John Hendrix

John Hendrix is a New York Times bestselling author and illustrator. His books include “The Faithful Spy: Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the Plot to Kill Hitler,” called a Best Book of 2018 by NPR, “Drawing Is Magic: Discovering Yourself in a Sketchbook,” “The Holy Ghost: A Spirited Comic,” “Miracle Man: The Story of Jesus,” and many others. His award-winning illustrations have also appeared on book jackets, newspapers, and magazines all over the world. His book, the Eisner-nominated graphic novel, “The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis,” was named a Best Children’s Book of 2024 by The New York Times. In the fall of 2026, his new book, “100 Things You Love to Draw,” the long awaited sequel to his 2015 bestseller “Drawing is Magic,” will be published with Abrams Books.

Hendrix’s work has appeared in numerous publications, such as Newsweek, Sports Illustrated, Entertainment Weekly, Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, Esquire, The New York Times, Time Magazine, and National Geographic, among many others. He has also drawn book jackets for the likes of Scholastic, Random House, Simon & Schuster, Harper Collins, Greenwillow Books, Knopf, Penguin, and Abrams Books. His images also appeared in advertising campaigns for ESPN/ABC, AT&T, Pfizer, Star Wars, and Target. Hendrix’s books have won numerous awards, including a Gold Medal from The Society of Illustrators for The Faithful Spy in 2018. That project was also named a YALSA Nonfiction medal finalist from American Library Association (ALA). His drawings have also appeared in the annual award publications, 3x3, American Illustration, Society of Illustrators, Society for Publication Design, Communication Arts, AIGA 50 Books/50 Covers Show, and Print’s Regional Design Annual.

The Society of Illustrators named Hendrix the Distinguished Educator in the Arts for 2024. In 2021, 3x3 Magazine named him the Educator of the Year in illustration. Hendrix is the Kenneth E. Hudson Professor of Art and the founding chair of the MFA in Illustration & Visual Culture program at the Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis. He lives in Webster Groves with his wife Andrea, and two children, Jack and Annie.