DTAFM

AARON NESTOR | Art Director // Illustrator // Designer

[dtafm]

99% INVISIBLE // Hidden Levels - Series Art

I’ve been working with the 99% Invisible team for a long time now, and each project allows me to really stretch my art direction, illustration, and design skills.

HIDDEN LEVELS was an eight episode series all about the hidden influence of video games in our modern world. Right up my alley!

I created eight custom pieces of episode art and a handful of merchandise that included t-shirts, posters, and a puzzle.

This was one of my favorite projects I had the privilege of contributing to in 2025.

Check it out!

[dtafm]

COMMENTARELY LEGAL // Armageddon - Illustration

My friends have a podcast and sometimes I make illustrations for them! This was a fun one that came together very easily.

Check out the show!

[dtafm]

HOW DID THIS GET MADE // Podcast Art Refresh

Every few years it seems like we do a little art refresh for How Did This Get Made. The layout stays the same while the photos of the hosts change. And then I get to methodically isolate the hosts (and Jason's hair). Good thing I'm a pro with a brush pen in Photoshop!

[dtafm]

FREAKONOMICS // Guide to Work - Series Art

Work can be hard. From bosses who act like dictators to noisy office spaces meant to promote collaboration, it can sometimes seem like the systems in place aren't meant to help but hinder.

Apple Podcasts wanted to feature a handful of existing episodes that talked about all of those things in the workplace. I received a creative brief from the Freakonomics team breaking down each episode being featured along with previous art I've created that they enjoyed.

Off to the iPad to sketch, noodle, and think. We landed on an overall look and feel and I rendered the full suite of illustrations.

[dtafm]

99% INVISIBLE // Apple Podcasts Episode Art

Apple Podcasts reached out to the 99PI team to feature eight episodes on their platform. To do so, they needed custom art to use in their carousel.

Each episode covered a different topic. From scrap collectors in Mexico City, to being able to buy a house from a catalog, the series covered a variety of topics. So as per usual, I pulled out a trusty sketchbook and some tools and went to work.

This was a pretty tight timeline, so I challenged myself to work fast and loose. Trying to not worry about perfection as well as finding a style that would be easy to execute across eight episodes in a fairly brisk manner.

I love how these came together. It's always a delight to see my work in the Apple Podcasts app carousel. And it's always wonderful to work with Roman and co.

[dtafm]

EARWOLF PRESENTS // Dragons AF - Character Illustrations

Just a bunch of characters for a Dungeons & Dragons podcast on Earwolf Presents. I was made for this.

[dtafm]

FREAKONOMICS // Sympathy For The Rat - Series Art

New York City. Rats. Name a more iconic duo!

The team at Freakonomics had another request for series art and once again I set off into a blank page and drafted up a handful of potential executions. One of our goals was to make sure that the hero rat felt cute and sympathetic as opposed to being a vile vermin.

We mashed a couple of elements together from different solutions and landed on the final art you see at the top. Should I get a cute rat for a pet now?! Probably not.

Check it out!

[dtafm]

THE DISAPPEARANCE OF DICKIE DONNELLY // Trent Dunphy Illustration

The man who kidnapped Dickie Donnelly — Trent Dunphy — in all of his stabby and shrimpy splendor.

[dtafm]

WEIRD LITTLE GUY // Animation Test with Looom

I was shown this wonderful animation app on the iPad called "Looom", and I fell in love with it. This was one of the first animation tests I did. My plan is to dive into this delightful tool a bit more this year and hopefully grow this skill.

[dtafm]

99% INVISIBLE // Not Built For This - Series Art

Working with Roman Mars and the 99PI team is always a delight.

This art was for a mini-series that tackled climate change in various parts of the USA. Each episode features a different climate calamity in a different city. From flooding to extreme heat, the series tackles a broad range of natural disasters.

Once I received the creative brief, I did what I always do — get to sketching on the tablet!

We went back and forth a few times to make sure the concept image for each episode worked properly. My aim was to keep things feeling very unified. That helped me make the decision on the isometric point of view and to keep to a limited color palette.

This was a wonderful project. I continually look forward to collaborating with the 99% Invisible team.

You can check out the series here!

[dtafm]

R U TALKIN' RHCP RE: ME? // Podcast Cover Art

The Scotts are at it again, this time going over those California Cool Guys the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Scott Aukerman and Adam Scott sent me the photos I used in this cover art. And I recreated the album art for "Blood Sugar Sex Magik". Done and done.

Check it out!

[dtafm]

STITCHER // Lifecycle Tutorial Illustrations

In 2019, Stitcher needed some illustrations for some onboarding emails that would be sent to users. I was provided with what each email would be going over and tasked with generating supporting imagery to reinforce the content being shared.

I was asked to use the Stitcher brand colors for these. Thankfully there were plenty of options for me to choose from. I had a lot of fun playing with soft gradients, making things have a bit more depth. Keeping a clean and bright style helped these feel inviting to the recipients. I also was allowed to draw a cute dog!

[dtafm]

EARWOLF PRESENTS // 2 Spooky 2 Handle - Custom Posters

Mano Agapion and Betsy Sodaro are two very funny and delightful people who also love scary movies. For EARWOLF PRESENTS, they had a four episode series during October. Each episode was a completely improvised "movie" featuring a lot of hilarious performers.

We even wound up printing physical posters (which I have yet to frame and hang on my walls).

This was a quick and fun project. I'm hopeful that they may do this type of thing again in the future.

Check it out!

[dtafm]

FREAKONOMICS // Live Theater - Series Art

This was a custom illustration for a Freakonomics series about live theater. They're a great team to work with and are always very supportive of my creative concepts. I provided a couple of sketches, talked with the team, made some adjustments, and landed on the final art you see at the top.

Check it out!

[dtafm]

STITCHER // In-App Illustrations Style Explorations

Way back in 2020 when Stitcher was still a thing, we were working on an updated version of the app. I was tasked with exploring some illustration styles that would be used on the website and app.

I'm not entirely sure if these ever got used. But this was a creatively satisfying project that let me be as playful or as restrained as I wanted to be.

[dtafm]

STITCHER // Labor Day Illustrations

A throwback to 2017! We ran all sorts of custom ads at Stitcher throughout each year. Usually some sort of promotion to sign up for a premium subscription. My only direction on this was "LABOR DAY"!

I put a few comps together, received sign-off from the team on two directions, and then proceeded to render final art. I really like the colors and compositions in these illustrations.

[dtafm]

MYSTERY SOLVER // Cover Art

I honestly don’t remember if this show ever saw the light of day, but I really liked how clean and bright these illustrations turned out. I always love some good ol’ fashioned vector art!