Live Graphic Recording for Conferences, Workshops & Events
I provide live graphic recording, conference illustration, live event illustration and remote graphic recording for conferences, workshops, leadership meetings, webinars and hybrid events.
Listening carefully as people speak, I translate complex discussions into clear hand-drawn visuals in real time. Whether working on site or remotely from my studio, the finished illustration helps audiences understand complex ideas more easily, remember key messages and gives organisers a valuable visual record long after the event has finished.
Unlike a workshop facilitator, my role is observational. I do not guide discussions or influence the outcome. Instead, I act as an independent visual recorder, identifying the most important ideas, connections and insights as they emerge and translating them into engaging illustrations that people can understand and revisit.
Working digitally on an iPad Pro or Wacom Cintiq, or with traditional pen and paper where appropriate, I create bespoke illustrations that can be projected live during an event, shared with online participants or refined afterwards for reports, presentations, social media, internal communication and marketing.
Based near Montpellier in the south of France, I work throughout Europe and Switzerland and also provide remote graphic recording for organisations worldwide.
What Is Live Graphic Recording?
Live graphic recording is the process of translating spoken conversations into clear visual summaries while an event is taking place. Rather than producing conventional written notes, a graphic recorder listens carefully, identifies the central themes and communicates them through illustration, typography, diagrams and visual storytelling.
The finished artwork captures not only what was discussed but also the relationships between ideas. This makes complex information easier to understand at a glance and gives participants a visual overview of discussions that might otherwise require pages of written notes.
Graphic recording is also described as conference illustration, live visual note-taking, live scribing, visual minutes or event sketchnoting. The terminology varies, but the purpose remains the same: to make important conversations easier to understand, remember and share.
Today’s events increasingly combine live audiences with online participants. A graphic recording can therefore serve two purposes at once: it adds a distinctive visual layer during the event and becomes a reusable communication asset afterwards.
Why Organisations Use Live Graphic Recording
Successful conferences and workshops generate valuable ideas. The challenge is ensuring those ideas remain accessible once the presentations have ended. Live graphic recording bridges the gap between spoken discussion and lasting understanding by creating a visual summary that audiences can absorb quickly and return to later.
- Make complex discussions easier to understand.
- Increase audience engagement during presentations.
- Help participants retain important information.
- Create a memorable visual focal point during the event.
- Provide delegates with a clear visual summary.
- Generate original content for LinkedIn, newsletters and social media.
- Support post-event reports, presentations and internal communication.
- Create a lasting visual record of key discussions and strategic decisions.
Unlike photographs of presentation slides or lengthy written minutes, a carefully designed graphic recording tells the story of the event in a single coherent illustration. This makes it useful both for people who attended and for colleagues, stakeholders or audiences who need to understand what happened afterwards.
Typical Events
Live graphic recording can add value wherever people come together to exchange ideas, solve problems or communicate complex information. Whether the audience consists of twenty people in a boardroom or several thousand delegates at an international conference, visual summaries help make conversations more accessible, memorable and easier to share afterwards.
- International conferences and congresses
- Corporate conferences and annual meetings
- Leadership and executive workshops
- Innovation and design thinking sessions
- Strategy meetings
- Panel discussions and round tables
- Scientific and medical conferences
- University lectures and academic symposia
- Training programmes and professional development events
- Product launches
- Public consultations and stakeholder meetings
- Hybrid conferences and webinars
- Online workshops and virtual events
Every event is different. Some clients prefer a single large visual summary created over the course of a day, while others commission a sequence of illustrations, individual session summaries or artwork that develops live throughout the programme. The approach is always adapted to the objectives of the event and the needs of the audience.
Industries
Over more than thirty-five years as a professional illustrator, I have worked with organisations across a remarkably broad range of sectors. That experience allows me to absorb unfamiliar subjects quickly and communicate them visually without losing clarity or accuracy.
- Healthcare and medical organisations
- Pharmaceutical companies
- Science and research institutions
- Technology and software
- Engineering and manufacturing
- Financial services
- Government and public-sector organisations
- Universities and education
- Environmental and sustainability projects
- Architecture and urban planning
- Culture and the arts
- Professional associations and NGOs
One of the advantages of working with an experienced editorial illustrator is the ability to understand new subjects quickly. Whether the discussion concerns artificial intelligence, healthcare, sustainability, engineering or organisational change, the objective remains the same: identify the important ideas and communicate them visually with accuracy, clarity and personality.
Services
Every assignment is tailored to the event, venue and audience. Depending on the format, the illustrations may be created digitally, traditionally or entirely remotely, with finished artwork delivered immediately after the event or further refined for publication and wider communication.
On-Site Graphic Recording
I attend conferences, workshops and corporate events in person, drawing live throughout the programme as presentations and discussions unfold. The illustration can be projected onto a large screen for the audience to follow in real time or developed more discreetly before being revealed during breaks or at the end of the session.
Most projects are produced digitally using an iPad Pro and Apple Pencil, allowing immediate projection and rapid delivery of finished artwork. Traditional pen-and-paper formats are equally possible where they better suit the event or create a stronger visual presence.
Remote Graphic Recording
Many organisations now run international webinars, online workshops and hybrid conferences involving participants across several countries. Remote graphic recording provides the same visual benefits without requiring travel.
Working from my studio, I join the meeting via Microsoft Teams, Zoom, Google Meet or another platform and create the illustration live while participants watch the drawing develop on screen. The finished artwork is delivered in high resolution, ready for reports, presentations and internal communication.
Conference Illustration
Not every event requires a traditional graphic recording. Some clients prefer more expressive conference illustrations that capture the atmosphere, personalities and energy of the event while still communicating its principal themes. These illustrations combine reportage drawing with visual storytelling and can become memorable promotional assets in their own right.
Timelapse Videos & Social Media Content
One of the advantages of digital live drawing is that the creative process can be recorded automatically. Timelapse videos showing the illustration developing from a blank page into a finished artwork make engaging content for LinkedIn, websites, newsletters and post-event promotion.
- Full timelapse recordings
- Short social-media edits
- Branded event recap videos
- Presentation intros and outro sequences
Presentation & Print Assets
The illustration does not have to end with the event. Finished artwork can be supplied as high-resolution files for annual reports, presentations, websites, newsletters, exhibition panels, internal communications and printed publications, allowing organisations to continue benefiting from the work long after delegates have gone home.
- High-resolution PDF and PNG files
- Presentation-ready graphics
- Print-ready artwork
- Social-media versions
- Large-format display files
Pricing
Every event is different, but pricing should still be straightforward. Live graphic recording projects start at €1,600 per day, giving organisers a realistic starting point while allowing each proposal to reflect the actual requirements of the event.
The final quotation usually depends on a small number of factors:
- Event duration and number of sessions
- Preparation and briefing requirements
- Travel and accommodation where required
- Number of illustrations or final deliverables
- Post-event refinement
- Licensing for extended commercial use
Whether you need a single keynote illustrated, a two-day international conference recorded visually, or remote graphic recording for an online event, I can usually prepare a detailed proposal quickly once I know the format, dates, location and expected deliverables.
How a Live Graphic Recording Project Works
The process is intentionally straightforward. Good preparation allows me to concentrate entirely on listening, observing and drawing once the event begins.
1. Initial Conversation
We discuss the event, audience, objectives, schedule, venue, technical setup and any branding or terminology that would be useful to know beforehand.
2. Preparation
Where appropriate, I review agendas, speaker notes, presentations and background information so that I am familiar with the subject, terminology and important themes before the event begins.
3. Live Recording
During the event I work quietly alongside the programme, listening carefully and translating the discussion into a coherent visual narrative as it unfolds. Depending on the format, the drawing may be projected live, shared with remote participants or revealed at selected points during the event.
4. Refinement
Some clients use the illustration exactly as it develops during the event. Others choose a short refinement stage afterwards to tidy typography, improve layout, correct minor details or prepare additional versions for specific communication channels.
5. Delivery
Final artwork is supplied in high resolution for print, presentations, reports, websites and social media. Where requested, timelapse videos, detail crops and additional export formats can also be prepared.
Why Work With Ian David Marsden?
Live graphic recording is about far more than drawing quickly. It requires the ability to listen carefully, understand unfamiliar subjects, recognise the important ideas and communicate them visually while the conversation is still taking place.
That combination of skills comes from more than thirty-five years working as an illustrator, editorial cartoonist, creative director and visual communicator for clients across Europe and internationally.
Throughout my career I have produced work for internationally recognised organisations and publications including Google, Coca-Cola, Mercedes-Benz, Samsung, Fraunhofer, Dräger, The New Yorker, MAD Magazine, Nebelspalter and NZZ am Sonntag.
Editorial illustration in particular is excellent preparation for live graphic recording because both disciplines depend on the same core skills: listening, analysing, simplifying and communicating ideas clearly under time pressure.
It also means the drawings do not have to rely on a fixed visual vocabulary of arrows, boxes and generic business icons. Depending on the event, I can work with expressive characters, visual metaphor, reportage drawing, diagrams, editorial humour and more developed illustrative scenes while keeping the communication clear.
Clients also work directly with me throughout the project. From the first briefing to the final artwork, there are no agency layers or outsourced production stages, which keeps communication straightforward and the visual approach consistent.
- More than 35 years of professional illustration experience
- International editorial, publishing and corporate background
- First Google Doodle artist
- Wacom Featured Artist
- Experienced with complex business, scientific and educational subjects
- Native English speaker, fluent in French and German
- Available for on-site events throughout Europe and Switzerland
- Remote graphic recording available internationally
If your event also requires animated communication, you may be interested in my hand-drawn explainer videos and whiteboard animation, which apply the same emphasis on clarity, visual storytelling and original illustration to film.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between graphic recording and visual facilitation?
Graphic recording focuses on listening, observing and creating a visual record of discussions as they happen. A visual facilitator, by contrast, actively guides or moderates the conversation. My role is that of an independent graphic recorder and conference illustrator. I capture the discussion visually but do not facilitate the workshop or influence the conversation.
Can you work remotely?
Yes. Remote graphic recording works extremely well for webinars, online workshops, hybrid conferences and international meetings. Participants can watch the illustration develop live on screen while I work from my studio in France.
Can the drawing be projected live during the event?
Absolutely. Many clients choose to project the illustration onto a large screen or LED wall so that delegates can follow the drawing as it develops. This often becomes an engaging part of the event itself.
What do we receive after the event?
Every project includes high-resolution digital artwork suitable for presentations, reports, websites and internal communication. Depending on the project, I can also prepare social-media versions, presentation graphics, detail crops, print-ready files or timelapse videos showing the illustration being created.
Do you travel internationally?
Yes. I work on site throughout Europe and Switzerland and provide remote graphic recording internationally.
How much preparation is required?
Preparation varies according to the event. For many conferences, an agenda and speaker list are sufficient. For more technical subjects, presentations, terminology and additional background material can be useful so that the principal themes are already familiar before the event begins.
Can the illustrations be used afterwards?
Yes. Most clients use the finished artwork in reports, presentations, newsletters, websites, internal communications and social media. Broader commercial uses can be licensed separately where appropriate, so that the intended usage is clear from the outset.
Let’s Talk About Your Event
If you are organising a conference, workshop, leadership meeting, webinar or hybrid event and would like to add a memorable visual dimension to the experience, I’d be happy to discuss the most suitable approach.
Whether you need on-site graphic recording, remote conference illustration or a complete visual summary of your event, I can advise on the most appropriate format and provide a clear, no-obligation quotation based on your programme, venue and objectives.
Email: [email protected]
Based near Montpellier, France · Available throughout Europe and Switzerland · Remote graphic recording worldwide