18F Folks: Adopting a new illustration library
This blog describes how 18F adopted a new illustration library (“18F Folks”) based on Open Peeps, to better represent diversity, context, and human experiences in their visual communications.
Previously using a simpler “bust-style” avatar library, 18F found it limiting in conveying relationships, environments, and more complex emotional cues, so they developed a new system with more inclusive, full-figure illustrations.
The team used a criteria scorecard—emphasizing openness, tone, visual flexibility, and diversity across body types, abilities, age, and religious expression—to adapt Open Peeps into a style aligned with 18F’s values. They argue that visual representation shapes trust and perception, so this change helps strengthen empathy and connection in how government communicates with the public.
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