Here are just a few of the friends and strangers who I think are rad:

 

- Lisel Ashlock for her haunting paintings on wood

- Kate Beaton for starting a sexy revolution in online comics

- Andre da Loba for the (annoyingly brilliant) ways he is re-thinking books

- Dunja Jankovic, since I have a huge crush on her comics

- Joanna Neborsky for her love of shmoes and morbid news items

- Anna Raff for her watercolor creatures

- Julia Rothman for her daily inspiration from books

- Rob Ryan for his cut paper and words

- Sybille Schenker for her line work and panoramas

- Shaun Tan, since I'd sincerely like to be him when I grow up

- And then of course everyone in the School of Visual Arts' MFA Illustration class of 2009!