of people asking, testing and correcting technical knowledge in public.

The new look runs on an 'always in build' idea, with a stacked, offset logo and a custom typeface called Stack Sans that's free on Google Fonts.

More on Creative Boom. 👇

20/07/2026

Feeling tired, less secure and uneasy about AI? Our 2026 survey says you're far from alone. 👀

We heard from 882 creatives, and the numbers are sobering: 69% have hit burnout this year, half feel less financially secure than they did a year ago, and while 86% now use AI, only 10% think it's good for the industry.

The most encouraging finding? When we asked what would genuinely help, people didn't say better software. They said community and mentorship.

Full report on Creative Boom. 👇

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