From thousands of entries and 54 countries, 194 New Blood Pencils have been awarded and 39 graduates chosen from 1000 exhibiting students as the Ones to Watch.

1 Black, 4 White, 29 Yellow Pencils, 40 Graphite Pencils and 120 Wood Pencils were awarded.

The Black Pencil was won by Naomi Taylor from the School of Communication Arts 2.0, for #DearMrHousingMinister in response to the Nationwide and Shelter brief, the judges describing her work as “a powerful, emotive and relevant piece grounded in humanity and hardship”. Her “spine-chillingly apt account of the housing crisis” should be the level that future professional D&AD entries should be measured against, they added.

Tim Lindsay, chief executive officer of D&AD commented, “#DearMrHousingMinister offers a fresh perspective to an old problem and is a worthy winner for this year’s awards. It embodies what a New Blood Pencil is all about. It also speaks to the important role of creative thinking as a powerful tool for change. Congratulations to all of this year’s winners. Looking at the quality of work, I’m confident that the future of our industry is in capable hands.”

Winning entries ranged from the playful, giving a nod to the fun that youth culture can add to advertising, to tackling important current issues such as homelessness, environmental impact, access to education, unsolicited imagery and feminism. Entries spanned the full spectrum of design disciplines from digital design, illustration and graphics to intricately crafted animation.

Entry to the awards is open to anyone in full or part-time education, recent graduates who finished their course within the past two years and anyone 23 or under.

All Pencil winners were eligible to apply for the New Blood Academy 2018 with WPP, where 50 graduates attend a two-week creative bootcamp. The Academy provides an opportunity to learn from the best in the business and work beside WPP agencies on a live brief in order to secure a foot-in-the-door with a series of paid placements up for grabs.

Meet the Class of 2018 here.

The Black Pencil Winner

Nationwide and Shelter – #DearMrHousingMinister

Winner: Naomi Taylor

College: School of Communications 2.0

The White Pencil Winners

Digital McKinsey – Bolo. Banking for the Illiterate

Winners: Deepika Desai, Donghoon Lee and Philip Tabah

College: Miami Ad School San Francisco

Digital McKinsey – YETU

Winners: Megan Egan and Jonothan Hunt

College: School of Communication Arts 2.0

Dropbox Paper – The Dirty

Winners: Manon Drielsma, Hou Fong (Brian) Lo, Lizzie Smith and Olivia Mullins

College: University of Technology, Sydney

https://vimeo.com/275556320

New Blood Side Hustle with Adobe – Made By Refugee

Winner: Jillian Young

College: Miami Ad School New York

A Selection of Yellow Pencil Winners

Adidas – Pure Sweat

Winners: Johanna Davis, Elin Hjelte, Ellen Marklund and Nicholas Sjöberg

College: Berghs School Of Communication

Burger King – It’s Not the Same Without the Flame

Winners: John Dillon, Nick Landon, Sydney Lindsey and Sydney Lippman

College: The Creative Circus

giffgaff – #giffconsent

Winners: Elise Smidt, Jennifer Dewar and Karina Bonnin

College: Edinburgh Napier University

New Blood Side Hustle with Adobe – Bot Ad School

Winner: Sam Cable

College: NA

The Beano – Beryl The Third

Winner: Aïcha Wijland

College: University of Otago, New Zealand

Best Stand Winners

Winner: Edinburgh Napier College

BDes (Hons) Graphic Design

Stand 40 & 41

Runner Up: Falmouth University

BA (Hons) Graphic Design

Stand 37 & 38

Runner Up: Arts University Bournemouth

BA (Hons) Illustration

Stand 78 & 79

One to Watch Winners