Faculty

Profile

Lauren Simkin Berke is a Brooklyn based American artist and illustrator, and when time allows, publisher of art books and zines under the name Captain Sears Press. Berke draws for clients such as The New York Times, MIT Technology Review, and Rémy Martin, illustrating book covers including Katie Rain Hill's Rethinking Normal, the Paris Review Edition's The Writer's Chapbook, and the first edition of Susan Stryker's Transgender History. They recently illustrated their first picture book, Were I Not A Girl: The Inspiring and True Story of Dr. James Barry for Anne Schwartz Books (an imprint of Penguin Random House). Berke’s illustration work has been recognized by American Illustration, the Society of Illustrators, Communication Arts, 3x3, and Print Magazine. They currently teach at Parsons, the Fashion Institute of Technology, and the School of Visual Arts.

Degrees Held

M.F.A. in Illustration as Visual Essay, School of Visual Arts, 2003

B.A. in Anthropology, Cornell University, 2001

Awards And Honors

American Illustration 24, 27, 28, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36 , 38, 39, 40 and 41; (book) American Illustration 25, 26, 29, 30, 31, 34 and 37 (web annual); 3x3 Annual No. 18, Merit Winner; 3x3 Annual No. 16, Honorable Mention; Print Magazine, 3rd annual Hand Drawn, 2013; Society of Illustrators annual, ILLUSTRATORS 51, 52, 54, 59, and 60; Communication Arts, Illustration Annual 52; University College Designers Association, print illustration award of excellence, 2008.