Russ Nicholson, the artist whose illustrations contributed greatly to the overall vibe of the Fiend Folio, has died. News of his death began to circulate earlier today and, while precise details are still sketchy, I am nevertheless greatly saddened.
Nicholson's art is incomparable. The interplay of darkness and light, combined with a remarkable level of detail, set it apart from the work of anyone else in the field of fantasy and science fiction illustration. I had the good fortune to correspond with Russ on several occasions and he was always generous with his time and talents – a gentleman and a true professional.
Over the next few days, I suspect we'll see plenty of heartfelt tributes to Nicholson's life and artwork and rightly so. We'll also see posts praising favorite examples from his immense body of work, many of which contributed immeasurably to the distinctive esthetic of "British fantasy" as exemplified by White Dwarf, Fighting Fantasy, and Warhammer, among many others.
I'd have a hard time choosing a single Nicholson illustration as my favorite, because he created so many wonderful works. That said, I have a personal fondness for the illustration below, which I commissioned for my Thousand Suns science fiction RPG years ago. Now that Russ is no longer with us, my attachment to it has only grown.
Rest in peace, Mr Nicholson!
you know you are getting old as your heroes disappear...
ReplyDeleteVery sad to hear.
ReplyDeleteMy favourites of his are the paired Githyanki and Githzerai illos in the FF.
And yeah, James, your Thousand Suns image is really good.
Do you have the original in hardcopy? Did you frame it?
His "squiggly" style was so distinctive and memorable. I could recognize a Russ Nicholson drawing in the Fiend Folio long before I knew the name of the artist.
ReplyDeleteI always associated Nicholson with the Fiend Folio, and I was surprised in the past year to discover his extensive recent contributions to Dungeon Crawl Classics, including an adventure cover illustration for their new Dying Earth campaign setting released earlier this year.
An incredibly talented artist, his legacy is enormous
ReplyDeleteVery sad news. His baroque style is always instantly recognisable, and was highly inspirational to me in my distant youth, when I fancied myself an artist. His Fiend Folio undead are full of character: check out the coffer corpse, huecuva, and that revenant looking mightily peeved at getting his arm hewed right through.
ReplyDeleteHis illustrations of the undead (especially of the sons of Kyuss) are unequaled.
ReplyDeleteRuss was a major influence on my work, and he was super encouraging of my shift into learning to illustrate. He'll be missed.
ReplyDeleteVery sad to hear. May he rest in peace, with the blessings of our Lord.
ReplyDeleteDamn.
ReplyDeleteI was lucky enough to hear him talk at Fighting Fantasy Fest 3 several years ago, and also hear from authors who worked with him. His work in Fiend Folio and for Fighting Fantasy, Dragon Warriors, and Blood Sword, as well as some for Game Workshop as well, were a constant in my early years of the hobby. Interestingly, and I think I have this right, Russ rarely used pencil roughs before hand but just sketched everything out with ink, straight away and first time. Just adds to the legend, really!
ReplyDeleteBeen a multitude of blogs and sites posting his obit and artwork today, but this is the only place I've seen that particular piece. Lovely work - and most likely wouldn't have existed without your commission. So good on you for that, brought (and bought) a little more beauty to the world.
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