Bold Visual Stories: Xujia Zhang’s Branding Highlights

Xujia Zhang, a Shenzhen-based illustrator who recently joined Illo, shares with us two of his key branding projects of 2025 for Apple & MGM Resorts. Through his use of bold colours and unique compositions, Xujia captivates and draws in his audience, peaking their interest in the product or brand.

His first big commission of the year was for Apple, when they asked him to create an illustration for their WeChat social post – ‘Shot on Iphone, Drawn on Ipad’.

Xujia shares: “I was asked to draw on an iPhone-captured. Chinese landscape photo using an iPad, creating a vibrant and vivid illustration that interacted with the scenery in a playful way. I really enjoyed the project. It was my first time drawing over a photo, and it was such a new and fun experience for me.”

Another key project saw Xujia invited by MGM Grand Sanya to visit the city and create a series of illustrations for the hotel. The artworks capture the atmosphere of a high-end resort lifestyle, set against the hotel’s tropical coastal surroundings.

Xujia’s illustrations were inspired by the hotel’s ocean-view terrace and its relationship with the landscape. He added, “To me, a perfect day is about fully immersing myself in a peaceful getaway. I used vibrant colors to capture the joy of a tropical vacation, with a series of frames in the center to show the slow passing of time from sunrise to sunset. The second illustration was inspired by the interaction between the hotel’s live music scene and the sea. Located on Sanya’s beautiful tropical coastline, the hotel hosts live performances where music blends with the sound of waves and sea breeze.”

If you’d like to work with Xujia, please contact: [email protected]

At illo agency, we pride ourselves in representing a collation of global illustrators, distinctly diverse in creativity and uniquely celebrated by like-minded clients across a range of commercial markets.