The Pickleball Deck Illustration
Concept-led illustration for product design and gameplay communication
I created a series of hand-drawn illustrations for The Pickleball Deck - A card-based product designed to teach and communicate 50 shots and strategies within the game.
The aim was to translate gameplay into simple, engaging visuals that are easy to understand and quick to recognise.
Client: DSS Games
Project type: Product illustration
Role: Illustrator
Usage: Card deck, packaging and gameplay system
Focus: Communicating movement, strategy and decision-making
Brief: Create a set of illustrations that could clearly represent a wide range of pickleball shots and strategies within a structured card system.
The work needed to be:
Instantly readable
Consistent across all cards
Engaging without becoming overly detailed
The challenge was to simplify complex movement and gameplay into visuals that could be understood quickly during play.
Each illustration needed to:
Represent a specific action or tactic
Work as part of a larger system
Remain clear at a small scale
I focused on reducing each idea down to its simplest form, using minimal line work, clear positioning and subtle visual cues to communicate movement and intent.
Rather than over-explaining each scenario, the aim was to create illustrations that felt intuitive and easy to interpret within the flow of the game.
The focus wasn’t on detail, but on clarity. Finding the simplest version of each idea that still communicates effectively.
The final illustrations form part of The Pickleball Deck, helping players learn, recognise and apply different shots and strategies through a clear and engaging visual system.
The work supports the product by making gameplay more accessible, while adding personality and consistency across the deck.
