dAVE
MCKEAN
illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician.
David Jeff McKean (1987) is an English illustrator, photographer, comic book artist, graphic designer, filmmaker and musician. His work incorporates drawing, photography, collage, found objects, digital art and sculpte.
In 1982, Dave illustrated the Batman graphic novel, Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth. During this period his work was often compared to Bill Sienkiewicz.
He has numerous collaborations with Neil Gaiman, Comics, CD Covers (150 and counting), Editorial Illustrations, Children’s books, Photography and recently Film.
COMICS
After failing to find work in new York in 1986, He met writer Neil Gaiman and they collaborated on a short graphic novel of disturbing childhood memories, Violent Cases. This was followed by a miniseries with Gaiman called Black Orchid and covers for
DC Comics, HellBlazer.
Stray Toasters by Sienkiewicz
He then went on to producing covers for Gaiman’s Sandman series, all it’s collected editions and many spin offs. Further collaborations with Neil came the graphic novels Signal to Noise in 1992 about a dying filmmaker and his last film; and Mr Punch, which explored similar themes
I liked Dave, who was quiet and bearded and quite obviously the most artistically talented person I had ever encountered. - Neil Gaiman as Violent Cases agery of the Punch
through the imand Judy show.
McKean also wrote and drew 10 issues of Cages an ambitious graphic novel about artists and creativity, illustrated in a stripped-down pen-and-ink style. From L - R Clockwise: The Dreaming #39, Cages: BookPlate Edition, Death: Time Of Your Life #1 and Celluloid.
Illustration McKean has designed posters for the 32nd Telluride Film Festival and projections, sets and directed film clips for the Broadway musical Lestat. He has also created a few books documenting his travels using only illustrations, Postcards from Vienna, Barcelona, Paris and Brussels. Also a 200 page book called Squink that gathered a number of drawings in 15 chapters.
BOOK COVERS
• • • • •
Coraline - Neil Gaiman The Savage - David Almond The Homecoming - Ray Bradbury MirrorMask - Neil Gaiman & Himself The Day I Swapped My Dad For Two Goldfish Neil Gaiman • Wolves In The Walls - Neil Gaiman • The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman • Crazy Hair - Neil Gaiman & Himself
Mr Bobo and The Other Mother (Coraline)
• • • • • • • • • • • • • •
CD COVERS Alice Cooper Altan Tori Amos Iain Ballamy Buckethead Counting Crows Dali’s Dilemma Dream Theater Machine Head James Murphy My Dying Bride Michael Nyman Paradise Lost Skinny Puppy
(To name a few)
From L - R Clockwise - The Cleansing - Suicide Silence, Neil Gaiman Audio Collection ,The Wolves In The Walls (book)
In ‘The Wolves In The Walls’ Dave Mckean uses a combination of photography and illustration to create an interesting way of using collage. In a way his work makes you think which parts are photos and which are not. I find his work in Wolves In The Walls and The Day I Sold My Dad For Two Goldfish, quite interesting and of course Coraline and The Graveyard book. He makes something interesting when just working in black and white for illustrations.
The Wolves In The Walls - Neil Gaiman & Himself.
Decay Inevitable - Conrad A. Williams.
(Book Cover)
I think this is the same process again, using a combination of photography and illustration. It’s been said Dave using a process called xerography also known as electrophotographic.
Xerography is a dry photographic process in which a negative image formed by a power on an electrically charge plate is electrically transferred to and thermally fixed as positive on to paper or other copying surface. So it’s almost like photocopier but gives the freedom to put images around of other images. This could have been a painting or a print. He may still have used photography for the police man’s shirt. I find this piece interesting as it’s looks like a painting but it might be the use of mixed media.
The Wolves In The Walls - Neil Gaiman & Himself. Looking at this image Dave may have used the Xerography process. (If it’s true that he actually uses it.) Taking a background image then copying say the tuba and then the wolf or maybe cut the pieces down so parts didn’t merge together. For example adding the wolf ’s paw over the tuba photograph so it’s looks as it actually holding it and playing it. Also it has been said that he uses Photoshop for minor changes in his work, maybe for thing slike brightness and contrast and colour balance.