Nicole Xu: Picture Books
Biography ▼
Nicole Xu is a freelance illustrator who was born in Shanghai, China, and grew up in Vancouver, Canada. She graduated from Rhode Island School of Design with a BFA in illustration and is now based in Portland, OR. She uses both classic and digital watercolor techniques. Her debut picture book, “All of A Sudden and Forever, Help and Healing after the Oklahoma City Bombing,” written by Chris Barton, is published by Lerner Publishing.
Recent Projects
Nicole Xu
Health Progress
Nicole Xu was commissioned by Health Progress, the journal of The Catholic Health Association Of The United States to create a number of illustrations for their articles: “Your Care Provider Can See You Now: Pandemic Prompts New Approaches in Telehealth,” “What Has the Pandemic Revealed About the Health Care Delivery...
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Nicole Xu
Nicole Xu | HuffPost
Nicole Xu was commissioned by the HuffPost to create four cover illustrations for their series “Asian Americans Out Loud” in honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. This series of essays highlights people displaying leadership in the face of trauma and fear in Asian communities across America. See more of...
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Nicole Xu
Nicole Xu | 2Communique
Nicole Xu was commissioned by 2Communique to illustrate the cover and a series of interior illustrations for Medicine@Brown‘s Winter 2021 issue, “In Too Deep.” See more of Nicole Xu’s work here.
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John S. Dykes, Nicole Xu
John S. Dykes + Nicole Xu | USC Dornsife Magazine
John S. Dykes and Nicole Xu both created illustrations for USC Dornsife Magazine’s Fall 2019/ Winter 2020 issue. John illustrated a map for the article “Happiness Around the Globe,” and Nicole created three illustrations to accompany the article, “Happiness Across the Life Span: Not a Slippery Slope after all.” See...
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Nicole Xu
Nicole Xu | Carolrhoda Books
Nicole Xu illustrated the picture book All of A Sudden and Forever: Help and Healing After the Oklahoma City Bombing written by Chris Barton and published by Carolrhoda Books. This emotional story follows the healing process of an elm tree that survived the bombing in Oklahoma City in 1995. The...
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Aldo Crusher, John Jay Cabuay, Nicole Xu
Inktober 2019
Every October, artists around the world dedicate themselves to drawing every day for an entire month. This challenge, called Inktober, gives illustrators the chance to freely test new styles, draw unexpected subject matter, and get to know their community. This ambitious project is admirable to attempt as a busy freelance...
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Nicole Xu
Nicole Xu | The New York Times
Nicole Xu created an illustration for the New York Times op ed article “No Quick Fix for Childhood Grief.” The project was art directed by Jim Datz. See more of Nicole’s work here.
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Nicole Xu
Nicole Xu | Plansponsor
Client: Plansponsor | Description: New watercolor illustration by Nicole Xu titled, “Borrowing from Oneself.” Check out Nicole’s portfolio here
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Nicole Xu
Nicole Xu | Hazlitt
Client: Hazlitt | Description: Nicole created a beautiful watercolor illustration for Hazlitt’s short story, “The View from the Top of the Stair”. Check out Nicole’s portfolio here
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