Daisy Chung

incredible illustrative data-story on the dangerous heat crisis within U.S. prisons by my talented colleagues @graphics.reuters.com

absolutely beautiful and timely story from my talented colleagues.

When the cycle stops Period loss, or amenorrhea, affects approximately 3% to 4% of women of reproductive age. It can be the body’s response to an energy crisis resulting from a combination of too much exercising, too few ...

7/7 This project pushed me to rethink how we visualize menstrual health. It’s not just about softness, as period products often suggest. It’s about disruption, resilience, and healing. Read here: tinyurl.com/periodloss

6/7 Here’s a peek at the layers behind the character illustrations. The outlines were drawn digitally, but the watercolor washes add vibrant blends and organic edges that make the art feel alive and human.

Watercolor illustrations of assets and circles and washes

5/7 As a watercolorist at heart, I wanted to use real paint, not digital, to show that a real person who cares made this. I love the “happy accidents” that watercolor washes create. They bring brightness and unpredictability to the work.

Side by side comparison of original concept using sharp geometric shapes to circle motifs.

4/7 You can see the concept evolve across the page, from the early geometric shapes to using the glitch circles fully, even to highlight key text. The visual motif became a way to guide the reader through the emotional and narrative arc of the story.

3/7 I went back to the drawing board and developed a motif of whole vs. glitch cycles. I wanted to pull readers in from the start. Early on, the glitchy geometric shapes and soft watercolor clashed—until I leaned fully into the idea that “circle = cycle.”

Art inspirations from Spider-verse and Kandinsky, as well as the visual watercolor motifs developed

2/7 I first wanted to use soft watercolors to reflect emotional tenderness. But my graphic colleagues noted that menstrual challenges don’t feel “soft.” A new idea emerged: Kandinsky-like geometric shapes + Spider-Verse-style glitch to show a disrupted (but not broken) cycle.

1/7 My latest graphic project is on 🩸“period loss”. I wanted to use art and design to bring empathy and clarity to a subject often clouded by stigma.
👇Here’s a glimpse of how it was made: tinyurl.com/periodloss

@tierneymaps.bsky.social thank you!! <3 It was so meaningful to work on. Hope it will resonate with many:)

thank you! It was a very meaningful project to work on :)

When the cycle stops Period loss, or amenorrhea, affects approximately 3% to 4% of women of reproductive age. It can be the body’s response to an energy crisis resulting from a combination of too much exercising, too few ...

Latest project about why the period🩸 is a vital sign, and what happens when it stops! This story is in part a personal journey. We poured our heart to the research, art, and writing. Please read and savor, and share it with someone you know. I promise, it is relevant to us all.
tinyurl.com/566acu9r

we did it!!! 🏆so grateful to work with such an amazing team for this important issue!

thanks:) the art is done in photoshop, and we use svelte for our development rig.

:) Thank you, Evan! We had a lot of wacky ideas and fun making them come true :D

9/9 At a time when so much is uncertain, I’m grateful the team @graphics.reuters.com reminds me there’s so much more to news reporting than sharing the latest topics. Here’s our small way to add a dollop of joy to the world💗 Stay for the credit scene for all the creative minds behind the project!

Photo of a cat next to a budding xmas cactus. Pencil sketch of a possible animation sequence of a cactus in a shape of a cat. Final frame-by-frame of the sequence.

8/9 When asked where I draw inspiration, honestly, it's pretty random. When I was drawing the frames for the growing flowers, my Xmas cactus was budding. Somehow, I thought, maybe I can combine my cat(Nori)+cactus= cat-us? I followed my gut, and it became my favorite thing created for the story.

7/9 Creating a pixel world was a new challenge. I’m used to freely brushing, and now every pixel placement needs to be intentional (or so says the pixel art gurus). However, the “pixel-pushing” was quite therapeutic. Much love and gems were added. Did you notice the radish recycles and composts😂?

6/9 One part of our big ambition was having a joystick that allowed the reader to have full control of the radish, but we soon learnt how disrupting it is to the scroll-reading experience, ultimately dropping it. However, I do miss the short weeks that radish could go climb the wall I built for her.

sketches of the story design with pencil, as well as mock-ups on adobe XD.

5/9 As the story developed, so did our ambition. What if we made a cozy game about cozy game? None of us had developed games, allowing us to dream wild, and for me to sketch up crazy UX flows. One thing we did know is that mobile would be a big challenge, so we tackled that design first.

4/9 As the anthropomorphic radish character started taking shape, we realized the missing piece to make it alive is “sound”! Our resident audio enthusiast, Travis Hartman, took on the mission to bring original sound effects by squeaking many things in his house. Sound ON🔊: reut.rs/4gcizuV

Character explore, color palettes, and illustrations of frame by frame walk cycle of an anthropomorphic radish character.

3/9 I realized many cozy games allow you to become a character inside the warm, fuzzy world with seasonal change. I created a warm winter palette, and settled on the winter crop “radish”. Why? As a pixel-art novice, it felt easier to draw a round thing and make it walk frame-by-frame with outfits 😂.

Conversation with experienced cozy-gamer from our team and photo of my attempt of playing stardew valley.

2/9 The last time I was serious about games was Neopets. I “researched hard” by playing weeks of feel-good cozy games such as Stardew Valley and learning from resident cozy-gamer, Tiana, who pitched ethe idea. I loved how a charming world can be created by simple pixels and wanted to try this style.

Cozy video games can quell stress and anxiety. Explore a charming town, meet quirky villagers, and take in the cozy vibes!

1/9 When news around the world seems grim, it was a delight when our team decided to do a story about “cozy games”. My journey from a non-gamer to illustrating/designing an entire cozy game provided a cathartic escape to a charming world.👇Here’s a glimpse of how it was made: reut.rs/4gcizuV

screenshot of the cozy game interactive when radish character made the bear fall asleep while holding the axe

Happy Lunar New Year of the snake🐍! If you need a reminder of what to eat today for best outcome of this prosperous year, here is a reminder 🥟! taiwandatastories.com/lunar-new-ye...

lol this is our little dark element in a cozy world haha ( my cousins in Taiwan also thought they killed a bear... 🫣 )

...I need the same blog post in mandarin to tell my parents what I ...actually do 😂 😂 😂 😂

🧸New "cutest" project: Find out research-backed secrets to improve mental health while immersing yourself in a very cozy day of a radish (sound on for brilliant sound effects!) Thanks to the brilliant team @graphics.reuters.com for letting a non-gamer make a pixel game👾
Go play▶️ reut.rs/4gcizuV

Fires are growing faster in the western US, and the Palisades and Eaton fires were some of the fastest on record. Read our story about fast fire🔥:https://www.reuters.com/graphics/CALIFORNIA-WILDFIRE/SPEED/akpeewrodpr/

Beautiful map from @claretfarley.bsky.social and story design by Ally Levine.