Illustrated self portrait of Greg Franco, also known as Le Cartographiste, map illustrator based in Brittany, France.

Hi, I’m Greg Franco, also known as Le Cartographiste, and I’m a freelance map illustrator and map designer based in beautiful Brittany, France.

I have more than 20 years of experience as a designer and illustrator. After five years exploring the world with my backpack on, I decided to combine my passion for travel and the creative fields into something new, and discovered that map making could be exactly that.

I now specialize in illustrated maps, practical maps, and travel-inspired spot illustrations, working with publishers, magazines, tourism boards, and creative teams worldwide. My maps have been featured in numerous publications, including a New York Times Best Seller.

Have a map project in mind? I'd love to hear about it.

Whether you need an illustrated map that brings a destination to life, a practical map for a publication or visitor guide, or a set of spot illustrations, just drop me a line!
I work collaboratively through a structured, iterative process so there are no surprises along the way. Whether you’re based around the corner or on the other side of the world, clear communication is at the heart of every project. Every map is hand-crafted in Adobe Illustrator, 100% vector-based and AI-free: no AI-generated content, ever. Learn more about my process, timeline and rates.

SELECTED CLIENTS WHO HAVE TRUSTED ME WITH THEIR MAP OR ILLUSTRATION PROJECTS:

Magazines

Creative and marketing agencies

Publishing

Tourism and public institutions

Hospitality and travel industry

Services and retail

PRESS FEATURE, INDUSTRY RECOGNITION AND EXHIBITIONS:

Books

Magazines

  • XFUNS (Taïwan)
  • DIGIT (United Kingdom)
  • CLARK MAGAZINE (France)
  • IDEA (Taïwan)
  • STUDIO MULTIMEDIA (France)

Exhibitions

  • !RESIST! (Paris, France)
  • THE DISKOVERY (Montreux, Switzerland)
  • POP’N FLOP’N (Lille, France)
  • SKETCHEL SHOW (Sydney, Australia)

I'M A PROUD MEMBER OF

Badge for Illustrators For Hire member, a curated group of professional freelance illustrators which I'm part of.

Illustrators For Hire is a curated group of professional freelancers from around the world.

CLIENT TESTIMONIALS

Greg is phenomenal to work with. Great communication, timely and reasonable with his fees. I’m very impressed with his range as well! I’ve recommended him to several others in the field and I look forward to many maps in the future!
Janet Evans-Scanlon – Senior Designer, Simon & Schuster

Greg was fantastic. He was able to quickly assist on my project with a very short turnaround and supply high quality work with several options and iterations for our team to consider. Everything he delivered was clean and easily meshed into our workflow. Greg is extremely responsive and thorough. Truly an amazing asset to have on your team and a pleasure to work with. I hope to collaborate with him again.
Carina Taylor – Senior Designer, Scholastic Inc.

Greg is a skilled and reliable collaborator. We worked together on multiple book projects requiring accurate and beautifully illustrated maps, and he consistently delivered on time. Greg was responsive, brought in his creativity, and made each project a pleasure. I would work with him again without hesitation.
Anna Diekmann – Editorial Manager, gestalten

I was so impressed about how easy Greg made everything on a multiple map project I hired him to do for our client. He needed absolutely no hand holding creating maps of several specific locations for us[…]
He was very responsive, even in opposite time zones, and it’s clear that he is very conscientious about his work, which is top shelf. The maps turned out beautifully, our client is very pleased, and we will use him for other projects moving forward.
Deanne O’Connor – Creative Director, O’Connor Creative, Wanderlust Content Studio

Greg was great to work with. He helped us turn our idea of a map into reality, and we’re very happy with the final product. Communication was clear and precise at all steps, and the project was completed quickly and within budget. Highly recommend.
Carrie Tomlinson –Digital Marketing Manager, Boulder Convention and Visitors Bureau

It was a delight to work with Greg. He is a true professional. He communicates clearly, works on schedule and makes outstanding maps. I highly recommend him.
Alex Clapp – Journalist and Author

After many successful collaborations with Greg, he continues to impress. His attention to detail, quick turnaround times, and invested understanding of our needs make him invaluable. He consistently delivers exceptional maps while being a pleasure to work with. Greg remains our trusted go-to cartographer for good reason!
Megan Jeans –Founder and Creative Director, Artonomi Creative

Greg was an IMMENSE PLEASURE to work with! He has a strong design background and was able to bring to life our designs with little guidance[…] We undoubtedly will re-hire and recommend him to others.
Danni Lopez –Product and Operations Director, Kift

Greg completed a highly-specialised map design job for me. From the very first communication I was deeply impressed by Greg’s responsiveness and readiness to tailor his work to my exact needs. Technically, I found his work to be excellent: detailed, visually striking and exactly what I was looking for. Communication was excellent throughout […]
The completed job exceeded my expectations by a significant margin: Greg is a first-rate freelancer and I would recommend him most highly for any mapmaking projects you might have.

William Seager – Owner, Tasmanie Voyage

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