2000AD Art "Heavyweights"

Jim_Campbell · 02 March, 2009, 08:06:00 PM

Quote from: "Large48"its almost a disservice to all the great artists that 2000AD have had in the past to try and pick a few personal favourites..

That's kind of what I was trying to get at ... I'm not talking about personal favourites, I'm talking about heavyweights: "artists who have been the backbone of the title, who have defined its look and its tone over multiple series".

Of the names that have been thrown out for discussion since my original post, I'm definitely agreeing with Steve Dillon in the 'mid school' category, since he did some fine Dredd work, but also some fantastic work on Mean Arena, the superb Rogue Trooper: Cinnabar, and an extended run on Harlem Heroes 2 that was far better than the strip deserved.

Henry Flint, I'm also very happy with in the 'New School', since we have Rogue Trooper, Judge Dredd, Sancho Panzer, Nemesis, Shakara, ABC Warriors, VCs, Low Life, Dante, SinDex ... the epitome of the definition I started out with.

I'll likewise give the nod to Simon Davis, for Missionary Man, Dredd, SinDex, Stone Island, Ampney Crucis.

For the flip side of that same reasoning, I'm struggling to give the mental nod to Simon Fraser, since he seems so totally associated with Dante for me.

Obviously, I'm biased when it comes to Kev Walker, but I'm glad he's been mentioned ... that superb two-year stint inking Steve Dillon (for which far-sighted decision Steve MacManus deserves a medal), ABC Warriors, Anderson, Balls Brothers, Tor Cyan, and running through those stories, a succession of brilliant Dredds, starting with Fast Food and just getting better from there.

I'm a massive fan of Jock's work, but I'm not convinced that he's actually done a sufficient volume of work to qualify ...

Cheers

Jim

Dr Feeley Good · 02 March, 2009, 10:11:28 PM

How come no one has mentioned Cliff Robinson ? He should be in there for his covers alone ! And i don't know how anyone can say Brian Bolland shouldn't be there ! The greatest Dredd artist ever !!! in my humble opinion,that is.....

Jim_Campbell · 02 March, 2009, 10:32:59 PM

Quote from: "SteveMillar"How come no one has mentioned Cliff Robinson ? He should be in there for his covers alone ! And i don't know how anyone can say Brian Bolland shouldn't be there ! The greatest Dredd artist ever !!! in my humble opinion,that is.....

Can I say, again: "artists who have been the backbone of the title, who have defined its look and its tone over multiple series".

Cliff, despite drawing a damn fine Dredd, has (to my recollection) never drawn a multi-part Dredd, and has only done Future Shocks and some of the art duties on Mother Earth (or did I imagine that?) outside of the Big Chin. As I said at the top of the thread, you might want to quibble with my definition of "heavyweight" but as that definition stands, I don't think you can make a case for Cliff.

Cheers

Jim

vzzbux · 02 March, 2009, 10:39:15 PM

Richard Elson is fast becoming one of the best artists to grace the prog in recent years, and maybe in time will be up there with the likes of Bolland, Ezquerra and Ron Smith.

V

Tiplodocus · 02 March, 2009, 10:47:07 PM

I'll just add my weight to the Cam Kennedy block.

Carlos may have been the first artist I recognised week in and week out but it's a Cam Kennedy that I had painted on my motorcycle jacket. Dredd, Rogue, VCs; not only brilliant storytelling but masterpieces in cool design work (character and vehicle) something that I'd say Bolland actually lacks a bit of.

Jim_Campbell · 02 March, 2009, 11:07:51 PM

Quote from: "Tiplodocus"not only brilliant storytelling but masterpieces in cool design work (character and vehicle) something that I'd say Bolland actually lacks a bit of.

I wouldn't disagree with that - even as a kid, I never felt Bolland's Mega-City One actually worked, and I have to agree with what D'israeli wrote in his splendid Appreciation of Belardinelli:

"Brian Bolland and the Brett Ewins-Brendan McCarthy* axis seemed uncomfortable with the future and tended to draw it like the present, sprayed silver and with fins glued on."

Which is another reason why I (personally) didn't put any of them on my "heavyweight" list.

I think, on reflection, Cam probably does deserve his place there. I suspect I excluded him because I was a bit suspect of my own motives, being a huge fan, but I don't think you can really ignore his work on the VCs, then Rogue Trooper, then Judge Dredd.

Kennedy's MC-1 lived and breathed in its own right in a way that no artist before or since has ever really captured, with the sole exception of MacNeill's version in 'America'.

Cheers

Jim

SuperSurfer · 02 March, 2009, 11:42:05 PM

Oh, and the Bolland camp would like to throw the Dark Judges into the equation. I think Bolland and Frazer Irving are the only artists that nailed Judge Death (he says, inviting a comment from Pete Wells Block).

Point taken about the "present, sprayed silver" but I can live with that. Mega City 1 is not set that far in the future so I don't mind the odd depiction of it and technology that does not seem as far fetched as say, Ezquerra's versions. Similarly, I could handle Ron Smith's version of MC1 which was more blocky as I put that down to different sectors or areas having different architectural styles, just like any real city.

BPP · 03 March, 2009, 01:00:38 AM

BOLLAND?

You mean the chancer responsible for one of the worst covers ever to grace 2000AD?!

Pah!

Gibson is very under-rated (even vilified) thesedays but for me he'd never be out of an all-tiime top 5 - his backgrounds and vehicle designs for MC1 were stunning - I long for everyone to draw futuristic transport like him rather than 'oh its a 2008 van' that so many seem to (HELLO PAUL MARSHALL)- he's been there since the start - Robot Wars' shot of the Oil Depot is seminal MC1 and worked on Dredd, Halo Jones & Robo-Hunter.I reckon he'd do a mighty Dante too. Plus he's not that long departed...

COME BACK GIBCAT!

SuperSurfer · 03 March, 2009, 02:10:30 AM

Quote from: "BPP"BOLLAND?
You mean the chancer responsible for one of the worst covers ever to grace 2000AD?!

Pah!

No fair, good fellow.

That would be like me comparing this:

Feast your eyes on the original:
//http://comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=315359&GSub=25410

to this:

Or some classic by (no pencils thanks) Q. Twerk.

But I wouldn't as I have great respect for Gibson as well.

Pete Wells · 03 March, 2009, 07:12:34 AM

QuoteI think Bolland and Frazer Irving are the only artists that nailed Judge Death (he says, inviting a comment from Pete Wells Block).

Heresy!

Large48 · 03 March, 2009, 08:11:06 AM

Anything that Gibson did that was signed Q-Twerk or Emberton was when he was working or playing in a band during the day and drawing in the evenings or at night and from the sound of it not sleeping for a couple of years.

Not that he sleeps much now!

He never really rated that work (like most artists they aren't convinced they are any good!) so signed it with different names.

LARF · 03 March, 2009, 08:35:02 AM

Mark Harrison has GOT to be in there. Clint Langley was still doing painted artwork when Mark was tinkering with digital art. Mark's work is sublime, detailed and deserving of being up in the modern heavy weight movers and shakers of tooth artists.

grimmy · 03 March, 2009, 08:50:48 AM

If we mean artists who have defined the look of 2000ad, then who could forget Mike White, a stalwart! Maybe not the most talented but his volume of work for tharg made him part of the furniture early on

Colin YNWA · 03 March, 2009, 10:01:12 AM

This is the trouble with 'lists' like this its so subjective and people value different things in so many different artists that by the time its finished you have decent arguements for so many artists the list losses its initial purpose which is to define a very few artists who have really affected the look of the comic (well that's how I've interupted the question). Still its fun to discuss so...

my list would be

Brian Bolland, Kevin O'Neil, Jesus Redondo and Mike McMahon as the early artists who established the initial look and feel for the comic and by doing so influenced many of the artists that followed.

Steve Dillon, Brendan McCarthy and Simon Bisley as a second 'wave' who created the look that carried the comic through its second 500 issues.

Rian Hughes for his design work which has left an indelible mark on 2000ad

I've not really read enough of the post 1000 issues yet (fingers crossed the gap between 1000-1500 is about to go) to judge the modern artists but certainly I think Simon Frasier would be there.

These aren't my favourite artists necessarily but the ones that I think defined different era's in the comics history.