Henry Flint is a legend really, isn't he?

Nic_Freeman · 20 January, 2015, 12:48:57 PM

For me what I find staggering about Henry Flint is how he makes it all look so easy. There is a sketchy quality to the inks that belies carful composition and fantastic story telling underneath. Also, fantastic hands and feet.

Easily my favourite 2000AD artist working at the moment.

Steve Green · 20 January, 2015, 01:40:12 PM

Yeah, I love Henry's work - it's exciting and inventive but he is also a fantastically consistent artist for Dredd and beyond in the same vein as Cam Kennedy.

shaolin_monkey · 20 January, 2015, 01:41:57 PM

Agreed re the sketchy quality, 'quality' being the operative word here - it adds the sense of motion and energy that came with a lot of McMahons work.

Flint's Dredd is my lock-page on my iPad (there can be no higher honour for an artist!

), and I don't mean one of his Dredd splashpages, or a Starscan or anything like that - it's actually one panel from a 4-5 panel page. It shows a perp creeping up behind Dredd saying something like 'You're dead, Judge!' and Dredd just glancing over his shoulder and saying something along the lines of 'Not on your best day, creep!' It's a cracker!

The point being, I think you can probably take many of Flint's panels and apply it as a one-off piece of art to adorn your wall, iPad screen or whatever - the composition of each is usually that good.

Skullmo · 20 January, 2015, 01:57:52 PM

And if you have ever seen his original art (and i suggest you all buy a page - contact Wake - they are surprisingly affordable works of art) the pages are so detailed for their size!

Link Prime · 20 January, 2015, 02:11:58 PM

Quote from: Skullmo on 20 January, 2015, 01:57:52 PM
And if you have ever seen his original art (and i suggest you all buy a page - contact Wake - they are surprisingly affordable works of art) the pages are so detailed for their size!

A point I was just going to make.

I have a few Flint pages, and they are by far some of the most mesmerizing pieces I own.
There are some other huge fans of his original art on this forum- SimonB, Skullmo and Spikes to name a few.

I also completely agree with the OP, and mentioned it myself before on another thread; Flint is a 2000AD legend, and will one day be unquestionably categorized in the same status as some of the older "all-time-greats".

ZenArcade · 20 January, 2015, 05:52:46 PM

Colin MacNeill is on the same level, my all time favourite one off Dredd: Firepower prog 736 both cover and inside is superlatively good. Z

Magnetica · 20 January, 2015, 10:48:41 PM

First of all I agree that Henry Flint is one of the very best 2000AD artists and I am grateful that we have him working for Tharg and that he hasn't defected to another publisher. For me his style is a combination of McMahon and Kev O'Neill which is no mean feat as they are distinctly different.

But is he the definitive Dredd artist? For me there are four definitive Dredd artists: Brian Bolland, Mike McMahon, Carlos Ezquerra and Ron Smith. Ok they are all from the "classic" period. As to the modern age, for me Flint is the new McMahon (as far as Dredd is concerned) with his scratchy but not untidy style and punk attitude. So does he deserve to join the list of definitive Dredd artists? Well sort of. Joining him as he modern "go to" artists for Dredd, in my opinion, are Colin MacNeil and close behind Ben Willsher. I also think that if he can maintain the quality shown on Uprise and transfer that to "proper" Judge Dredd, then we will have a star in Paul Davidson. And we still have Carlos knocking out of the park on Block Judge.

So is Flint the definitive 2000AD / Meg artist? Well I would say there is no one single definitive 2000AD artist. There are those that have done classic work that sticks long in the memory (e.g. Kev O'Neill on Nemesis, Glenn Fabry on Slaine, Bolland on Dredd, McMahon on Dredd and Slaine, MacNeil on Mechanismo, America, and Insurrection) and those that have made significant contributions ( too many too list but those that come most readily to mind are Masimo, Ian Gibson, Brendan McCarthy, Brett Ewins, SBD, Steve Yeowell, Simon Fraser, John Burns).

If pushed to name the one definitive 2000AD artist, lets set out some criteria:
- designed major iconic character(s)
- designed look of the world major story(ies) are set in
- has a strip that he is associated with as being THE artist for it (and which feels "wrong" when some one else does it)
- has a large body of working across a number of strips that are of a consistent high quality
- any page is immediately identifiable as his work
- is a great story teller (it is clear what is going on, produces dynamic actions sequences, does great characters).

I think Flint ticks a lot of these boxes and he is probably the most important artist for 2000AD moving forward, but considering 2000AD to date, for me there is one artist who scores more highly across the board on these criteria than any one else, and that is Carlos Ezquerra.

o1s1n · 20 January, 2015, 11:10:36 PM

Quote from: Skullmo on 20 January, 2015, 01:57:52 PM
And if you have ever seen his original art (and i suggest you all buy a page - contact Wake - they are surprisingly affordable works of art) the pages are so detailed for their size!

I only have this one piece (And I've posted it before, so apologies to anyone who has seen it!) but it's one of my favourite pieces of art. It's not the best photo, but the flesh rendering/versus metal/material is so subtle yet so striking. He's absolutely brilliant. By far my favourite 'modern' 2000AD artist working at the moment.

I know a lot of folks have tried the classic 2000AD artowork style to some success, but he really nails it.

Skullmo · 21 January, 2015, 10:34:22 AM

Quote from: o1s1n on 20 January, 2015, 11:10:36 PM

I bet going to the toilet is difficult for them.

Jim_Campbell · 21 January, 2015, 10:47:55 AM

Quote from: Magnetica on 20 January, 2015, 10:48:41 PM
If pushed to name the one definitive 2000AD artist

Umm... I don't think any one was pushing for that (nor, indeed, even that Henry is the definitive Dredd artist). Cosh was merely suggesting that Flint deserves to be "named amongst the greats" and that this wouldn't be remotely contentious if his work had been in the prog circa 1982.

Cheers

Jim

inkymonkey · 21 January, 2015, 11:28:00 AM

Henry is a god-damned legend, hands down. There are so many great artists producing amazing work for 2000AD right now - I absolutely adore Chris Weston's work for its insane level of detail, beautiful compositions and a lovely level of acting with his characters. D'israeli is always a pleasure, others have commented on his constant and continual evolution in style, but hand in hand with that is his wonderful storytelling; I always get a thrill to see both artists in the progs. Carlos Ezquerra is a god, we're all in awe of his body of work and his massive influence on generations of comic artists, even as he continues to produce new stories. And so many others with stunning work that I can read with pleasure and no small amount of professional envy... And I'm not even going to start on those artists of the past, I'll be here all night...

But Henry? Man oh man. His evolution in style. His scratchy, frenetic energy. His seemingly effortless storytelling. He's an artist who I do not get bored with, and rarely find anything to fault. I own a couple of pages of the first movie Dredd story he did, and just being able to see the experimentation and effort he's put into those pages is both a privilege and an education.

More please, Mr Flint!

IndigoPrime · 21 January, 2015, 11:28:31 AM

QuoteI don't think any one was pushing for that (nor, indeed, even that Henry is the definitive Dredd artist). Cosh was merely suggesting that Flint deserves to be "named amongst the greats" and that this wouldn't be remotely contentious if his work had been in the prog circa 1982.

Exactly. I think, importantly, Flint also developed his own style. His art is recognisably his. Compare that to the rash of Bisleyesque stuff that came in for years after Horned God.

As for design chops, I don't think you necessarily have to design a major ongoing character, but a strong sense of design in and of itself is useful. D'Israeli's strong on that, as evidenced by his blog posts on creating spaceships, buildings and the like.

TordelBack · 21 January, 2015, 12:43:46 PM

Magnetica offers a great analysis there, but Jim hits the nail squarelyl: Flint would still have one of the all-time 2000AD greats had his work originally appeared alongside McMahon, O'Neill, Bolland and Bellardinelli. There's no need for any qualification. Shakara alone would earn him that position, never mind Nemesis Book X (an artist who outshines O'Neill on his own strip!) and everything since.

AlexF · 21 January, 2015, 12:48:45 PM

Agree with all of this. I'm particularly put in mind of Flint's excellent cover to Prog 1544 http://www.2000ad.org/functions/cover.php?choice=1544&Comic=2000ad. One of those eye-popping covers that had me guessing about which artist had drawn it. It didn't feel like Flint's 'normal' style (whatever that is - he's got a lot of options), and that's one mark of a great artist for me, someone who can really surprise the reader.

Meanwhile, I'm very close to going live with a new blog celebrating 2000 AD creators old and new alike, with a statistical bent. By way of a teaser, I can reveal that - by my count - Henry Flint is art droid No. 5 in terms of most contributions to the Prog. This alone makes him both great and definitive, surely.

Jim_Campbell · 21 January, 2015, 12:56:53 PM

Quote from: IndigoPrime on 21 January, 2015, 11:28:31 AM
D'Israeli's strong on that, as evidenced by his blog posts on creating spaceships, buildings and the like.

Yep, also neatly demonstrated by the way that —despite never really getting a handle on Dredd, for my money — he's quietly been building a very convincing version of Mega City 1 in his Lowlife work...

Cheers

Jim