Zhenyi Zheng is an illustrator, comic creator and visual designer based in London. Her practice includes editorial illustration, commercial illustration, picture books, comics, and visual design.
Drawing from memory, observation and imagination, Zhenyi tells stories that explore the internal and external experiences of ordinary days. She captures life details from unspoken spaces, moments, and objects that are often ignored or unnoticed.
She loves to deposit her work in a place between reality and fiction as a silent narrative, with an objective tone and sober perspective, also, last but not least, adding some toppings of humour.
Educations
MA Visual Communication(Illustration), Royal College of Art, London, UK
MA Fashion and Lifestyle Brand Studies - University of Central Lancashire, Preston, UK
BA Digital Media Art - Beijing Institute of Graphic Communication, Beijing, China
Awards
2023 Chelttenham Illustration Awards, Winners in The Emerging and Established category
2023 Creative Quaterly, Runners-up in Illustration Catagory.
2022 World Illustration Awards, shortlisted in Alternative Publishing Category.
2022 Communication Arts-Illustration Annual Award, shortlisted.
2021 Hiii Illustration Awards, shortlisted.
2021 Young Blood Awards, shortlisted in Illustration Catagory.
2021 Young Battle Graduates Awards, Top 100
2020 iJUNGLE Illustration Awards, Merit Award.
Group Exhibitions
2024 Bigger Inside, Broken Frontier Six-to-Watch, St. Margaret’s House, London,UK
2024 Cheltenham Illustration Awards Interconnectivity, The Wilson Museum, UK2024 Cheltenham Illustration Awards 2023: Interconnectivity, The Museum in the Park, UK
2024 UNSPEAKABLE, Brut Magazine, New House Art Space, Guildford, UK
2023 To Whom It May Concern, Safehouse 1, London, UK
2023 REMIX Internatinal Illustration Festival, Beijing, China
2023 The 5th International Illustration Festival-Ilustrofest, Belgrade, Serbia
2023 Liveness Unnoticed, Canal Dream Art Festival, London, UK
2023 Small and Mighty Online Group Exhibition, Ladies Drawing Club, France
2023 International Women’s Day Group Exhibition, Print House Gallery, London, UK
2023 Unconsumed, The Shoe Factory, Norwich, UK
2023 Inspirational Women Artists, A Space Art, Southampton, UK
2021 Terminal, Ugly Duck, London, UK
2021 RCA2021 Online Exhibition, UK
2021 RCA Collection “Intimate Loops” Curated by Olivia Ahmed, UK
2020 No One Writes to Colonel Collaboration Publication Launch, Tenderbooks, London, UK
2020 RCA Reader Online Exhibition, UK
Features/Press/Review
2024 Broken Frontier Interview
2024 Six Small Press Creators to Watch in 2024, Broken Frontier, UK
2024 Illustrator Spotlight, Booooooom, Canada
2024 Arrey, Booooooom, Canada
2023 Review of Banana Trap on Broken Frontier, UK
2023 Discarded Ideas, Issue 7, VAINE Magazine, UK 2023 Ambit Magazine, Magik Issue 249, UK
2022 World Illustration Awards 2022 Judges’ Highlights from the New Talent Shortlist
Public Talk
2023 Publishing vs Self-Publishing, Panel discussion programme, Organized by Avery Hill Publishing, South London Comic Zine Festival, UK
Publications
2024 <My Little King and His World>《我的小国王和小国王的零》 Children’s Book, Shanghai Translation Publishing House, China.
2022 <WHERE IS THE KITCHEN GOD>《找找灶王爷》 Children’s Book, Tianjin People’s Fine Arts Publishing House, China.
2022 <GRANDMA WOLF>《狼外婆》 Children’s Book, Yangliuqing Fine Arts Press, China.
Selected Clients
Wandsworth London Borough Council(UK), Shanghai Translation Publishing House (CH), Rimowa(CH), The Palace Museum(CH), Ambit Magazine(UK), A Little Living Room Magazine(UK), Tianjin People’s Fine Art Publishing House(China)
