New Roads
“Wi-Fi Hotspot”

Illustrating the Modern Road Trip

Campbell Ewald reached out about a spot illustration for New Roads Magazine with a clear brief and a tight timeline. The article covered the benefits of Wi-Fi connectivity on road trips, and they wanted an icon-based illustration to fill a defined space in the layout — referencing my Cali Coffee artwork as the style they had in mind.

I read the article, asked a few clarifying questions about scale, stroke style, and color, then got to work brainstorming. Despite the compressed schedule, I made sure to think beyond the obvious — considering everything you actually encounter on a connected road trip: navigation, weather, rest stops, camping, social media, geography, devices. The goal was an illustration that felt like the experience, not just a diagram of features.

I delivered a sketch ahead of schedule to give us more buffer, refined it based on feedback, then provided multiple color variations so the team could choose once the layout was finalized. They selected two versions for final production.

This was the second of two editorial commissions from Campbell Ewald, following the Mapping Speed project.