Project
Swell App Illustrations
Overview
Swell is a to-do app that helps you get stuff done. Their team invited me to design and illustrate the app’s status messages to give users a sense of delight throughout the life of each task. An octopus character was used to represented the “admin” working behind-the-scenes for each to-do item.
Role
- Designer
- Illustrator
Deliverables
- App Illustrations

Concept Sketches
During the initial stage, concepts were quickly sketched for each of the app's message status. I focused on composition and character gestures while trying out different ways to convey the message.
“The task has been added to the queue, waiting for an admin to pick it up.”

“The task has been picked by an admin and someone is actively working on it.”

“We’re backed up, so no one can work on it at the moment.”

“Task can’t be answered/help by an admin.”

“Task Complete.”

Character Design
Swell’s team wanted an octopus to represent the “admin” role in the app. The character needed to lean towards a cute and soft feel — nothing “alien-like” in its appearance.
I modeled the octopus’ body to Swell’s lightbulb brand-mark. This symbol acts as a notification in the app’s UI, indicating “New Tips” from the admin are available.

Final Illustrations



