Shadow Fleet

Owen was invited to create the cover illustration for both the print and digital editions of Politico Europe, illustrating the feature article on “Putin’s sanctions-busting shadow fleet” spilling oil all over the world and spreading environmental harm without consequences. 

Owen created this three part illustration, inspired by vintage Russian propaganda posters, taking cues on the graphic use of form and limited colour palettes. He then went on to create this series of handcrafted papercut artworks, viewing the tankers from various dramatic angles, carving slicks of oil in their wake.

The artwork was then beautifully animated by Grand Matter's in-house animation studio Plastic Horse, bringing Owen's multi-layered artwork to life as a hypnotic visual piece.

Gold Cube Winner – Art Director's Club 104th Awards, 2025
Award of Excellence Winner – Communication Arts, 2025
American Illustration Selected Winner – AI-AP 44, 2025
Society of News Design Bronze Medal - Best of News Design, 2025 
Highly Commended – World Illustration Awards, 2025