Presenting Adobe Stock Artist Development Fund recipients group three

Credit: Adobe Stock/fabio formaggio/EyeEm.

Today we are pleased to introduce you to the third group of recipients selected for the Artist Development Fund, a $500,000 creative commission program from Adobe Stock: Daniel Adams, Carlos David, Lynne Hardy, Anna Neubauer, Michaela Oteri, Christopher Robinson, and Hideo Tsuto.

Adobe Stock selects artists for recognition and funding based on their application proposals and their demonstrated ability to create visuals from the perspective of their own regional, ethnic, and lifestyle communities. Working with global artists from different backgrounds helps us get closer to our goal: expanding and maintaining a truly inclusive, world-class stock collection that authentically represents all of us and inspires creators worldwide.

The Adobe Stock Advocates program is part of our commitment to supporting and promoting accurate, inclusive representation in stock imagery, and we have invested $500,000 in an Artist Development Fund especially targeted to help self-identifying artists from underrepresented communities explore ambitious new projects, offsetting up-front costs like hiring models, renting spaces, and equipment.

In collaboration with the Adobe Creative Residency program, Adobe Stock is awarding $12,500 each to 40 selected artists as they undertake new projects focused on accurately depicting their diverse communities and unique experiences in a visually fresh, inclusive way. Applications are still open — videographers, photographers, and illustrators who identify with and depict underrepresented and diverse communities are encouraged to apply.

Credits: (Left) Adobe Stock/AmazingAerialAgency, (Right) Adobe Stock/kkgas/Stocksy.

Meet the latest Artist Development Fund recipients

Credit: Daniel Adams.

Daniel Adams

Daniel Adams is a Kuala Lumpur-based Malaysian photographer who examines themes of gender, identity, and cultural norms in his portraiture. A photographer since his teenage years, he works full-time as a professional commercial photographer. In his conceptual portrait images, he delves into the use of social and political ideologies, working with a goal of starting discussions among viewers. In his work, Daniel seeks unusual aspect and techniques to incorporate into his photography, aiming to recreate the surreal images in his head.

In his commission project for Artist Development Fund, called “The Melanin Narrative,” he explores themes of colorism, the queer experience of dark-skinned people, and the nature of masculinity within dark-skinned Asian communities. His work has been featured in The Guardian, The British Journal of Photography, Buzzfeed, F Stop Magazine, Photographica, Harper’s Bazaar Malaysia, and more.

Credit: Carlos David.

Carlos David

Carlos Davd is a Mexican-American visual artist focusing on diversity and inclusion. Living and working between New York City, Slovenia, and Mexico, he explores the complicated relationship between how we see ourselves and the objective reality captured by the camera and observer. The focus of his work is to create a portfolio of authentic images representing culture, personality, and identity.

His commission project for Artist Development Fund will explore the complexity of Mexican culture’s flavors, rituals, and characters. David’s project proposes an in-depth experience of sacred ceremonies, the taste of traditional foods and their makings, and how these relate to the trades of the new world of technologies and communications. The photographs will investigate the evolution and adaption of culture and identity and what it means to be a Mexican today. David is a 2019 LMCC and UMEZ grantee. His work has been shown in New York City, Mexico City, York, England, and Rovinj, Croatia. He was shortlisted for the 2021 Aesthetica Art Prize.

Credit: Lynne Hardy.

Lynne Hardy

Arizona illustrator Lynne Hardy is a member of the Navajo Nation with a longtime love drawing that spurred her towards a career in illustration. She says, “As a Native American woman, I am aware of the complexities of living in a modern world while at the same time clinging to traditions that are slowly fading out.”

For her Artist Development Fund commission project, she is creating illustrations that celebrate Native Americans. “I love my culture,” she says, “and for my project I am creating illustrations that capture the authenticity of my culture and its people. We are thriving, taking up space, and making ourselves known as more than relics of the past.”

Credit: Anna Neubauer.

Anna Neubauer

Anna Neubauer is an Austrian photographer and visual artist based in London, U.K. Her initial forays into visual storytelling began with surreal and imaginative self-portraiture. She has kept that creative sensibility while growing into an experienced children’s and fine art portrait photographer. She has worked with numerous clients including Abercrombie & Fitch, Adobe, Harper’s Bazaar, and more, and her work has been featured internationally.

Much of her work purposefully depicts diverse and disabled people, and she will continue to explore these subjects in her commission for Adobe Stock. “A lot of my work is centered on people with visible differences because I think the less diversity people see in their everyday lives, the more disconcerting they might find it,” Anna says. “For me, diversity does not exist without inclusion, I love creating storytelling images, unfolding stories that inspire me, hoping to inspire others.”

Credit: Michaela Oteri.

Michaela Oteri

Michaela Oteri is a queer, disabled digital artist from the U.S., based in Tampa Bay, FL. Her specialty is depicting diverse people and experiences. She has spent years creating her Disabled Beauty portrait series, and works to represent disabled people of all backgrounds. A wheelchair user with low vision, she draws on her own lived experiences to depict disabled people in empathetic, empowering images buoyed by elements of fantasy.

For her Artist Development Fund commission, Michaela is creating a collection of illustrations that reflect this positive, empowered vision, inspired by the Celebration of Self creative brief. She says, “I want to spread representation for fellow self-identified disabled people of all different backgrounds for use by fellow artists.”

Credit: Chris Robinson.

Christopher Robinson

Houston, TX-based illustrator Chris Robinson’s work brings together his professional experience in graphic design and his personal cultural heritage. His illustrations depict subjects playfully while remaining deeply rooted in rich family cultural histories.

“While searching stock illustrations on various sites in the past, I identified a lack of representation of Black people,” he says. He turned this discovery into an opportunity to bridge the gap in design by creating his own characters and backgrounds that reflected these resilient communities. With his commission project for Adobe Stock, and inspired in part by the Family Life creative brief, Chris aims to create highlight the Black family, and all the beauty of Black culture through illustrations, patterns, and design in his signature style.

Credit: Hideo Tsuto.

Hideo Tsuto

Hideo Tsuto is from Miyagi prefecture, in the Tohoku area in Japan. He developed his skills as a commercial photographer within the advertising industry. Hedeo’s ability to connect with local people is reflected in his portrait work, where he creates strong narratives and intimate relationships. The warmth of his portraits is in part fueled by a response to tragedy. “The city of Sendai, where I live, had an unprecedented earthquake we refer to as the Great East Japan Earthquake,” he says. “Feeling despair, I realized again the importance of family and helping each other in the community with my friends, and I believe in the power of photography and continue to take portraits.”

In his commission project, he aims to depict people of different ages, genders, and body types living in Japan, highlighting the connections they have with their families, and the unique charm of Japanese culture. Through photographs of real working people in agriculture, fisheries, and shops, his portraits share the details of daily life in specific industries and regions of Japan.

Discover inclusive, unique, contemporary imagery. Learn more about Adobe Stock Advocates program.