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Brian Bolland (born 1951) is a
BritishThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
comicsComics is a graphic medium in which images are utilized in order to convey a sequential narrative; the term, derived from massive early use to convey comic themes, came to be applied to all uses of this medium including those which are far from comic...
artistThe definition of an artist is wide-ranging and covers a broad spectrum of activities to do with creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. the worlds best artist is a man named mitchell peter lay who is often loved by the ladies. The common useage in both everyday speech and...
, known for his meticulous, detailed linework and eye-catching compositions. Best known in the UK as one of the definitive
Judge DreddJudge Joe Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is a law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
artists for British comics anthology
2000 AD2000 AD is a weekly British science fiction-oriented comic. As a comics anthology it serialises a number of separate stories each issue and was first published by IPC Magazines in 1977, the first issue dated February 26...
, he spearheaded the 'British Invasion' of the American comics industry, and in 1982 produced the artwork on
Camelot 3000Camelot 3000 is an American twelve-issue comic book limited series written by Mike W. Barr and penciled by Brian Bolland. It was published by DC Comics from 1982 to 1985 as one of its first direct market projects, and as its first maxi-series.-Plot:...
(with author
Mike W. BarrMike W. Barr, is an American writer of comic books, and mystery, and science fiction novels.-Biography:Mike W. Barr was born on May 30, 1952. His introduction into comics writing came in DC Comics' Detective Comics #444, for which he wrote an 8-page back-up mystery feature starring the Elongated...
), which was DC's first 12-issue comicbook maxiseries created for the
direct marketThe direct market is the dominant distribution and retail network for North American comic books. It consists of one dominant distributor and the majority of comics specialty stores, as well as other retailers of comic books and related merchandise...
.
His rare forays into interior art also include
Batman: The Killing JokeBatman: The Killing Joke is an influential one-shot superhero comic book written by Alan Moore, drawn by Brian Bolland, and published by DC Comics in 1988. It has in its original form continuously been held in print since then...
, with UK-based writer
Alan MooreAlan Oswald Moore is an English writer known for work in comics, including the acclaimed comic book series Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell...
, regularly hailed as one of the finest realised Batman stories, and a self-penned
Batman: Black and White story. Bolland remains in high demand a cover artist, producing the vast majority of his work for
DC ComicsDC Comics is one of the largest and most popular American comic book and related media companies, along with Marvel Comics. It is the publishing division of DC Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary company of Warner Bros. Entertainment...
.
Biography
Brian Bolland was born on 26 March 1951 in
ButterwickButterwick can refer to several places in England, among them:*Butterwick, Cumbria*Butterwick, Dorset*Butterwick, County Durham*Butterwick, Lincolnshire**East Butterwick**West Butterwick*Butterwick, Barton-le-Street, North Yorkshire...
,
LincolnshireLincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Rutland, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, South Yorkshire, and the East Riding of Yorkshire. It also borders Northamptonshire for just 19 metres, England's shortest county boundary...
to parents Albert "A.J." John, a fenland farmer, and Lillie Bolland. He spent his "first 18 years" living "in a small village near Boston in the fens of
LincolnshireLincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk, Cambridgeshire, Rutland, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, South Yorkshire, and the East Riding of Yorkshire. It also borders Northamptonshire for just 19 metres, England's shortest county boundary...
, England," but has "no memory of comics" much before the age of ten. When American comics began to be imported into England, c.1959, Bolland says that it "took a little while for me to discover them," but by 1960 he was intrigued by
Dell ComicsDell Comics was the comic book publishing arm of Dell Publishing, which got its start in pulp magazines. It published comics from 1929 to 1973. At its peak, it was the most prominent and successful American company in the medium...
'
Dinosaurus!, which fed into a childhood interest in
dinosaur{{Otheruses}}{{pp-semi-protected|small=yes}}{{Otheruses}}{{pp-semi-protected|small=yes}}{{Taxobox|name = Dinosaurs|fossil_range = {{Fossil range|230|65|earliest=230|latest=0|PS=
Descendant taxon Aves survives to present.}}|image = field_dinos_2.jpg...
s of all shapes and sizes. Comics including
TurokTurok is a fictional American comic book character initially in comics from Western Publishing published through licensee Dell Comics. He first appeared in Four Color Comics #596 , then graduated to his own title, Turok, Son of Stone...
, Son of Stone and
DCDC Comics is one of the largest and most popular American comic book and related media companies, along with Marvel Comics. It is the publishing division of DC Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary company of Warner Bros. Entertainment...
's
TomahawkTomahawk is a comic book character whose adventures were published by DC Comics during the 1940's, 1950's and 1960's as a backup feature in Star Spangled Comics and World's Finest Comics and in his own eponymous series...
soon followed, and it was this burgeoning comics collection that would help inspire the young Bolland to draw his own comics around the age of ten with ideas such as "Insect League." He recalls that "[s]uperheroes crept into my life by stealth," as he actively sought out covers featuring "any big creature that looked vaguelly dinosaur-like, trampling puny humans." This adolescent criteria led from
Dinosaurus! and
Turok via
House of MysteryThe House of Mystery is the name of several horror-mystery-suspense anthology comic book series. It had a companion series, House of Secrets.-Genesis:...
to "
BatmanThe Batman, originally referred to as the Bat-Man, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero co-created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger , appearing in publications by DC Comics...
and RobinRobin is the name of fictional characters appearing in comic books published by DC Comics, originally created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson, as a junior counterpart to DC Comics superhero Batman. The team of Batman and Robin is commonly referred to as the Dynamic Duo or the Caped...
[who] were [often] being harrassed by big weird things, as were
SupermanSuperman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective Comics, Inc...
,
AquamanAquaman is a fictional comic book superhero who appears in DC Comics. Created by Paul Norris and Mort Weisinger, the character debuted in More Fun Comics #73 . Initially a backup feature in DC's anthology titles, Aquaman later starred in several volumes of a solo title...
,
Wonder WomanWonder Woman is a DC Comics superhero created by William Moulton Marston. First appearing in All Star Comics #8 , she is one of three characters to have been continuously published by DC Comics since the company's 1944 inception .Wonder Woman is a member of an all-female tribe of Amazons...
[etc]." Soon, family outings to
SkegnessSkegness is a seaside town and civil parish within the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. Located on the Lincolnshire coast of the North Sea, east of the city of Lincoln it has a total resident population of 18,910...
became an excuse for the future artist to "trawl... round some of the more remote backstreet newsagents" for comics to store on an overflowing "bookcase I'd made in school woodwork especially."
Influences
As early as 1962, aged 11, Bolland remembers thinking that "
Carmine InfantinoCarmine Infantino is an American comic book artist and editor who was a major force in the Silver Age of Comic Books. He was inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2000.-Early life and career:...
's work on the
FlashThe Flash is a name shared by several fictional comic book superheroes from the DC Comics universe. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in Flash Comics #1 ....
and
Gil KaneEli Katz who worked under the name Gil Kane and in a few instances Scott Edwards, was a comic book artist whose career spanned the 1940s to 1990s and every major comics company and character.Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and...
's on
Green LanternGreen Lantern is the name of several fictional characters, superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The first was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell in All-American Comics #16 ....
and the
AtomRay Palmer may refer to:* Raymond A. Palmer - science-fiction writer* Ray Palmer - a DC Comics comic book character...
had a sophistication about it that I hadn't [previously] seen." He would later cite Kane and
Alex TothAlex Toth , pronounced with a long "o," was an acclaimed professional cartoonist active from the 1940s through the 1980s. Toth's work began in the American comic book industry, but is best known for his animation designs for Hanna-Barbera throughout the 1960s and 1970s...
as "pinnacle[s] of excellence," alongside "
Curt SwanDouglas Curtis Swan was an American comic book artist. The artist most associated with Superman during the period fans and historians call the Silver Age of comic books, Swan produced hundreds of covers and stories from the 1950s through the 1980s.-Early life and career:Curt Swan, whose Swedish...
,
Murphy AndersonMurphy Anderson is an American comic book penciller and inker who has worked for companies such as DC Comics for over 50 years, starting in the 1930s-'40s Golden Age of Comic Books...
, Syd Greene,
Joe KubertJoe Kubert is a Jewish-American comic book artist who went on to found the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art. He is best known for his work on the DC Comics characters Sgt. Rock and Hawkman...
,
Ross AndruRoss Andru was an American comic book artist and editor. He is best known for his work on The Amazing Spider-Man and Wonder Woman and for co-creating the Metal Men and the Punisher .His most frequent collaborator was...
,
Mike EspositoMike Esposito is an American comic book artist. For years, one of the comic book industry's top artists on his own, as an inker Esposito was known for his decades-long partnership with his childhood friend Ross Andru....
,
Nick CardyNick Cardy , a.k.a. Nick Cardi, is an American comic book artist best known for his DC Comics work on Aquaman, the Teen Titans and other major characters, and for his highly attractive rendering of female characters referred to by fans as "Cardy Babes"...
and the under-rated
Bruno PremianiBruno Premiani was an illustrator known for his work for several comic book publishers, particularly DC Comics.Born in Trieste, Italy in 1907, Premiani became a political cartoonist in his maturity, and was expelled from the country for his anti-Benito Mussolini work. He emigrated to Argentina but...
," whose influences showed in his "early crude stabs at drawing comics." The young Bolland did not rate
Marvel ComicsMarvel Publishing, Inc., a company doing business as Marvel Comics, produces American comic books and related media. It forms a subsidiary of Marvel Entertainment, Inc....
as highly as DC, feeling the covers cluttered and the paper quality crude. His appreciation of the artwork of
Jack KirbyJacob Kurtzberg , better known by the pen name Jack Kirby, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor. Growing up poor in New York City, Kurtzberg entered the nascent comics industry in the 1930s. He drew various comic strips under different pseudonyms, ultimately settling on Jack Kirby...
, he says, only materialised much later "through the eyes of a seasoned professional." He did however enjoy UK comics, including newspaper strips such as "Syd Jordan's
Jeff HawkeJeff Hawke was a science fiction comic strip created by Sydney Jordan. It was published in the Daily Express from 15 February 1955 to 18 April 1974, by which point Jordan had "written or co-written and drawn 6,474 episodes." Despite its obscurity in English-speaking countries, it is often regarded...
[and]
David WrightDavid Wright was a British illustrator who drew a series of "lovelies" that epitomised female glamour during World War II...
's
Carol Day," and
ValiantFor the U.S. comic publisher, see Valiant Comics.Valiant was the title of a British boys adventure comic which ran from 1962 to 1976. It was published by IPC Magazines and was one of their major adventure titles throughout the 1960s and early 1970s....
which featured "
Eric BradburyEric Bradbury was a British comic artist. He was described by 2000 AD as one of their "early, unsung heroes."-Biography:Bradbury was a student of Beckenham art school from 1936 and was a pilot during the Second World War....
's
Mytek the Mighty and
Jesus BlascoJesús Blasco was a Spanish author and artist of comic books, whose career covered most of the conventional history of comic strips. He worked extensively in British comics in the 1960s and 1970s.-Career:...
's
Steel ClawThe Steel Claw was one of the most popular comic book heroes of British weekly adventure comics of the 1960s and 1970s. The character was revived in 2005 for Albion, a six issue mini-series published by the Wildstorm imprint of DC Comics....
." Despite such a variety of inspirations, Bolland credits his eventual pursuance of art as a hobby and then vocation to a primary school art teacher, who "evidently said all the right things to me."
Introduction to art
Growing up as "and only child in a house without culture," (Bolland says that his "mother and father had no use for art, literature or music"), he embraced the late 1960s pop culture explosion of "
pirate radioPirate radio is illegal or unregulated radio transmission. Its etymology can be traced to the unlicensed nature of the transmission, but historically there has been occasional but notable use of sea vessels – fitting the most common perception of a pirate – as broadcasting bases...
stations, music (particularly
Frank ZappaFrank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, electronic, orchestral, and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed album...
...), drug taking, psychadelia, "
peace and love"Peace and love" is a term associated with the hippie movement. It can also refer to:*Peace and Love , a 1989 album by The Pogues*Peace and Love , a 2004 album by DJ Tatana...
," "
dropping out"Turn on, tune in, drop out" is a counterculture phrase coined by Timothy Leary in the 1960s. The phrase came to him in the shower one day after Marshall McLuhan suggested to Leary that he come up with "something snappy" to promote the benefits of LSD. It is an excerpt from a prepared speech he...
," the underground scene,
Oz MagazineOz was first published as a satirical humour magazine between 1963 and 1969 in Sydney, Australia and, in its second and more famous incarnation, became a "psychedelic hippy" magazine from 1967 to 1973 in London. Strongly identified as part of the underground press, it was the subject of two...
," and other aspects of hippy culture epitomised by
underground comixUnderground comix are small press or self-published comic books which are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, including explicit drug use, sexuality and violence...
such as
Robert CrumbRobert Dennis Crumb , often credited simply as R. Crumb, is an American artist and illustrator recognized for the distinctive style of his drawings and his critical, satirical, subversive view of the American mainstream...
's
Zap ComixZap Comix is the best-known of the underground comics that emerged as part of the youth counterculture of the late 1960s.-History:The first issue of Zap was published in San Francisco in early 1968. It featured the work of satirical cartoonist Robert Crumb...
. Having taken both O-Level and A-Level examinations in art, Bolland spent five years at art school (starting in 1969) learning
graphic designThe term graphic design can refer to a number of artistic and professional disciplines which focus on visual communication and presentation. Various methods are used to create and combine symbols, images and/or words to create a visual representation of ideas and messages. A graphic designer may...
and
Art historyArt history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and look. This includes the "major" arts of painting, sculpture, and architecture as well as the "minor" arts of ceramics,...
. Learning to draw comics, however, was "more a self-taught thing," with Bolland eventually writing a 15,000 word dissertation in 1973 on
Neal AdamsNeal Adams is an American comic book and commercial artist best known for helping to create some of the definitive modern imagery of the DC Comics characters Superman, Batman, and Green Arrow; as the co-founder of the graphic design studio Continuity Associates; and as a creators-rights advocate...
- an "artist [his teachers] had never heard of." He would later recall
{{cquote|"It was during this time that I discovered the sheer range of comics and their history. All the British stuff I'd missed was there to be discovered. I found the American greats,
FosterHarold Rudolf Foster was a Canadian-American cartoonist most famous as the creator of the comic strip Prince Valiant.-Biography:...
,
HerrimanGeorge Joseph Herriman was an American cartoonist, best known for his comic strip Krazy Kat.-Biography:...
,
Alex RaymondAlexander Gillespie Raymond was an American cartoonist, best known for creating Flash Gordon for King Features in 1934...
and Windsor McCay...
Noel SicklesNoel Douglas Sickles was an American commercial illustrator and cartoonist most famous for the comic strip Scorchy Smith....
,
Milt CaniffMilton Arthur Paul Caniff was an American cartoonist famous for the Terry and the Pirates and Steve Canyon comic strips.-Early life:Caniff was born in Hillsboro, Ohio. He was an Eagle Scout...
,
Roy CraneRoyston Campbell Crane , who signed his work Roy Crane, was an American cartoonist and creator of the comic strip characters Wash Tubbs, Captain Easy, and Buz Sawyer...
, had all, I discovered, put down the basic building blocks of our "Art form". And there were the Europeans...
MoebiusJean Henri Gaston Giraud is a French comics artist. Giraud has earned worldwide fame, not only under his own name but also under the pseudonym Moebius, and to a lesser extent Gir, the latter appearing mostly in the form of a boxed signature at the bottom of the artist's paintings, for instance the...
,
ManaraMilo Manara, byname of Maurilio Manara is an Italian comic book creator , best known for his erotic approach to the medium.-Biography:...
,
BrecciaAlberto Breccia was an Uruguay-born Argentine comics artist and writer.-Biography:Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Breccia moved with his parents to Buenos Aires, Argentina when he was three years old...
. Later the
FilipinoThe Filipino people are the nationals of the Republic of the Philippines and to persons having Filipino ancestry. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines and about 11 million outside the Philippines....
s—
Alex NiñoAlex Niño is a Filipino comic book artist best known for his work for the American publishers DC Comics, Marvel Comics, and Warren Publishing, and in Heavy Metal magazine.-Early life and career:...
,
Nestor RedondoNestor Redondo was a comic-book artist best-known for his work for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, and other American publishers in the 1970s and early 1980s.-Early life and career:...
,
Alfredo AlcalaAlfredo P. Alcala was a Filipino comic book artist, born in Talisay, Negros Occidental in the Philippines.-Biography:...
, all were inspirational. None of this stuff was to be found in the art schools. During my five years in three art schools I never learnt a single thing about comics from any of my tutors."}}
Fanzines and early work
While at art school, Bolland drew and self-published a couple of
fanzineA fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
s and his work was published in British underground magazines
FriendzFriends magazine was launched in London in winter 1969 as a direct result of the closure by its US parent of the short-lived UK edition of Rolling Stone....
,
International TimesInternational Times was an underground paper founded in London in 1966. Editors included John Hopkins, David Mairowitz, Pete Stansill, Barry Miles, Jim Haynes and playwright Tom McGrath...
and
OZOz was first published as a satirical humour magazine between 1963 and 1969 in Sydney, Australia and, in its second and more famous incarnation, became a "psychedelic hippy" magazine from 1967 to 1973 in London. Strongly identified as part of the underground press, it was the subject of two...
. In 1971, his friend Dave Harwood "took his first step into printed mass production with his
RDH Comix," for which Bolland provided a cover (featuring
Norwich CathedralNorwich Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in Norwich in Norfolk, England dedicated to the Holy and Undivided Trinity.-Construction:...
)." Also in 1971,
Time OutTime Out is a publishing company based in London, England. The company's best known product is the Time Out weekly listings magazine.The Time Out Group Limited conducts most of its business from London, New York and Paris.-Publications:...
- an underground magazine rapidly reinventing itself into "the biggest weekly listings magazine in London" - gave Bolland his "first paid job" producing "a proper illustration of
JazzJazz is a musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
bassistThe double bass, also called the upright bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra. The name, "double bass," derives from the early use of the instrument to double—an octave lower where possible—the bass part written...
Buddy GuyGeorge "Buddy" Guy is a five-time Grammy Award-winning American blues guitarist and singer. Known as an inspiration to Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, and many other guitarists, Guy is considered an important exponent of Chicago blues. He is the father of female rapper Shawnna and...
." While in
NorwichNorwich is a city in Norfolk, East Anglia which is in Eastern England. It is the regional administrative centre and county city of Norfolk...
, Bolland produced the first episodes of an adult
Little Nemo in Slumberland parodyA parody , in contemporary usage, is a work created to mock, comment on, or poke fun at an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
entitled
Little Nympho in Slumberland, and when he moved to London's Central School of Art and Design in 1973, he continued to produce (mostly full-page)
Little Nympho strips for a 50-copy fanzine entitled
Suddenly at 2-o-clock in the Morning. He also contributed a smaller, strip entitled "The Mixed-Up Kid" to the Central School of Art's "college newspaper... the
Galloping Maggot."
In 1972, Bolland attended a comic convention at the Waverley Hotel in London, and met "a lot of the people who were key in the comics scene of the time," including
Dez SkinnDerek "Dez" Skinn is a British comic book and magazine editor and author of number of books on comics. Headhunted away from editing the UK MAD Magazine and House of Hammer for Warner Bros, he became editorial director for the UK arm of Marvel Comics, where he reported directly to Stan Lee and...
,
Nick LandauNick Landau is co-owner of the Titan Entertainment Group which publishes Titan Magazines.-2000 AD:After finishing a post-grad course at film school Landau got his break when he came to the 2000 AD offices to interview then editor Pat Mills for Comic Media News Mills was already planning on...
,
Richard BurtonRichard Burton is a British comic editor who worked on 2000 AD. However, he is possibly better known to readers as Tharg the Mighty's bumbling assistant Burt who appeared in a number of strips with him....
,
Angus McKieAngus McKie is an artist who has worked as a colorist in the comics industry.He is best known as an English science fiction illustrator whose work appeared on the covers of numerous science fiction paperback novels in the mid 1970s and 1980s, as well as in Stewart Cowley's Terran Trade Authority...
and - crucially -
Dave GibbonsDave Gibbons is a British comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries Watchmen and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything"...
. Bolland and Gibbons became firm friends. After finishing his college course, Bolland was hit with "the stark reality of unemployment" and on the advice of Gibbons joined art agency Bardon Press Features. "A few two-page strips" for D.C. Thomson resulted, but Bolland would refer to this period as his "lowest time." Bardon did however produce a client called Pikin which was "planning a bi-weekly comic about an African superhero," Powerman, which was to be sold in
NigeriaNigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising thirty-six states and one Federal Capital Territory. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger...
. Gibbons and Bolland were to draw alternate issues (Bolland's first issue was
Powerman #10.), and Bolland recalls that "soon Dave had drawn his entire story and I had produced just a few pages." This knowledge - "that Dave could produce a page a day... and that I was going to have to do the same" - was a shock, but proved to be "the very best kind of training ground." With comics purportedly being new to Nigeria, Bolland recalls this work being created specifically to be "really simple; six panels on a page and [all] the panels had to be numbered." Not only was this work "[t]he best way to learn the simple rules of comic book storytelling," but "better still, it was going someplace where nobody I knew could see it." He "drew around 300 pages of that very straightforward, simple-to-follow work, and I guess the storytelling flowed naturally from that." Even so, he "was always struggling to get the last eight or ten pages finished," and was occasionally helped by friends, both from his "Norwich School of Art days," Gibbons and future-
2000 AD and
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen artist
Kevin O'NeillKevin O'Neill may refer to:*Kevin O'Neil - Winter Hill Gang Lieutenant*Kevin O'Neill , illustrator*Kevin O'Neill , coach*Kevin O'Neill , Australian football player...
.
Bolland writes that starting with
Powerman he "found regular employment drawing comics, one of which,
Judge DreddJudge Joe Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is a law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
, in 1977-80, turned out to be quite a hit..."
2000AD
{{main|2000 AD (comic)}}
In early
1977-March:*March 5: Judge Dredd debuts in the second issue of 2000 AD with the story "Judge Whitey" written by Peter Harris and drawn by Mike McMahon.-December:...
, Bardon agent Barry Coker called Gibbons and Bolland to the office and showed them "mock-ups from a new science fiction comic I.P.C. was planning to publish." With
Star WarsStar Wars is an epic space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas. The first film in the franchise was originally released on May 25, 1977, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, spawning two immediate sequels, released at three-year intervals...
doing well at the
box officeA box office is a place where tickets are sold to the public for admission to a venue. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through an unblocked hole through a wall, or at a wicket...
, the time was ripe for a new SF comic, and Gibbons joined
Carlos EzquerraCarlos Sanchez Ezquerra , who has also worked under the alias L. John Silver, is a Spanish comics artist who works mainly in British comics and currently lives in Andorra...
in "jumping into
2000AD feet first with issue 1 (or Programme, later Prog 1)... but meanwhile [Bolland] would have to keep drawing
Powerman on [his] own."
Powerman dropped to a monthly schedule, and Coker soon got Bolland "a cover on
2000AD in May '77 with Prog 11" (7 May 1977; signed "Bollo"). Bolland recalls of those early days that
{{cquote|"You'll be surprised to hear that even though
Judge DreddJudge Joe Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is a law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
had been in
2000AD since Prog 2 the editors weren't sure which of the interior characters would sell the comic best if that character was on the cover. Artists like me just came up with cover ideas and, if they liked them, we'd draw the cover and they would write a one-page text story based on it to go inside. These early covers of mine fall into that category."}}
Other covers following (nearly a third of the first 30), as well as stand-alone pages and some inking duties on Gibbons'
Dan DareDan Dare is a British science fiction comic hero, created by illustrator Frank Hampson. Hampson not only invented Dan Dare and his entire world, he also put together the original team of artists and wrote the first two stories...
. Already familiar with Nick Landau (acting editor), when another artist dropped out, Bolland was called directly to complete a
Judge DreddJudge Joe Dredd is a comics character whose strip in the British science fiction anthology 2000 AD is the magazine's longest running . Dredd is a law enforcement officer in a violent city of the future where uniformed Judges combine the powers of police, judge, jury and executioner...
story in Prog 41 (03 Dec 77) and soon was established as a regular artist on the series. "From that point on," writes Bolland, "either he [Landau] or his successor
Steve MacManusSteve MacManus is a British comic writer and editor, particularly known for his work at 2000 AD.-Biography:...
called me direct whenever they wanted me to do a
Dredd story." Dredd stories started as traditional UK comic stories, i.e. "six page one-offs... [Writers]
Pat MillsPat Mills, nicknamed 'the godfather of British comics', is a comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since....
and
John WagnerJohn Wagner is a comics writer who was born in Pennsylvania in 1949 and moved to Scotland as a boy. Alongside Pat Mills, Wagner was responsible for revitalising British boys' comics in the 1970s, and has continued to be a leading light in British comics ever since.He is best known for his work on...
seem[ing] to spurn the American comic idea of continuing stories or, worse, the idea of a
2000AD continuity between characters," Bolland seeing this as a "strength... hav[ing] one great new idea each week." Soon, though, the writers began to craft serials, and Bolland's distinct abilities with subtle facial expressions, dramatic lighting and the dynamic composition of page layout made him the perfect choice to draw the on-going sagas, starting with "The Lunar Olympics." Bolland contributed artwork to such popular and seminal
Judge Dredd story-arcs as "Luna Period," "
The Cursed Earth"The Cursed Earth" is the second extended storyline of the Judge Dredd character to appear in 2000 AD, and the first to exceed twenty episodes: as such it is sometimes called the first Judge Dredd epic...
," "The Day the Law Died," "
The Judge Child Quest"The Judge Child" was an extended storyline in the 2000 AD comic strip Judge Dredd that ran from issues 156 to 181 in 1980. It introduced a character with the same name...
" and "
Block Mania"Block Mania" is a Judge Dredd story, which ran in British comic 2000 AD #236-244, in 1981. The story itself is a prologue for the longer storyline "The Apocalypse War", which immediately follows the conclusion of "Block Mania".-Story:...
." As the Dredd stories rose in popularity, they "were moved so they started on the middle pages" with a colour double-page spread, which Bolland "always struggled with" finding it "very difficult... [trying] to fill that space most effectively." Ultimately the weekly deadlines meant that Bolland was unable to produce all episodes of the epic storylines himself, and the art chores on
The Cursed Earth were split between Bolland and
Mike McMahonMichael McMahon is a British comics artist best known for his work on 2000 AD characters such as Judge Dredd, Sláine and ABC Warriors, and the mini-series The Last American....
.
Bolland's early work on
Judge Dredd was much influenced by McMahon, a talented newcomer whose idiosyncratic style was fueling the interest in the new character. Bolland thought McMahon was "terrific, the real ideas man on Dredd," but noted that McMahon's approach was "very impressionistic," while the "average comics reader, certainly at the time, does tend to prefer realism." Bolland therefore states that he "aped Mike's genius... and then reinterpreted [Dredd] in a style which actually borrowed a lot from the work of the American artists," retaining McMahon's "granite-jawed" look but bringing a level of realism and fine detail to the character, which Mark Salisbury says "finally cemented the iconic image."
As well as honing the look of the character and contributing to the highest-profile early storylines, Bolland also created the look of two of the wider Dredd universe's most enduring characters:
Judge DeathJudge Death is a fictional character of the Judge Dredd universe recounted in the UK comic 2000 AD. He is the leader of the Dark Judges, a sinister group of undead law enforcers from the alternate dimension of Deadworld, where all life has been declared a crime since only the living commit crimes...
(and the other three
Dark JudgesThe Dark Judges are recurring villains in the fictional Judge Dredd universe recounted in the UK comic 2000 AD. They are Judge Death, Judge Fire, Judge Fear and Judge Mortis. Later storylines added the "Sisters of Death" , to their ranks...
) and
Judge AndersonJudge Cassandra Anderson is a comics fictional character that started as a supporting character in the comic story Judge Dredd of 2000 AD and eventually rose in prominence and became the star of her own series, which is entitled Anderson: Psi Division. It was created by writer John Wagner and...
.
Later, Landau's Titan "decided they could repackage the
Judge Dredd stories in an American comic format with new covers and sell it to America," and did under the evocative British brand "Eagle Comics". Bolland provided many of the covers for these compendium issues.
Judge Death
{{main|Judge Death}}
Bolland "drew the first three episodes of the
Judge Death story over the winter of 1979-80," as "just another villain in just another excellent
John WagnerJohn Wagner is a comics writer who was born in Pennsylvania in 1949 and moved to Scotland as a boy. Alongside Pat Mills, Wagner was responsible for revitalising British boys' comics in the 1970s, and has continued to be a leading light in British comics ever since.He is best known for his work on...
script." He doesn't "remember doing any sketches to get him right," the "outfit was described somewhat in the script... and details of it were heavily inspired by the look of
Kevin O'NeillKevin O'Neill may refer to:*Kevin O'Neil - Winter Hill Gang Lieutenant*Kevin O'Neill , illustrator*Kevin O'Neill , coach*Kevin O'Neill , Australian football player...
's
Nemesis the WarlockNemesis the Warlock is a comic strip created by writer Pat Mills and artist Kevin O'Neill which appeared in the pages of the weekly comic 2000 AD. The title character, a fire-breathing demonic alien, fights against the fanatical Torquemada, Grand Master of the Terran Empire in Earth's distant...
. Bolland was, he acknowledges, "by far the slowest of the rotating
Judge Death artists," opting to "take as long as I needed and do a half-way decent job" rather than rushing. For the sequel, a "massive (for me) 30 pages," 2000AD
's editorial banked one-off stories to give Bolland long enough to draw it all.
When Nick Landau began (in 1981)
Titan BooksTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London's Bankside area, close to Tate Modern...
' reprints of Judge Dredd material, he "used this story non-chronologically" to begin the series. Landau spent time paginating the book at Bolland's flat, and discovered that "[s]ome stories started or ended on the wrong page thereby leaving blank pages," as it was set to be "in effect, the first book exclusively of my work" the artist "gladly offered to add three full page pictures for the Cursed Earth
volume and a new back cover for the first Judge Dredd
volume.
Walter the Wobot
{{main|Walter the Wobot}}
Walter the Wobot was an android with a speech impediment who served as Judge Dredd's personal servant robot. Created for light relief, Bolland notes that "[t]he great thing about the Judge Dredd strip was it's [sic] ability to slide seamlessly between gritty sci fi adventure, nasty gothic horror,
spoofA parody , in contemporary usage, is a work created to mock, comment on, or poke fun at an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
ery, all the way to daft comedy." Walter's solo adventures - "Walter the Wobot, Fwiend of Dwedd" - were the latter style. Bolland drew all bar a couple of Walter's adventures, which appeared between Progs #50-61; #67-68 and #84-85 (with
Ian GibsonIan Gibson is a British comic book artist, best known for his 1980s black-and-white work for 2000 AD.-Biography:His imaginative cartoonish, and beautifully detailed style lends itself best to humourous strips, such as Robo-Hunter and Ace Trucking Co., although his work on the Alan Moore-penned The...
drawing the first two episodes and
Brendan McCarthyBrendan McCarthy is a British artist and designer best known for his work in comic books, film and television.- Biography :Brendan McCarthy, of Irish descent, was born in London and drifted through the early part of his life as a floating member of The Hanwell Dream Gang, a gathering of...
the last two), and says that he "was usually able to complete one in a day." He namechecks "the great
Don MartinDon Martin was an American cartoon artist whose best-known work was published in Mad magazine from 1956 to 1988.-Early years:Don Martin was born on May 18 1931 in Paterson, New Jersey...
" as an artist he "shamelessly ripped off" for the human supporting characters, drawing most of the pages in
ChiswickChiswick is an area of West London, located west of Charing Cross, which covers the eastern part of the London Borough of Hounslow. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
, 1978.
Other UK work
In between Dredd
assignments Bolland drew horror strips for Dez SkinnDerek "Dez" Skinn is a British comic book and magazine editor and author of number of books on comics. Headhunted away from editing the UK MAD Magazine and House of Hammer for Warner Bros, he became editorial director for the UK arm of Marvel Comics, where he reported directly to Stan Lee and...
's House of Hammer
, having been introduced to the comic through another of the "fanboy in-crowd," Trevor Goring, who drew "a comic strip version of the movie Plague of the Zombies
," and asked Bolland to ink it. Soon, Bolland was asked to draw "Vampire Circus{Infobox Film| name = Vampire Circus| image = Vampirecircus.jpg| caption =| director = Robert Young| producer = Wilbur Stark| writer = Judson Kinberg| narrator =...
" (dir. Robert YoungRobert William Young is a British television and film director.Young was born in Cheltenham, and in the 1980s and early 1990s, established himself as a leading director of British TV drama. In the 1970s, he directed Vampire Circus and Hammer House of Horror...
, 1972; comic version scripted by Steve ParkhouseSteve Parkhouse is a writer, artist and letterer who has worked for many British comics, especially 2000 AD and Doctor Who Magazine.-Biography:...
), and "pile[d] on the gore" for his first HammerHammer Film Productions is a film production company based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1934, the company is best known for a series of Gothic "Hammer Horror" films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s. Hammer also produced science fiction, thrillers, film Noir, and comedies and in later...
horror adaptation - although he found much of the "blood painted out" in the printed version.
From the 1970s to the present, Bolland has also produced one-off pieces of artwork for use as record (including one for The DriftersThe Drifters are a long-lived African-American doo wop/R&B vocal group with a peak in popularity from 1953 to 1962, though several splinter Drifters continue to perform today. They were originally formed by Clyde McPhatter in 1953...
in 1975), paperback book (including the UK TitanTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London's Bankside area, close to Tate Modern...
editions of George R. R. MartinGeorge Raymond Richard Martin , sometimes referred to as GRRM, is an American author and screenwriter of fantasy, horror, and science fiction. He is best known for his ongoing epic A Song of Ice and Fire series.-Biography:...
's Wild CardsWild Cards is a science fiction and superhero anthology series set in a shared universe. The series was created by a group of New Mexico science fiction authors, and mostly edited by George R. R. Martin...
anthologies) and magazine covers (including Time OutTime Out is a publishing company based in London, England. The company's best known product is the Time Out weekly listings magazine.The Time Out Group Limited conducts most of its business from London, New York and Paris.-Publications:...
and a every major comics publication). He continued to produce work for fanzines, including for Nick Landau's Comic Media News
, and Arkensword
and even "drew the hazard cards" for a board gameA board game is a game in which counters or pieces that are placed on, removed from, or moved across a "board"...
called Maneater
. He later "got to know the Games WorkshopGames Workshop Group plc is a British game production and retailing company. Games Workshop is one of the largest wargames companies in the world. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange with the symbol GAW.L...
guys, Steve Jackson and Ian LivingstoneIan Livingstone is an English fantasy author and entrepreneur. He is a co-writer of the first Fighting Fantasy gamebook, The Warlock of Firetop Mountain, and co-founder of Games Workshop....
," and produced various "games related drawings" including a cover or two for Fighting FantasyFighting Fantasy is a series of single-player fantasy gamebooks created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, originally published by Puffin and now by Wizard Books...
Adventure Game Books, and RPG scenario pamphlets.
In 1977, Bolland was approached by Syd Jordan to ghost some episodes of Jordan's newspaper stripA comic strip is a sequence of cartoons that tells a story, often humorous, though adventures and soap opera-like dramas are also prevalent. They are written and drawn by a comics artist or cartoonist, and many are published on a recurring basis in newspapers and on the Internet.In the UK and the...
Jeff HawkeJeff Hawke was a science fiction comic strip created by Sydney Jordan. It was published in the Daily Express from 15 February 1955 to 18 April 1974, by which point Jordan had "written or co-written and drawn 6,474 episodes." Despite its obscurity in English-speaking countries, it is often regarded...
. (Fellow fandom-pro artist Paul NearyPaul Neary is a British comic book artist, writer and editor.His first work was for Warren Publishing in the 1970s before working with Dez Skinn at Marvel UK as well as work for 2000 AD...
had "already done quite a few.") Bolland drew 15 episodes, and "Syd touched up some of the daces, a few details here and there, to make them look a bit more like him." By this point, "although the Express
owned the rights to the strip, they were not printing it," but since it had a strong European following, these new episodes (Bolland believes) "got collected in anthologies in French and Spanish," but not in the UK except briefly in "the fanzine Eureka
." In 1985, as a known fan, Bolland was approached by Nick Landau to select stories and draw covers for two TitanTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London's Bankside area, close to Tate Modern...
collections of the strip, with a third design going unpublished. Bolland also contributed "A Miracle of ElishaElisha is a prophet of the Hebrew bible. To many Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox he is known as Saint Eliseus; however, the standard English form of the name has been "Elisha," at least since the introduction of the Authorized King James Version...
" to Knockabout ComicsKnockabout Comics is a UK publisher and distributor of underground and alternative comic books.-History:It was formed by Tony Bennett and Carol Bennett in the 1980s to distribute Gilbert Shelton's Freak Brothers titles as well as British work from creators such as Hunt Emerson and Bryan...
' Old BaileyThe Central Criminal Court in the United Kingdom, commonly known as the Old Bailey, is a court building in central London, one of a number of buildings housing the Crown Court. The Crown Court sitting at the Central Criminal Court deals with major criminal cases from Greater London and, in...
OZ
TrialSchoolkids OZ was issue 28 of the Oz magazine, famous for being the subject of a high-profile obscenity case in the United Kingdom in June 1971...
Special
, written because Old TestamentIn Christianity, the Old Testament is the collection of books that form the first of the two-part Christian Biblical canon. These works correspond to the Hebrew Bible , with some variations and additions. In the Eastern Orthodox Church the comparable texts are known as the Septuagint, from the...
history had piqued the interest of Bolland when living near the British MuseumThe British Museum is a museum of human history and culture situated in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from...
. This page was later reprinted in the star-studded (MooreAlan Oswald Moore is an English writer known for work in comics, including the acclaimed comic book series Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell...
, Hunt EmersonHunt Emerson is a cartoonist living and working in Birmingham, England. He was closely involved with the Birmingham Arts Lab of the mid-to-late 1970s, and with the British underground comics scene of the 1970s and 1980s...
, GaimanNeil Richard Gaiman is an English author of science fiction and fantasy short stories and novels, graphic novels, comics, audio theatre, and films. His notable works include The Sandman comic series, Stardust, American Gods, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book...
, GibbonsDave Gibbons is a British comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries Watchmen and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything"...
, Dave McKeanDavid McKean is an English illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician....
, etc.) Outrageous Tales From the Old Testament
volume, although Bolland's name was left off the cover.
Advertising
Bolland has also produced a considerable amount of advertising work, initially because his agent "Barry Coker kept putting advertising jobs my way," including a number of ads for "PalitoyPalitoy was the name of a British toy company.It manufactured some of the most popular toys in Britain, some original items and others under licence...
's Star WarsStar Wars is an epic space opera franchise initially conceived by George Lucas. The first film in the franchise was originally released on May 25, 1977, by 20th Century Fox, and became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, spawning two immediate sequels, released at three-year intervals...
toys." He also drew some of the earliest pieces of advertising artwork for pioneer SF and comic shop Dark They Were, and Golden-EyedDark They Were And Golden Eyed was the largest science fiction bookshop and comic store in Europe during the 1970s.Started by Derek 'Bram' Stokes, who previously ran the Gothique fanzine but had left to start a science fiction mail order book service.Diane Lister joined him in 1969...
, which ran in various Fanzines, Convention programmes and magazines such as Time Out
and was commissioned by future-Titan Distribution & Forbidden Planet co-founder Mike Lake (who was "working there at the time") c. 1976. As well as the DTWAGE adverts, Bolland also contributed (alongside most of his peers) artwork to advertise, and/or feature in programme booklets for the UK Comicon, starting c.1976. In 1978, Nick Landau, Mike Lake and Mike Luckman "took their comic distribution business into the highstreet," opening the first
Forbidden PlanetForbidden Planet is the trading name of two separate science fiction, fantasy and horror bookshop chains across the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the United States of America, after the feature film of the same name....
comics shop, for which Lake asked Bolland to produce the now-famous "People like us shop at... FORBIDDEN PLANET" adverts. Bolland's artwork would also feature on the shops plastic bags, as well as T-Shirts and "covers for their SF, comic and TV & film catalogues," among other places. Later, when a branch of
FP was opened in
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and at a second location in London, Bolland "did ads for both of them."
Spearheading the British Invasion
{{main|British Invasion (comics)}}
Bolland was among the very first comics creator 'discovered' by the American comics industry, spearheading the so-called "British Invasion" in 1979/80. Bolland recalls that his big break came when
Joe StatonJoe Staton is an American illustrator and writer of comic books.-Career:Staton started his work with Charlton Comics in 1971 and gained notability as the artist of the super-hero book E-Man...
attended the Summer 1979 Comicon, and, needing somewhere to work (on Green Lantern
) while in the UK, stayed with the Bollands. Staton called his editor Jack Harris and said Bolland, a big Green Lantern
fan, would "like to draw a Green Lantern
cover," Harris agreed. Bolland's US career thus "started with a Green LanternGreen Lantern is the name of several fictional characters, superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The first was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell in All-American Comics #16 ....
cover [Green Lantern
#127 (Apr, 1980)]," after which he produced "a trickle of covers [including more Green Lantern
covers over Ross AndruRoss Andru was an American comic book artist and editor. He is best known for his work on The Amazing Spider-Man and Wonder Woman and for co-creating the Metal Men and the Punisher .His most frequent collaborator was...
layouts] and stories" before gaining "regular employment." These stories included, in 1980-1, "Certified Safe" in Mystery in SpaceMystery in Space is the name of two science fiction comic book series published in the United States by DC Comics.-First series:The original Mystery in Space series ran for 110 issues from 1951 to 1966...
and "Falling Down to Heaven" in Madame XanaduMadame Xanadu is a fictional character, a comic book mystic published by DC Comics. She debuted in Doorway to Nightmare #1,...
. For editor Julius SchwartzJulius "Julie" Schwartz was a Jewish comic book and pulp magazine editor, and a science fiction agent and prominent fan. He was born in the Bronx, New York...
, Bolland drew covers around which writers would craft stories, which included "a couple of StarroStarro is a fictional supervillain who appears in stories published by DC Comics. Starro, who comes from an alien race known as the Star Conquerors, is a starfish-like creature who first appeared in The Brave and the Bold #28 in 1960, which was also the first appearance of the Justice League of...
covers and the Superman Beastman
cover [SupermanSuperman is a comic book published by DC Comics. The character Superman began as one of several anthology features in the National Periodical Publications comic book Action Comics #1 . The strip proved so popular that National launched Superman into his own self-titled comic book, the first for...
#422 (Aug, 1986)]."
Among his earliest interior work for DC was a chapter in Justice League of America
#200 (Mar, 1982) alongside industry legends - and artistic heroes - Joe KubertJoe Kubert is a Jewish-American comic book artist who went on to found the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon and Graphic Art. He is best known for his work on the DC Comics characters Sgt. Rock and Hawkman...
, Carmine InfantinoCarmine Infantino is an American comic book artist and editor who was a major force in the Silver Age of Comic Books. He was inducted into the Comic Book Hall of Fame in 2000.-Early life and career:...
and Gil KaneEli Katz who worked under the name Gil Kane and in a few instances Scott Edwards, was a comic book artist whose career spanned the 1940s to 1990s and every major comics company and character.Kane co-created the modern-day versions of the superheroes Green Lantern and the Atom for DC Comics, and...
as well as Jim AparoJames N. "Jim" Aparo was an American comic book artist best known for his 1960's and 1970's work on various DC Comics including Batman, Aquaman and The Spectre ....
, George PerezGeorge Pérez is an illustrator and writer of comic books born of Latin-American descent. He was one of the most popular and influential artists in American superhero comic books in the 1980s. He primarily illustrates superhero comics, mainly published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics, and is known...
and Dick GiordanoDick Giordano is an American comic book artist and editor best known for introducing Charlton Comics' "Action Heroes" stable of superheroes, and serving as executive editor of then industry-leader DC Comics...
. This gave the artist his "first stab at drawing Batman
." Bolland feels that "after my cover [GL
#127] worked out the people at DC turned their gaze on London... and particularly on the group of artists at 2000AD who had been weaned on the DC characters." He recalls that, "after I was settled in at DC, scouts from that company came to our "Society of Strip Illustration" meetings to win over a few more of us," making a "formal invitation" at an SSI meeting, which saw "
Dave GibbonsDave Gibbons is a British comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries Watchmen and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything"...
,
Kevin O'NeillKevin O'Neill may refer to:*Kevin O'Neil - Winter Hill Gang Lieutenant*Kevin O'Neill , illustrator*Kevin O'Neill , coach*Kevin O'Neill , Australian football player...
... [t]hen
Alan DavisAlan Davis is an English writer and artist of comic books.-UK work:Alan Davis was born on 18 June, 1956, and began his career in comics onto an English fanzine...
and
Mark FarmerMark Farmer is a British comic book artist. He is best known as an inker, often working with Alan Davis.-Biography:Farmer got his start in the UK comics industry before becoming part of the British Invasion, the wave of UK creators that were an integral part of the DC Comics "new look" of the...
," following the artists "Alan Grant "went across" and, at some point, a
certain tall hairy writer from the MidlandsAlan Oswald Moore is an English writer known for work in comics, including the acclaimed comic book series Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell...
."
Camelot 3000
{{main|Camelot 3000}}
In 1982, DC editor
Len WeinLen Wein is an American comic book writer and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' Swamp Thing and Marvel Comics' Wolverine, and for helping revive the Marvel superhero team the X-Men...
chose Bolland to be the artist on
DCDC Comics is one of the largest and most popular American comic book and related media companies, along with Marvel Comics. It is the publishing division of DC Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary company of Warner Bros. Entertainment...
's
Camelot 3000Camelot 3000 is an American twelve-issue comic book limited series written by Mike W. Barr and penciled by Brian Bolland. It was published by DC Comics from 1982 to 1985 as one of its first direct market projects, and as its first maxi-series.-Plot:...
12-issue
limited seriesA limited series is a series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
, with writer
Mike W. BarrMike W. Barr, is an American writer of comic books, and mystery, and science fiction novels.-Biography:Mike W. Barr was born on May 30, 1952. His introduction into comics writing came in DC Comics' Detective Comics #444, for which he wrote an 8-page back-up mystery feature starring the Elongated...
. The story, a "re-working of the old Arthurian legend" dealing with the return of
King ArthurKing Arthur is a legendary British leader who, according to medieval histories and romances, led the defense of Britain against the Saxon invaders in the early 6th century. The details of Arthur's story are mainly composed of folklore and literary invention, and his historical existence is debated...
to save England from an
alien invasionThe alien invasion is a common theme in science fiction stories and film, in which an extraterrestrial society invades Earth with the intent to exterminate and replace human life , enslave it under a colonial system , to harvest humans for food , or sometimes to destroy the earth altogether .The...
in the Year 3000, not only "represents the single biggest body of work" by Bolland - and his only attempt to draw a monthly title - but was also the "first example of a DC (or otherwise) maxi-series." Bolland wasn't initially familiar with the Arthurian legends, and initially conceived Merlin as "a comical character." His "first encounter with media hype," proved popular as he found himself "whisked off to San Diego and places and made a fuss of." Bolland was allowed to "pick between two inkers," but opted to ink his covers himself. (Indeed, it was initially unpopular with him to allow a third party to ink his pencils, since he'd previously "never had my work inked unless I was in dire straits," but "by the end I was quite pleased with the results.") Reacting indignantly to being presented with Andru layouts for the first two Camelot 3000 covers, he
{{cquote|"...chose to ignore [the Andru design] completely and come up with my own unapproved design. Len Wein rejected it and told me to do the Ross Andru one. Grudgingly I drew the number one cover that made it onto the issue - but as a protest I reversed the letter N in my signature as a code to remind myself that my "artistic integrity" had been despoiled. I liked the backwards N enough to keep it from that day on."}}
Camelot 3000 also became notorious for the lengthy delays between its final issues. Bolland recalls that he and DC "talked quite a bit about how long it would take me to do the series," and because the series was inked by a third party (initially by Bruce Patterson, then by
Terry AustinTerry Austin may refer to:*Terry Austin , English footballer*Terry Austin , American comic book artist...
), he started off "churning the pages out with great enthusiasm." As the series continued, however, Bolland became increasingly meticulous, "trying to make the pages look better and better" not least because he "wanted the final parts of the story to [look] amazing." The added details he introduced into his famously-detailed artwork caused significant delays in the final issues of the limited series, causing issues #8-11 to be released on a quarterly rather than monthly status, and the final issue to be cover dated nine months later than the penultimate issue.
Batman
In 1986, Bolland was one of several artists who contributed pages to the anniversary issue
BatmanBatman is an ongoing comic book series featuring the DC Comics hero of the same name. The character first appeared in Detective Comics #27, published in May 1939. Batman proved to be so popular that a self-titled ongoing comic book series began publication in the spring of 1940...
#400 (Oct, 1986), his offering featuring villains Ra's Al GhulRa's al Ghul, sometimes written Rā's al Ghūl , is a DC Comics supervillain and is one of Batman's greatest enemies. His name is Arabic for "The Demon's Head," and references the name of the star Algol. Created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Neal Adams, he was introduced in Batman #232's...
and CatwomanCatwoman is a fictional character associated with DC Comics' Batman franchise. The supervillainess was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane, partially inspired by Kane's second cousin by marriage, Ruth Steel ....
. Around this time, Titan Books were "trying to launch a line of comics all written by Alan Moore," and "talks were underway to do a Batman Meets Judge Dredd
one-off by Alan and me." With these ideas kicking around in his head, and when "it became clear that [Camelot 3000
] had sold reasonably well," DC editor Dick GiordanoDick Giordano is an American comic book artist and editor best known for introducing Charlton Comics' "Action Heroes" stable of superheroes, and serving as executive editor of then industry-leader DC Comics...
then asked Bolland what project he
wanted to work on next. Bolland says:
{{cquote|"I thought about it in terms of who's my favourite writer at the moment, what hero I would really love to do, and which villain? I basically came up with Alan, Batman and the Joker.}} The result was the popular, influential and controversial Batman: The Killing JokeBatman: The Killing Joke is an influential one-shot superhero comic book written by Alan Moore, drawn by Brian Bolland, and published by DC Comics in 1988. It has in its original form continuously been held in print since then...
, first published in 1988.
Batman: The Killing Joke
{{main|Batman: The Killing Joke}}
Giordano's invitation led directly to Bolland working with writer Alan MooreAlan Oswald Moore is an English writer known for work in comics, including the acclaimed comic book series Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell...
to create a plausible background story for the premier Batman villain, the Joker. Bolland's Joker fascination stemmed in part fro his having "recently seen the excellent silent movieSilent Movie is a 1976 comedy film directed by and starring Mel Brooks, and released by 20th Century Fox on June 17, 1976. The ensemble cast includes Dom DeLuise, Marty Feldman, Bernadette Peters, Sid Caesar, Anne Bancroft, Henny Youngman, Liza Minnelli, Burt Reynolds, James Caan, and Paul...
The Man Who LaughsThe Man Who Laughs is a novel by Victor Hugo, originally published in April 1869 under the French title L'Homme qui rit. Although among Hugo's most obscure works, it was adapted into a popular 1928 film, directed by Paul Leni and starring Conrad Veidt, Mary Philbin and Olga...
," and he therefore wanted to do a "Joker
story with the Batman as a more distant, peripheral character." Although the story takes pains to stress that it is merely one possible '
origin storyIn comic book terminology, an origin story is an account or back-story revealing how a character or team gained their superpowers and/or the circumstances under which they became superheroes or supervillains....
,' it has been widely accepted and adopted into DC continuity, and a central mutilation of a
long-running characterBarbara "Babs" Gordon is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics and in related media, created by Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino. From 1967 to 1988, she was the superheroine Batgirl; since 1989 she has been known as Oracle...
had to be specially approved by editor Wein. Bolland notes that he saw "Judge Death [as] almost a dry run for drawing the Joker," but that this artistic similarity did not proclude difficulties setting in during the genesis of TKJ
as
- "by the time Alan had finished
WatchmenWatchmen is a twelve-issue comic book limited series created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins. The series was published by DC Comics during 1986 and 1987, and has been subsequently reprinted into a collected graphic novel...
he had fallen out with DC to a certain extent... [i]n the end, he only continued to do Killing Joke as a favour to me."
The 64-page
prestige formatPrestige format is a term coined by DC Comics and later came into wider use to refer to a square-bound comic book with cardstock covers. A prestige format comic book is usually longer than a normal, stapled 32-page comic...
one-shot comic took a considerable amount of time to produce. Both Moore and Bolland are well-known for their meticulous and time-consuming work - both creators' then-recently-finished 12-issue maxiseries titles had seen delays - and Bolland made it clear that he "wanted to do the best possible job," even though it wasn't perhaps "quite what I'd hoped to draw." He was aided by the laid back attitude taken by DC, who he says "seemed prepared to let me do it at my own pace." However, a change of editorship also affected the pace. The original editor,
Len WeinLen Wein is an American comic book writer and editor best known for co-creating DC Comics' Swamp Thing and Marvel Comics' Wolverine, and for helping revive the Marvel superhero team the X-Men...
left the company, and was replaced by
Dennis O'NeilDennis J. "Denny" O'Neil is a comic book writer and editor, principally for Marvel Comics and DC Comics in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, and Group Editor for the Batman family of books until his retirement....
, a "very hands-off sort of guy," with whom Bolland only recalls having "one conversation" about the book. This atmosphere allowed Bolland not only the time to produce his best work, but also "to do lots of other pieces of work in and around it." "Only when it was nearing completion in 1988, and the hype machine swung into action," did Bolland worry about deadlines.
Bolland felt that there might have been the opinion that his book was "surplas to requirement" in the wake of
Frank MillerFrank Miller is an American writer, artist and film director best known for his dark, film noir-style comic book stories and graphic novels Ronin, Daredevil: Born Again, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Sin City and 300...
's groundbreaking
Batman: The Dark Knight ReturnsBatman: The Dark Knight Returns is a four-issue comic book limited series written and drawn by Frank Miller, originally published by DC Comics in 1986...
, and considers his title "almost just a piece of pure vanity publishing." He was, however, quite hurt when Moore confessed that "to him, it was just another Bat comic" - for Bolland "it was this grand thing I had been building up to... [wanting] it to be really special." Stung by Moore's criticism, Bolland was mortified by the colouring, and bemused not to have seen proofs pre-publication. Having envisaged the
flashbackA flashback is an interjected scene that takes the narrative back in time from the current point the story has reached. Flashbacks are often used to recount events that happened prior to the story’s primary sequence of events or to fill in crucial backstory...
sequences in "black and white so you knew they were taking place at an earlier time," and instructing Watchmen
-colorist John HigginsJohn Higgins is an English comic book artist and writer. He did significant work for 2000 AD, and he has frequently worked with writer Alan Moore, most notably as colourist for Watchmen.-Biography:...
to use "muted November colors," he found instead "garish... hideous glowing purples and pinks... and my precious EraserheadEraserhead is a surrealist-horror film written and directed by David Lynch, and released in . In 1971, Lynch moved to Los Angeles to pursue an MFA degree at the AFI Conservatory. At the Conservatory, Lynch began working on his first feature-length film, Eraserhead, using a $10,000 grant from the AFI...
-esque flashback sequences swamped in orange."
The 2008-published 20th anniversary edition of the book featured new colouring by Bolland, restoring his artistic intentions to the palate.
Speaking c. 2000, Bolland notes that his pursuit of "self-written" strips meant that "since The Killing Joke I haven't drawn a single page that wasn't penned by me." Six years later he clarified that
{{cquote|"Since then I haven't wanted to draw comics that anyone else has had a hand in. I'd rather not work on a story I haven't written myself or one that will ultimately be colored by someone else. I have to earn a living, though. Covers are a safe place for me. If someone else's colors swamp my work then, who cares. It was only one page. I can move on..."}}
Black and White
{{main|Batman: Black and White}}
In 1996, in accordance with his hopes to only draw interior work written by him also, Bolland wrote and drew the story "An Innocent Guy" for the anthology Batman: Black and White, in which an otherwise normal inhabitant of
Gotham CityGotham City, another name for New York city appearing in DC Comics, and is best known as the home of Batman. Batman's place of residence was first identified as Gotham City in Batman #4 .- Origin of name :...
documents his plan to carry out the ultimate
perfect crimePerfect crime is a colloquial term used in law and fiction to characterize crimes that are undetected, unattributed to a perpetrator, or else unsolved as a kind of technical achievement —one which makes the crime an ostensibly inconsequential act for the perpetrator.In certain contexts, the...
and assassinate the Dark Knight Detective. Invited by
Mark ChiarelloMark Chiarello is an American painter, art director and editor in the comics business.-Biography:As a painter, Chiarello has worked on such projects as the Batman story Batman/Houdini: The Devil's Workshop and Clive Barker's Hellraiser...
to join "an impressive list of artists" for what Bolland terms "a nifty new project," Bolland jumped at the chance. Not only was he joining a fantastic complement of artists, but "better still - I could write my own story. No writer. No colorist. Just me." Drawing inspiration from "a masterpiece of a cover by my idol,
Alex TothAlex Toth , pronounced with a long "o," was an acclaimed professional cartoonist active from the 1940s through the 1980s. Toth's work began in the American comic book industry, but is best known for his animation designs for Hanna-Barbera throughout the 1960s and 1970s...
," Bolland set out to "explore ideas... that in real life people don't come labelled "GOODIES" and "BADDIES" and that all of us walk a tightrope and could easily fall on either side."
Intended as an " "homage" to the Batman
I loved as a kid," Bolland wrote in 2006 that
{{cquote|"If anyone were to ask me what is the thing I've done in my career that I'm most pleased with, it would be this."}}
Batman: Gotham Knights
{{main|Batman: Gotham Knights}}
Approached by Bat-editor Mark Chiarello (again), Bolland was asked whether he would like to draw Batman covers for a new title, Gotham Knights. Jumping at the chance, he remarks that "there was a misunderstanding" resulting in his being unaware of the first issue being scheduled, resulting in "the superb Dave Johnson" drawing #1 instead, and Bolland joining at issue #2. Bolland's first two covers were colored by editor Chiarello, but from issue #5 to #47 (his last) they were colored by the artist himself. As his run progressed, "the job of getting a cover on Gotham Knights passed from Mark to a number of other people," and Bolland "found more and more of [his] first ideas for covers being turned down." Eventually, Bolland was "told [that he'd] be off the book in a few issues time," but after discovering that upcoming covers featured
BaneBane is a fictional character that appears in comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in Batman: Vengeance of Bane #1 , and was created by Chuck Dixon, Doug Moench and Graham Nolan. Bane has been one of Batman's most intelligent and physically powerful foes...
prominently (and not the Joker or Penguin as he'd been hoping for for some time), Bolland "said I'd go right away."
Covers
Although his forays into interior artwork are almost universally acclaimed, Bolland is far more commonly seen as 'just' a cover artist - although he notes that he has never decided to actually "pursue covers exclusively," having merely "branched off a little bit" from strip work. He cheerfully admits that he works slowly, and consequently finds covers easier to supply than whole story artwork. He also noted simply that he began to "concentrate on covers... really just because they were the jobs that I was offered." He adds that for artists like him, "it's common knowledge they're going to say no" to strip work, "so editors get them to do pin-ups instead."
Bolland has contributed covers — in many cases to complete runs/arcs — to some of the more famous landmark comics of recent years, with his photo-realistic work leaving an indelible impression on the titles for which he works, as the primary external reference image. His iconic covers are in high demand, although his work predominantly appears on titles published by
DC ComicsDC Comics is one of the largest and most popular American comic book and related media companies, along with Marvel Comics. It is the publishing division of DC Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary company of Warner Bros. Entertainment...
.
Bolland now draws on a computer, eschewing pencil and paper. He cites the influence of
Dave GibbonsDave Gibbons is a British comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries Watchmen and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything"...
, who "had got into computers himself, and... was really enthusing about them." Noting also that some colorists were increasingly using computer effects "seemingly arbitrarily," he decided "that if I didn't take control of the colouring process myself... [those effects] would eventually transform the covers into something not my own." Starting in 1997, Bolland "bought all the gear" and spent ten frustrated months learning the ropes and ultimately finding the liberating "infinite ability to change" his now-solely-onscreen artwork. He states categorically that, in his opinion, "[t]here is absolutely no difference between drawing on my Wacom tablet and drawing on a pad of paper." Having fully embraced the technology, Bolland has also produced a number of
lessons/tutorials on his
Official Website demonstrating his complex techniques. He states that, while this leap means that he no longer produces any paper-based artwork (a profitable sideline for many artists who sell on their original work to collectors), "the pen and paper are gone for good."
Animal Man
{{main|Animal Man}}
Bolland recalls that, in the wake of The Killing Joke
, he "was offered a lot of work," but didn't feel ready to make a long commitment. So, instead
{{cquote|"[a]fter Killing Joke
, DC asked me to do the covers on Animal Man
, and I said fine, expecting it to be maybe ten or so. I ended up doing sixty-three. It became almost habitual, and it did mean that there would at least be something new of mine out there to look at."}}
The first 63 issues of Animal ManAnimal Man is a fictional DC Comics superhero. As a result of being in proximity to an exploding extraterrestrial spaceship, Buddy Baker acquires the ability to temporarily “borrow” the abilities of animals...
featuring Bolland's artwork covered the tenures of writers
Grant MorrisonGrant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer and artist. He is best-known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings.-Early years:...
,
Peter MilliganPeter Milligan is a British writer, best known for his comic book, film and television work.-Early career:Milligan started his comic career with short stories for 2000 AD in the early 1980s. By 1986, Milligan had his first ongoing strip in 2000AD called Bad Company, with artists Brett Ewins and...
,
Tom VeitchTom Veitch is an American writer, best known for his contributions to the Dark Horse line of Star Wars comic book titles, notably Dark Empire and Tales of the Jedi. For DC Comics Veitch wrote Animal Man, along with two Elseworlds series featuring Kamandi and an elder Superman...
and
Jamie DelanoJamie Delano is a British comics writer. He was part of the first post-Alan Moore "British Invasion" of writers. Best known as the first writer of the comic book series Hellblazer, starring John Constantine.- Biography :...
, with Bolland's images maintaining a continuity of style and imagery while the interior work underwent several changes of style and storyline. Initially, he recalls that his cover images derived directly from the script. He would "go through and find a scene that looked as if it would make a good cover," or "find a particular hook that cleverly summed up what's going on inside the book." This included the incorporation of photographs into the later covers of Morrison's tale of
metafictionMetafiction is a type of fiction that self-consciously addresses the devices of fiction, exposing the fictional illusion. It is the literary term describing fictional writing that self-consciously and systematically draws attention to its status as an artifact in posing questions about the...
and
deus ex machinaA deus ex machina is a plot device in which a person or thing appears "out of the blue" to help a character to overcome a seemingly insolvable difficulty...
author-input. With the (post-Morrison) moveof Animal Man to DC's new 'Mature Readers' imprint Vertigo, Bolland notes that the covers moved to "full color painted covers" fro issue #57. These of his covers were "a mixture of ink linework, color washes,
airbrushAn airbrush is a small, air-operated tool that sprays various media including ink and dye, but most often paint by a process of nebulization. Spray guns developed from the airbrush and are still considered a type of airbrush.-History:...
and then, eventually, areas painted in poster color by my wife, Rachel," which ultimately saw her have significant input on some covers, with Bolland acknowledging that "some of the last Animal Man covers were more her than me."
Describing the art of good covers, Bolland remarks that
{{cquote|"[y]ou really have to be constantly thinking of ways that the image on the cover will intrigue and lure in the potential punter. It helps to try and imagine your cover is in a whole bank of thirty or more and you need it to stand out."}} Happy coincidence also plays its part, as when a
time travelTime travel is the concept of moving between different moments in time in a manner analogous to moving between different points in space, either sending objects backwards in time to a moment before the present, or sending objects forward from the present to the future without the need to...
story arc saw Bolland's work coincide with the plot in such a way that he was able to produce a recreated cover from an alternate angle to shed new light on an initially inconsequential image.
Bolland brought these tactics to bear right through his issues of Animal Man
, and also to Morrison's next big project: The InvisiblesThe Invisibles is a mature readers comic book series that was published by the Vertigo imprint of DC Comics from 1994 to 2000. It was created and scripted by Scottish writer Grant Morrison, and drawn by various artists throughout its publication....
.
The Invisibles
{{main|The Invisibles}}
Bolland's covers adorn the whole second and third volumes of Grant MorrisonGrant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer and artist. He is best-known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings.-Early years:...
's The InvisiblesThe Invisibles is a mature readers comic book series that was published by the Vertigo imprint of DC Comics from 1994 to 2000. It was created and scripted by Scottish writer Grant Morrison, and drawn by various artists throughout its publication....
and his depictions of the main characters are widely reprinted as the definitive images, despite them all having been realised by other artists - and often drawn by several before Bolland entered the picture. With this title, the artist remarks "the subject matter is more complicated," necessitating his "working a lot of strange
symbolismSymbolism is the use of symbols to represent things such as ideas and emotions. Symbolism is sometimes used to refer specifically to totemic symbols that stand on their own, as opposed to linguistic symbols....
and
subliminalSubliminal may refer to:* Subliminal , a rock electro group* Subliminal messages* Subliminal , an Israeli rapper and producer...
messages into the cover designs" to create "an image that puzzles to a degree and is layered with elements of
surrealismSurrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for the visual artworks and writings of the group members....
." Asked to take over from
Sean HughesSean Hughes may refer to:* Sean Hughes * Sean Hughes , alleged IRA member* Sean Hughes , British Labour Party Member of Parliament 1983–1990...
and "do the covers on volume two" by editor Shelly Roeberg, Bolland found her to be "the dream editor," effusive with praise and "very specific about what she required." Generally, Bolland recalls "she was enthusiastic about my ideas," although Morrison had "creator's approval" on all designs. Finding that he had a rapport with, and the trust of, his editor, Bolland thinks that these factors "resulted in some of [his] most experimental work." Newly embracing the use of a computer, Bolland cites The Invisibles Vol 2 #11 as his earliest computer-assisted piece of artwork, using it to "insert... a computer generated background behind a severed hand."
For the third series, {{cquote|"we [Bolland and Morrison] talked about trying to make the covers look different in some way, and when DC decided to number the issues backwards [from 12 to 1; to count down to the
MillenniumA millennium is a period of time equal to one thousand years...
], that set me thinking. I remember seeing
Peter GreenawayPeter Greenaway, CBE is a British film director. He is currently professor of cinema studies at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland.-Early life:...
's film
Drowning By NumbersDrowning by Numbers is a 1988 British film directed by Peter Greenaway. It was entered into the 1988 Cannes Film Festival.-Plot:The film's plot centers on three women — a grandmother, mother and daughter — each named Cissie Colpitts. As the story progresses each woman successively drowns her husband...
, in which they had these numbers placed subtley in every scene, and I really liked that idea. So I began to include elements of the issue number... always trying to think of ways to hide it, or make it an integral design element."}}
The covers for the third volume of The Invisibles were "done on the computer," in part because "Vertigo were paying for "painted" covers and [Bolland] felt [he] had to deliver something more than line and flat color." The experimental nature of the twelve covers was assisted by the fact that, says Bolland "neither I nor Shelly had seen that issue's script." For the trade paperback covers, Bolland "was determined to make each one weider than the last," and so created a
Francis BaconFrancis Bacon,1st Viscount St Alban KC , son of Nicholas Bacon by his second wife Anne Bacon, was an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist, and author. He served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England...
inspired "fleshy mass [dubbed "The Blobby Man"] with a typewriter" for Entropy in the UK
. Having convinced Karen BergerKaren Berger is an American comic book editor. She is best known as the Executive Editor of DC Comics' Vertigo imprint.-Biography:...
(Editor in chief of Vertigo) and Shelly Roeberg that it was a good idea, the artist recalls that "Shelly rang up and, rather than telling me how wonderful I was, said that when she saw it she nearly lost her lunch! I was asked to turn his skin color from flesh to blue to tone him down a bit." For the final Invisible Kingdom
TPB cover, Bolland produced "a cover containing 12 small alternative Invisibles
covers," which "took a long time to do." Likening the process to creating "a mini comic strip," Bolland says that "if any detail made any sense it had to be changed to something that didn't."
Bolland's style includes the initial 'rough' outline stage, making it easy for the publisher (and, in some cases, the writer) to "sign off" on his designs. In the case of The Invisibles, however, although Morrison officially had "final approval on the cover designs," Bolland describes him as "very generous about my work," saying that "it's not his job to actually come up with the idea." In selected cases, however, Bolland would ask for ideas, and in one specific case "Shelly [Roeberg], the editor... did once relay that Grant wanted an arm coming out of the water holding a gun on the cover of the last issue." Bolland admits "I don't know exactly why. I just supplied it."
Wonder Woman
{{main|Wonder Woman}}
Bolland also contributed a large number of covers to
Wonder WomanWonder Woman is a DC Comics superhero created by William Moulton Marston. First appearing in All Star Comics #8 , she is one of three characters to have been continuously published by DC Comics since the company's 1944 inception .Wonder Woman is a member of an all-female tribe of Amazons...
, beginning with William Messner Loebs's first issue (#63, June 1992) after that author took over writer (and artist) George PerezGeorge Pérez is an illustrator and writer of comic books born of Latin-American descent. He was one of the most popular and influential artists in American superhero comic books in the 1980s. He primarily illustrates superhero comics, mainly published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics, and is known...
's 1987 post-Crisis relaunchCrisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify their then-50-year-old continuity...
. Bolland recalls his time drawing Wonder Woman
fondly, as one of the few occasions he actually sought work rather than being sought for
work. He recalls
{{cquote|"I usually sit at home optimistically hoping that people love me enough to ring me and offer me work. The end result is that most of the itme I'm doing what other people want and not what I want. Wonder Woman
was an exception. I happened to mention to Tom PeyerTom Peyer is an American comic book creator and editor.He is primarily known for his work with DC Comics, but has also worked for Marvel Comics, Wildstorm, and Bongo Comics. He wrote the 2008 Tek Jansen comic book, based on the Stephen Colbert character....
, my editor on Animal Man
, that I'd love to draw Wonder Woman
covers... [a]t the time, despite her long history at DC, her iconic appearance, even her cult TV seriesWonder Woman is an American television series based on the DC Comics comic book character Wonder Woman, created by William Moulton Marston...
, she wasn't a character that A-list artists were lining up to draw. Well, I wasn't an A-list artist, so I was keen to have a crack at her."}}
Bolland's first cover saw Diana next to the headline: "The Stunning return of comics' greatest heroine!" speaking directly to the reader the words "...Miss me?" Bolland's covers over the next 30-plus issues laid the visual groundwork for the character subsequently reworked by writer-artist
John ByrneJohn Lindley Byrne is a British-born Canadian-American author and artist of comic books. Since the mid-1970s, Byrne has worked on nearly every major American superhero....
, and saw Bolland illustrate up to and including the centennial issue #100. To prepare for his work, Bolland "clipped pictures of the most beautiful women of the time - Christie Turlington,
Stephanie SeymourStephanie M. Seymour is an American model and actress. Seymour has modeled for many notable fashion magazines and designers, and has been photographed by several well-known photographers including Herb Ritts, Richard Avedon, and Gilles Bensimon...
, etc." saying that he was predominantly interested in their faces ("The body I generally made up"). Interested particularly in drawing the costume, which he feels "has to be one of the sexiest in comics," he soon found the character removed from her normal costume in the storyline, "defeating, for me, the whole point." For her return to her famous costume, Bolland produced one of his best known images: the Britannia-esque pose from Wonder Woman #72 (Mar, 1993). With typical modesty, he says that "[i]mages like that... usually arise when you're completely stuck for an idea." The image was so iconic that it was released as a poster and later turned into a statue. Shortly thereafter, Diana underwent another costume change - this time designed by Bolland, and mostly drawn on the interior pages by
Phil JimenezPhil Jimenez is an American comic book writer, artist and penciller.-Biography:Born and raised in Los Angeles and later Orange County, California, Jimenez moved to New York City to attend college at the School of Visual Arts, where he now teaches a life drawing course as part of the undergraduate...
. The black costume was roundly disliked, even by its designer, Bolland, who philosophically says only that "it was what was asked for at the time," and - aside from Camelot 3000
- is "the only occasion" he was asked to design a costume. The new costume - black hotpants, halter top, straight hair (which Bolland did
like) and "WW"-emblazoned jacket - was based, Bolland thinks, "on a VersaceGianni Versace S.p.A. , usually referred to as Versace, is an Italian fashion label founded by Gianni Versace in 1978.The first Versace boutique was opened in Milan's Via della Spiga in 1978, and its popularity was immediate. Today, Versace is one of the world's leading international fashion houses...
outfit I saw Cindy CrawfordCindy Crawford is a former American model. Known for her trademark mole just above her lip, Crawford has adorned hundreds of magazine covers throughout her career. She was named #3 on VH1's 40 Hottest Hotties of the 90s...
wearing in an issue of VogueVogue is a fashion and lifestyle magazine published in 16 countries + Latin America by Condé Nast Publications. Each month, Vogue publishes a magazine addressing topics of fashion, life and design.-Style and influence:...
."
Other
Bolland notes that while he tends not to reuse cover ideas, he does occasionally produce "what I like to think of as homages to my own covers." Particularly, for "the first issue of the Eagle Judge Dredd
comic" - which repackaged 2000AD
stories for the American market - on which the positioning of the figures echoed similar covers Bolland had drawn "two or three times for different companies with different characters."
In addition to his landmark runs on Animal Man
and The Invisibles
, Bolland has also produced lengthy runs on covers for Geoff JohnsGeoff Johns is an American comic book and television writer, best known for his work for DC Comics, in particular for the characters Green Lantern and the Flash...
' The Flash
(from roughs by series editor Joey CavalieriJoey Cavalieri is a writer who has also served as an editor in the comic book field.His writing credits include The Huntress, The Oz-Wonderland War, The Flash, and World's Finest Comics series, all from DC. He first joined DC full-time in 1982 after working three years as a freelancer...
) and the Batman anthology series Batman: Gotham KnightsBatman: Gotham Knights was a monthly comic book series published by DC Comics. The original intent of this book was to feature the exploits of Batman and his extended family - Alfred Pennyworth, Batgirl, Nightwing, Robin, Oracle, Catwoman, etc...
, as well as assorted issues of Tank GirlTank Girl is a British comic created by Jamie Hewlett and Alan Martin. Originally drawn by Jamie Hewlett, the strip is currently drawn by Rufus Dayglo, Ashley Wood, and Mike McMahon....
(for original UK publication Deadline
and the two subsequent Vertigo miniseries Tank Girl: The Odyssey
and Tank Girl: Apocalypse
), SupermanSuperman is a fictional character, a comic book superhero widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective Comics, Inc...
, Green LanternGreen Lantern is the name of several fictional characters, superheroes appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. The first was created by writer Bill Finger and artist Martin Nodell in All-American Comics #16 ....
, BatmanThe Batman, originally referred to as the Bat-Man, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero co-created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger , appearing in publications by DC Comics...
and many more, including a number of oneshots and miniseries for DC's offshoot VertigoVertigo is an imprint of the American comic-book publisher DC Comics. Its books are marketed to a late-teen and adult audience, and may contain graphic violence, substance abuse, frank depictions of sexuality, profanity, and controversial subjects...
. Bolland is currently the cover artist on Vertigo's FablesFables is a comic book series created by writer Bill Willingham, published by DC Comics's Vertigo imprint beginning in 2002. The series deals with various characters from fairy tales and folklore – referring to themselves as "Fables" – who have been forced out of their Homelands by "The...
spin-off Jack of FablesJack of Fables is a spin-off of the comic book Fables, both of which are published by DC Comics as part of that company's Vertigo imprint. It shows the adventures of Jack Horner after his exile from Fabletown. A preview of the series was shown in Fables #50, and the series itself debuted in July 2006...
, replacing previous cover artist James JeanJames Jean is a Taiwanese-American award winning artist and illustrator living in Los Angeles.He was born in Taiwan but was raised in Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey.He was educated at the School of Visual Arts in New York City...
. Bolland's covers also grace the DC/Vertigo trade paperback collections of Grant Morrison's Doom PatrolThe Doom Patrol is a superhero team appearing in publications from DC Comics. The original Doom Patrol first appeared in My Greatest Adventure #80...
, although he only produced "a couple" of covers for the individual issues. He recalls that he "turned in quite a few roughs, but, disappointingly for me, they were often rejected," previous cover artist
Simon "The Biz" BisleySimon Bisley is a British comic book artist best known for his 1990s work on ABC Warriors, Lobo and Sláine. His style, reliant on paints, acrylics, inks and multiple-mediums, was strongly influenced by Frank Frazetta and Bill Sienkiewicz, and took inspiration from rock album covers and graffiti...
being "a hard act to follow."
Long-standing familiarity with DC characters and staff, coupled with high demand have combined with other factors to mean that the vast majority of Bolland's work has been for DC Comics. In The Art of Brian Bolland
, he also mentions in passing that a bad experience with a Marvel UKMarvel UK was an imprint of Marvel Comics formed in 1972 to reprint US produced stories for the British weekly comic market, though it later did produce original material by British creators such as Alan Moore, John Wagner, Dave Gibbons, Steve Dillon and Grant Morrison.It now forms part of Panini...
Hulk cover and a later oddity with a She Hulk cover featuring
Howard the DuckHoward the Duck is a comic book character in the Marvel Comics universe created by writer Steve Gerber and artist Val Mayerik. The character first appeared in Adventure into Fear #19 and several subsequent series have chronicled the misadventures of the ill-tempered, anthropomorphic, "funny...
have given him a mild "phobia about Marvel... [and] the laws of the production line" that overrule "whatever it is I have to give." He has however, produced odd covers for Marvel,
First ComicsFirst Comics was an American comic-book publisher active in the 1980s, known for titles like American Flagg!, Grimjack, Nexus, Badger, Dreadstar, and Jon Sable.-History:...
,
Continuity ComicsContinuity Publishing, also known as Continuity Comics, was a short-lived American independent comic book company formed by Neal Adams in 1984.Continuity mainly published a variety of superhero comics developed by Adams. Continuity Publishing, also known as Continuity Comics, was a short-lived ...
,
Eclipse ComicsEclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel for the newly-created comic book specialty store market...
, New Comics and a dozen other companies, large and small, as well as book, magazine and record covers. For
Dark Horse ComicsDark Horse Comics is the largest independent American comic book publisher.Mike Richardson, the owner of several comic book shops in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area, began to publish in 1986 with an anthology series called Dark Horse Presents, investing profits from his stores into Dark...
, Bolland has produced several diverse covers, including a couple for
Michael ChabonMichael Chabon is an American author and "one of the most celebrated writers of his generation," according to the The Virginia Quarterly Review. His first novel, The Mysteries of Pittsburgh , was published when Chabon was 25 and catapulted him to literary celebrity...
's The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist
at the behest of editor Diana SchutzDiana Schutz is a comic book editor, most notable for her continuing tenure at Dark Horse Comics, for whom she has worked since 1990...
. He recalls that "the cover for number ten was done in the style of HergéGeorges Prosper Remi , better known by the pen name Hergé, was a Belgian comics writer and artist. "Hergé" is the French pronunciation of "RG", his initials reversed...
's Tintin... but the book was cancelled after number eight."
Bolland is noted by some for his use of
bondageBondage refers to the use of restraints for the sexual pleasure of the parties involved. It may be used in its own right, as in the case of rope bondage and breast bondage, or as part of sexual activity or BDSM activity...
imagery, although in a humorous self-referential comment, he quotes this "fact" (cited as from
WikipediaWikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its name is a portmanteau of the words wiki and encyclopedia...
), and states that he is "unsure" of the sentiments accuracy. He notes that "I can only think off-hand of a few occasions when I've drawn bondage. A few Wonder Woman covers perhaps, a Flash cover, a 2000 AD cover, a Mr. Mamoulian page... but that's all that I can remember out of many hundreds of images." In 2006's The Art of Brian Bolland
, he does suggest that "I trace my mild bondage fetish back to a book of BibleThe Bible contains the central religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. Modern Judaism generally recognizes a single set of canonical books known as the Tanakh, or Hebrew Bible, as it is written almost entirely in the Hebrew language, with some small portions in Aramaic...
stories that must have been given to my father as a Sunday school gift when he was a child," wherein "was a picture of Shadrach-Media:*"Shadrack" , a popular song written in the 1930s by Robert MacGimsey*"Shadrach" , a 1989 single by the Beastie Boys*Shadrach , a 1998 movie*Shadrach in the Furnace, a novel by Robert Silverberg-People:...
, Meshach and Abednigo [sic]." Such Biblical imagery was bolstered in 1971 by a book bought in ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
"called Les Filles de Papier
... [a] large part of [which] was taken up with comic strips about women tied up in fiendish and excruciating positions by mad robots... it was just jaw-droppingly bonkers... and yet... there was something rather appealing about it." The Art of Brian Bolland also features a separate "Nudes" section, mostly created for the purpose of "trying out a different inking technique or trying to work out the figure from a difficult angle." (Only three of the nude sketches involve scenes of bondage.)
Other work
In addition to his early forays into full interior strip art, and his later focus on covers, Bolland has also produced a number of short - often single pages - strips, numerous pin-ups and a pair of on-going 'occasional' humour strips. These latter feature Bolland as writer-artist, his now-preferred method of working. Most notable are Bolland's two 'personal projects', Mr. Mamoulian
and The Actress and the Bishop
, all appearances of which strips were collected in the book Bolland Strips!
(Palmano-Bennet/Knockabout ComicsKnockabout Comics is a UK publisher and distributor of underground and alternative comic books.-History:It was formed by Tony Bennett and Carol Bennett in the 1980s to distribute Gilbert Shelton's Freak Brothers titles as well as British work from creators such as Hunt Emerson and Bryan...
, 2005). Bolland Strips! stemmed from a suggestion by Josh Palmano (owner of Gosh Comics in London, and also involved in publishing company
Knockabout ComicsKnockabout Comics is a UK publisher and distributor of underground and alternative comic books.-History:It was formed by Tony Bennett and Carol Bennett in the 1980s to distribute Gilbert Shelton's Freak Brothers titles as well as British work from creators such as Hunt Emerson and Bryan...
) to collect all instances of Bolland's two strips and
Steve MooreSteve Moore is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre, perhaps best known for his role in a series of controversial incidents with the Vancouver Canucks that ultimately led to the end of his playing career.- Moore Brothers :...
's "Zirk" story. Bolland had other thoughts, and suggested including an undrawn 20-page story called "The Actress & the Bishop and the Thing in the Shed" (written 18 years previously), and two stories written and illustrated by him for Vertigo Comics. After negotiations with DC, the two stories - "Princess & the Frog" (from Heartthrobs
) and "The Kapas" (from Strange Adventures
) were included alongside six limited edition Éditions Déesse prints.
Mr. Mamoulian
Bolland's more recent work includes the Robert CrumbRobert Dennis Crumb , often credited simply as R. Crumb, is an American artist and illustrator recognized for the distinctive style of his drawings and his critical, satirical, subversive view of the American mainstream...
-esque semi-autobiographical stream of consciousnessIn literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode that seeks to portray an individual's point of view by giving the written equivalent of the character's thought processes, either in a loose interior monologue, or in connection to his or her actions...
humour strip Mr. Mamoulian
, which was first printed in Paul GravettPaul Gravett is a London-based journalist, curator, writer and broadcaster who has worked in comics publishing and promotion for over twenty years....
's UK pro-zine Escape
and later brought to the US in issues of the Dark HorseA "dark horse" is a term used to describe a little-known person or thing that emerges to prominence.-Origin:The term began as horse racing parlance. A dark horse is a race horse that is not known to gamblers and thus is difficult to place betting odds on....
title Cheval Noir
and the Caliber ComicsCaliber Comics or Caliber Press was an American comic book publisher founded in 1989 by Gary Reed. Featuring primarily creator-owned comics, in the next decade Caliber published over 1300 comics and ranked as one of the America's leading independent publishers...
anthology Negative BurnNegative Burn is a black-and-white anthology comic book published beginning in 1993 by Caliber Press, and subsequently by Image Comics and Desperado Publishing...
. Bolland recalled that the origins of the character lay in him "contemplating
middle ageMiddle age is the period of life beyond young adulthood but before the onset of old age. Various attempts have been made to define this age, which is around the third quarter of the average life span of human beings....
" on his 36th birthday, and experimenting with drawing "whatever came into my head." The name echoes the character's mammalian look ("lie a
hedgehogA hedgehog is any of the spiny mammals of the subfamily Erinaceinae and the order Erinaceomorpha. There are 17 species of hedgehog in five genera, found through parts of Europe, Asia, Africa, and New Zealand. There are no hedgehogs native to Australia, and no living species native to North America;...
"), although Bolland acknowledges that Armenian-American
film directorA film director, or filmmaker is a person who directs the making or production of a film. Some also consider a film producer to be a filmmaker....
Rouben MamoulianRouben Mamoulian was an Armenian-American film and theatre director.-Biography:Born in Tbilisi, Georgia to an Armenian family, Rouben relocated to England and started directing plays in London in 1922...
may also have provided an inspiration on the name front. Noting his enjoyment of Berke Breathed's
Bloom CountyBloom County was an American comic strip by Berkeley Breathed which ran from December 8, 1980 until August 6, 1989. It examined events in politics and culture through the viewpoint of a fanciful small town in Middle America, where children often have adult personalities and vocabularies and where...
, Bolland's own strip didn't "have a funny line to end each page, because I wasn't always in a funny mood." Thus the strip became an "exposé of the inner me" drawn because "I felt like it... [n]ot to deadline," as a forum to explore and express "various interests of mine, various philosophical notions, personal neuroses." Designed to be read individually - indeed, early publication in Escape was in "no particular order" - gradually it became clear that a mildly self-referential "chronological narrative was taking shape," "a plot that would come to a shock conclusion on page 96 - and then continue, possibly, to volume two."
Bolland writes in 2006 that "[a]fter a while,
Nick LandauNick Landau is co-owner of the Titan Entertainment Group which publishes Titan Magazines.-2000 AD:After finishing a post-grad course at film school Landau got his break when he came to the 2000 AD offices to interview then editor Pat Mills for Comic Media News Mills was already planning on...
of
Titan BooksTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London's Bankside area, close to Tate Modern...
showed an interest and offered to act as my agent." Through Landau, Bolland saw his strip published across
EuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally divided from Asia to its east by the water divide of the Ural Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian Sea, the Caucasus Mountains , and the Black Sea to the southeast...
in publications including Linus
, Cimoc
and (in SwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe...
) Pox
. Such widespread exposure had its downside, when the original artwork went missing, meaning that "[s]ubsequent prints of Mamoulian
have [had to be] made from [Bolland's] photocopies." Disenchanted by the loss of (more of) his artwork, and with "European interest... waning," Bolland "lost interest in doing more." Subsequent to the collection Bolland Strips!
, however, interest from Negative Burn
(now published by Desperado PublishingDesperado Publishing is an American independent comic book publisher, established in 2004. Located in Norcross, Georgia, Desperado's president is Joe Pruett, its creative director is Stephan Nilson, and its director of business development is former Caliber Press publisher Gary Reed.-Overview:With...
) "has coaxed new pages out of" the artist.
The Actress and the Bishop
Bolland's other "personal project" is his occasional strip The Actress and the Bishop. This strip's origins date back to 1985, when Frederick Manzano commissioned Bolland to "draw 6 plates in my own portfolio bearing my name" for Éditions Déesse, a "small
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
based comic-store-cum-publishers, and Bolland drew in one of the six plates an elderly Bishop (whose face echoed "shamelessly" the work of
Alberto BrecciaAlberto Breccia was an Uruguay-born Argentine comics artist and writer.-Biography:Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Breccia moved with his parents to Buenos Aires, Argentina when he was three years old...
) and a femme fatale Actress. Bolland was subsequently approached by
Garry Leach-Biography:Leach studied Graphic Design at St. Martin's School of Art. He was first noted for his early work for 2000 AD, this mainly was on one-off stories featuring Dan Dare and M.A.C.H. 1. He then became a fan-favourite for his work on the series The VCs.In 1981 he joined Dez Skinn's company,...
and Dave Elliot, who "were launching a new comic anthology called A1." They asked Bolland to draw - and write - "a few pages for the first issue," and Bolland recalls that it "was the first time I'd been commissioned to write and draw anything." Actively seeking to write a story that wouldn't "fit into any identifiable genre," Bolland found the description 'Whimsy' reached by Leach and Elliot to be very apt, and "rooted in the Englishness" of the artists life.
Written in rhyming couplets, the pair "look like the punchline of a smutty joke," but their creator instead "wanted the reader to see them in a benign and non-judgemental light" - the antithesis of "
Benny HillAlfred Hawthorne "Benny" Hill was an English comedian, actor and singer, notable for his long-running television programme The Benny Hill Show.- Beginnings :...
,
Frankie HowerdFrankie Howerd OBE , was a distinctive English comedian and comic actor whose career spanned six decades.-Biography:...
"Oo er, Mrs!"... [rather] like the
owl and the pussycat"The Owl and the Pussycat" is a famous nonsense poem by Edward Lear, first published in 1871. Lear wrote the poem for a young girl, Janet Symonds, the daughter of Lear's friend, the poet John Addington Symonds and his wife Catherine. Its most notable historical feature is the coinage of the term...
setting sail in a pea green boat." Three pages in A1
#1 were followed by another three in A1
#3, while a "longer story with 110 verses... gathered dust for 17 years" until publication in the compendium hardback Bolland Strips!
.
The Art of Brian Bolland
In 2006 a comprehensively sizable retrospective of Bolland's work was published under the title The Art of Brian Bolland
, featuring contextualising references and copious text - 33,500 words - written by the artist alongside hundreds of pieces of artwork and rare photographs. The Art of Brian Bolland covers all of the artists' work to date, under an introduction from close friend
Dave GibbonsDave Gibbons is a British comic book artist, writer and sometime letterer. He is best known for his collaborations with writer Alan Moore, which include the miniseries Watchmen and the Superman story "For the Man Who Has Everything"...
, an autobiographical essay and sections ranging from his "Influences" (featuring near-unseen examples of Bolland's childhood art), through each of the decades from the 1960s to the present. The book also showcases several of Bolland's own photographs taken in Asia and Russia over twenty years of travelling.
Non-comics work
An accomplished photographer (examples of Bolland's work are, for example, included in the Image/Desperado book The Art of Brian Bolland
), as of May 2008, Bolland noted on his website that he is "working on a book about a week I spent in Burma in 1988." (Some photographs taken by Bolland in Burma are reprinted in the ImageImage Comics is an American comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by seven high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties...
-published retrospective The Art of Brian Bolland.)
Much in demand for advertisements, Bolland has produced work down the years for bookshops - including pioneering UK Sci-Fi/Comics sellers such as
Dark They Were, and Golden-EyedDark They Were And Golden Eyed was the largest science fiction bookshop and comic store in Europe during the 1970s.Started by Derek 'Bram' Stokes, who previously ran the Gothique fanzine but had left to start a science fiction mail order book service.Diane Lister joined him in 1969...
and
Forbidden PlanetForbidden Planet is the trading name of two separate science fiction, fantasy and horror bookshop chains across the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the United States of America, after the feature film of the same name....
- and film festivals (including a poster for
BFI SouthbankThe British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
's July/August 2008
Comic-Book Movies series). His work has appeared on the covers of, and inside, numerous publications over the decades, ranging from fanzines to several covers for London-based magazine Time Out
and other professional, internationally sold magazines.
Bolland has also produced posters for local theatre groups' amateur stage productions, most notably for his local "village pantoPantomime is a musical-comedy theatrical production traditionally found in Great Britain, Canada, Jamaica, Australia, South Africa, Japan, Ireland, Gibraltar and Malta, and is usually performed during the Christmas and New Year season.-History:A pantomimos in Greece was...
" production of Beauty and the BeastBeauty and the Beast is a traditional fairy tale . The first published version of the fairy tale was a rendition by Madame Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, published in La jeune américaine, et les contes marins in 1740...
in 2004.
Personal life
Bolland married his girlfriend, illustrator and sometime-collaborator Rachel Birkett in Spring 1981. She later gave up illustration "to become a cook in a vegetarian restaurant, although she has since assisted her husband with his work, acting as colorist, inker, co-artist and ghost. The two have a son, Harry.
Wins
Bolland and his work have received considerable recognition in the both the British and American comics industry. He was awarded the "best newcomer" award by the Society of Strip Illustration in 1977 (the SSI "was formed in about 1976 or 1977" making this one of their first awards).
In 1982, he received an
Inkpot AwardThe Inkpot Award, bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International, is given to professionals in comic book, comic strip, animation, science fiction, and related pop-culture fields, who are guests of that organization's yearly multigenre fan convention, commonly known as Comic-Con or the San...
, and the following year (1983), he was named "Favourite Artist" in the British section of the Eagle Awards.
In 1989, Moore and Bolland's The Killing Joke
received an Eisner AwardThe Will Eisner Comic Industry Award, commonly shortened to the Eisner Award, is a prize given for creative achievement in American comic books. It is named in honor of the pioneering writer and artist Will Eisner, who was a regular participant in the award ceremony until his death in 2005, and...
for "Best Graphic Album," while Bolland was named separately as "Best Artist/Penciller/Inker" for the same work. The same year, Bolland won three Harvey AwardThe Harvey Awards, named for writer-artist Harvey Kurtzman and coordinated by the publisher Fantagraphics are given for achievement in comic books. The Harveys were created as part of a successor to the Kirby Awards which were discontinued after 1987.The Harvey Awards are nominated by an open vote...
s; two in the same categories for the same work - "Best Artist" and "Best Graphic Album" - while the third was also The Killing Joke
which was separately honoured as the winner of the "Best Single Issue" award.
In 1992, Bolland won an Eisner Award after being named "Best Cover Artist," an honour he received three years in a row (1992-1994), and twice subsequently (1999, 2001) for various works. To date, he ties with James JeanJames Jean is a Taiwanese-American award winning artist and illustrator living in Los Angeles.He was born in Taiwan but was raised in Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey.He was educated at the School of Visual Arts in New York City...
(FablesFables is a comic book series created by writer Bill Willingham, published by DC Comics's Vertigo imprint beginning in 2002. The series deals with various characters from fairy tales and folklore – referring to themselves as "Fables" – who have been forced out of their Homelands by "The...
cover artist) for five Cover Artist Eisners.
In 2007, Bolland added to his Eisner Award wins when The Art of Brian Bolland
won the "Best Comics-Related Book" award.
Nominations
The mini-series Camelot 3000Camelot 3000 is an American twelve-issue comic book limited series written by Mike W. Barr and penciled by Brian Bolland. It was published by DC Comics from 1982 to 1985 as one of its first direct market projects, and as its first maxi-series.-Plot:...
, which he created with Mike W. BarrMike W. Barr, is an American writer of comic books, and mystery, and science fiction novels.-Biography:Mike W. Barr was born on May 30, 1952. His introduction into comics writing came in DC Comics' Detective Comics #444, for which he wrote an 8-page back-up mystery feature starring the Elongated...
, was nominated for the 1985 Kirby AwardThe Jack Kirby Award for achievement in comic books was presented from 1985-1987 by Amazing Heroes magazine, and managed by Dave Olbrich. It is named after the pioneering writer and artist Jack Kirby, and voted on by comic-book professionals....
for Best Finite Series, narrowly losing to WolfmanMarvin A. "Marv" Wolfman is an award-winning American comic book writer. He is best known for lengthy runs on The Tomb of Dracula, creating Blade for Marvel Comics, and The New Teen Titans for DC Comics.-1960s:...
and PerezGeorge Pérez is an illustrator and writer of comic books born of Latin-American descent. He was one of the most popular and influential artists in American superhero comic books in the 1980s. He primarily illustrates superhero comics, mainly published by DC Comics and Marvel Comics, and is known...
's Crisis on Infinite EarthsCrisis on Infinite Earths is a 12-issue American comic book limited series and crossover event, produced by DC Comics in 1985 to simplify their then-50-year-old continuity...
. In 2002, he was beaten by Jack KirbyJacob Kurtzberg , better known by the pen name Jack Kirby, was an American comic book artist, writer and editor. Growing up poor in New York City, Kurtzberg entered the nascent comics industry in the 1930s. He drew various comic strips under different pseudonyms, ultimately settling on Jack Kirby...
to the title of "Best Artist Ever," at the short-lived National Comics AwardsNational Comics Awards are given out on an annual basis for comic book and related material published in the United Kingdom the previous year. The Awards were founded in 1997 by comic creators Kev F Sutherland and Mark Buckingham, and first took place at UKCAC, the UK Comic Art Convention in...
, placing him in rare company.
Collected works
Bolland Strips
(112 pages, Knockabout ComicsKnockabout Comics is a UK publisher and distributor of underground and alternative comic books.-History:It was formed by Tony Bennett and Carol Bennett in the 1980s to distribute Gilbert Shelton's Freak Brothers titles as well as British work from creators such as Hunt Emerson and Bryan...
, May 2005, ISBN 0861661508)
The Art of Brian Bolland
(326 pages, Image ComicsImage Comics is an American comic book publisher. It was founded in 1992 by seven high-profile illustrators as a venue where creators could publish their material without giving up the copyrights to the characters they created, as creator-owned properties...
, November 2006, ISBN 1582406030)
Other sources
- Salisbury, Mark, "Brian Bolland" in
Artists on Comic Art (
Titan BooksTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London's Bankside area, close to Tate Modern...
, 2000) ISBN 1-84023-186-6, pp. 10-29
2000 AD Profile
Brian Bolland @ Lambiek.net
Comic Book Awards Almanac
Interviews
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bolland, Brian}}