Art Direction & Assigned Illustration
The Climate Solution Actually Adding Millions of Tons of CO2 Into the Atmosphere
New research shows that California’s climate policy created up to 39 million carbon credits that aren’t achieving real carbon savings. But companies can buy these forest offsets to justify polluting more anyway.Illustration by Jon Han, article by Lisa Song and James Temple, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by ProPublica, Apr 29, 2021America’s Drinking Water Is Surprisingly Easy to Poison
The cyberbreach at a plant in Oldsmar, Florida, which could have resulted in a mass poisoning, was a reminder of a disturbing reality: Despite a decade of warnings, thousands of water systems around the country are still at risk.Illustration by Juan Bernabeu, article by Peter Elkind and Jack Gillum, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by ProPublica, Mar 17, 2021How COVID-19 Hollowed Out a Generation of Young Black Men
They were pillars of their communities and families, and they are not replaceable. To understand why COVID-19 killed so many young Black men, you need to know the legend of John Henry.Elliott Robbins is a fine artist who grapples with the terms of race and racism in society, filtered through mythologies past and present, and his personal experience. The animations I commissioned from him, to accompany reporting by Akilah Johnson and Nina Martin, rendering the toll of weathering through his interpretation of the John Henry narrative were perfect for the story.
Published by ProPublica, Dec. 22, 2020
Winner of the ASME Award for Coverage of Race in America 2021
Defenseless: Investigating the Only State Without Public Defenders
An investigation by The Maine Monitor and ProPublica found that more than a quarter of Maine attorneys disciplined in the past decade for serious professional misconduct were hired as lawyers for the poor. Defendants often paid the price.Illustrations by Chloe Cushman, articles by Samantha Hogan, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
How Criminal Cops Often Avoid Jail
New Jersey officers accused of violence, sexual misconduct and more have walked free in deals that dodge a tough sentencing law. Now lawmakers want to eliminate it.Illustration by Josh Cochran, article by Andrew Ford, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by ProPublica, Sept. 23, 2020Grenades, Bread and Body Bags: How Illinois Has Spent $1.6 Billion in Response to COVID-19 So Far
Fighting — and adapting to — the coronavirus in Illinois has been costly. So far, state agencies have spent more than $1.6 billion in federal and state COVID-19 funding since late March, buying everything from face masks to Subway sandwiches.Illustrations by Thoka Maer, article by Ash Ngu, Jodi S. Cohen, and Jennifer Smith Richards, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by ProPublica, Oct. 22, 2020
Future Tense Fiction: “The Minnesota Diet”
Experts have warned for decades—since even before Superstorm Sandy hit New York and closed off the tunnels, and Manhattan suffered shortages almost instantaneously—that cities have fragile supply chains. City planners have learned to prepare for hurricanes and other natural disasters, but nobody predicted that a simple combination of logistical problems and crop failure could be worse than any storm.Illustrations by Laura Callaghan, short story by Charlie Jane Anders, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine, Jan. 17, 2018
Future Tense Fiction: “Mother of Invention”
“Error, fear, and suffering are the mothers of invention.”—Ursula K. Le Guin, Changing Planes
Illustration by Shyama Golden, short story by Nnedi Okorafor, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine, Feb. 21, 2018
Slate Magazine: Illustration Internship 2018
While working as Art Director at Slate Magazine, I created a new illustration internship, inaugurated by Doris Liou, a recent graduate of RISD and all around talented artist. She completed 30+ published illustrations during the program, including the following highlights.Illustrations by Doris Liou, AD Lisa Larson-Walker
Published by Slate Magazine, summer 2018.
The New Diploma Mills
Rushing to boost graduation rates, more school districts are relying on “online credit recovery”—a form of instruction that may be selling students short.Illustration by Kellan Jett, containing all spot art for each post within the multipart article series in a single drawing, articles by Zoë Kirsch and Stephen Smiley, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine, May 23, 2017
The Mercy Girls
These young women enrolled in an influential Christian counseling center for help. That's not what they found.
Illustration by Riikka Sormunen, article by Jennifer Miller, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine Apr. 24, 2016
The Hillary Haters
Few figures in American political life have inspired such deep and decades-long contempt. But why?Illustration by Vanessa Dell, article by Michelle Goldberg, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine July 24, 2016
Getting It Right
A field guide to the five tribes of modern male fashion.Illustration by Jeremy Sorese, series by Simon Doonan, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine May 2016
There Once Was a Girl
Against the false narratives of anorexia.Illustration by Aidan Koch, article by Katy Waldman, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine Dec. 7 2015
What Classes Should I Take?
These are the most useful, practical, life-altering, and enriching courses in an ideal catalog, as described class by memorable class by Slate staff.Illustration by Mouni Feddag, containing all spot art for each post within the multipart article series in a single drawing, AD Lisa Larson-Walker.
Published by Slate Magazine Aug. 31 - Sept. 3 2015