Illustration & Report — Vic Department of Health & TACSI
Cover design and illustration
Project Scope & Deliverables
Client: Victorian Department of Health & TACSI (The Australian Centre for Social Innovation)
Project Scope: Government Report Design, Diversity & Inclusion Illustration, Creative Direction
Medium & Style: Digital Editorial Illustration, Vector Layout (Adobe Illustrator & Photoshop)
Client Location: Melbourne, Victoria, & Sydney, NSW, Australia
Studio Base: Melbourne, Victoria
The Challenge: Representing the Unseen
Commissioned by the Victorian Department of Health and working in close collaboration with TACSI, the objective was to create a complete visual identity for a major report focused on Victoria’s diverse communities. In a field where corporate agencies often use generic stock imagery, they required specialised illustrators and graphic designers who could directly represent and speak to new migrants, refugees, LGBTQI+ individuals, and people living with disabilities.
The main challenge was steering completely clear of the clinical, dry nature of a standard government document. Instead, the design needed to establish a genuine sense of belonging, warmth, and interconnectedness through vibrant visual storytelling, without looking tokenistic.
The Solution: An Empathy-Driven Visual Identity
To ground the report in real human experience, I developed a suite of bespoke editorial illustrations that served as the visual heart of the entire document. Melding my background across both fields—as many leading graphic designers do when managing complex data, and illustrators do when creating narrative emotion—I crafted a series of spot illustrations alongside a high-impact hero cover design.
Every layout was built to consciously challenge stereotypes and bridge gaps in understanding across different cultural and social groups. Operating as a dedicated, off-site art department, I made sure these illustrations weren't just decorative filler; they were treated as a strategic tool to build empathy, make complex social data highly accessible, and ultimately help drive meaningful policy action within the department.
Illustrations for the cover of the TACSI report
