Illustration graduate wins global award

Illustrator and designer Rosalyn Burroughs, who graduated from UWE Bristol in 2024, has won a World Illustration Award for her bus wrap design marking 80 years since the first female bus drivers were employed in the city.

Her ‘Women at the Wheel’ illustration will be a familiar sight to many across Bristol. It was chosen by First Bus to transform its double-decker buses, telling the story of key moments of women behind the wheel in the city and across the UK.

Rosalyn entered the bus wrap, created while she was a student at UWE Bristol, in the World Illustration Awards, which showcase great illustrations from around the globe.

She was selected as the winner of the SAA Award for New Talent category – a significant achievement, with winners chosen from a shortlist of 200 projects, drawn from over 4,700 entries from 85 countries.

Rosalyn said: “Winning this award was a huge surprise, given the quality of work within the category. I am incredibly grateful to the SAA for selecting me as this year’s winner and am honoured that experts within the industry have recognised my work.

“I am incredibly proud of this achievement and the hard work and dedication that it represents. The project I entered, ‘Women at the wheel- 80 years of bus drivers in Bristol’, has been transformative for my illustration career, making my portfolio more memorable. It has been a privilege to get to share the progress made by women within the transport industry through this bus wrap.”

Looking ahead, Rosalyn would love to work with Transport for London (TfL) on an advertising campaign and is keen to pursue opportunities in children’s books. She added: “I am a big advocate for public transport and the benefits it brings. Seeing the illustrations TfL has commissioned in the past always improves my commute.

“I would also like to work in children’s non-fiction illustration. Being dyslexic, I know how important it is to help children who may struggle to engage with written information.”