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 AndrewGPaul wrote:
Not sure what there is to clarify. The pose of the dead guy on the right reminds me of something. Possibly some famous painting, but I can't remember what, if it is.

It does occur to me that perhaps it's reminding me of itself; it's been 20 years since I last saw this, after all.

Does anyone have a link to the picture that replaced it? Turns out I've got a 1st-run copy of that Codex, with that image in.

This one is put a permanent imprint on my mind.

This baby might be what got me hooked on 40k so many years ago - the original screamer killer


Regarding the Kharn the betrayer pick - naked bodies with outstretched broken limbs is a classic picture of hell. Mark was probably channeling any number of reneisance paintings.

Mark Gibbons was/is by far my favourite 40K/Fantasy artist. Crisp, clean, beautiful pictures which perfectly captured the feel of 40K.

I mean, this is "the" Avatar pic...forget everything else:


this is what a Chaos marine should look like:


this is fabius bile (I'll even forgive the pinhead):


this was "the" witch elf":


He did a fantastic job of often matching the slightly cartoonish proportions without going absolutely absurd - brought the darkness w/o going full Blanche on everything. He did so much classical work.

Thanks to this thread I've been thinking about MG's work a lot more and looking back at it. The conclusion being that I'm quite torn, some of it I find wonderfully appealing but some of it I find really off putting. I've been surprised at just how wide the division is for me between some of his pieces

I think maybe some of the subjects don't appeal, but the artwork technique is always exemplary. I loved how MGs work combined with the more imagination, out-there style of John Blanche in the 2nd edition era. Think perhaps the only artists I think more fondly of are Les Edwards (who was around a bit earlier) and Adrian Smith.

There was an awesome classic artwork thread buried somewhere in the discussions section will have to dig it out!

My Codex also has this Kharn artwork. But I remember some of the books were re-printed. Late 5th Edition WFB army books e.g., like the Empire one, had updated product sections now including newer books.

Mark's Illuminations article made quite an impression in 1993 (issue 163, Deathwing Terminator (Space Hulk PC by EA) on the cover). I have to check if he had several throughout the years.

I hope b&w illustrations are not going away completely.

The one of the Howling Banshee always amused me, because it looks like she's tripped over Mark's logo.

Sorry.

 Pacific wrote:
I think maybe some of the subjects don't appeal, but the artwork technique is always exemplary. I loved how MGs work combined with the more imagination, out-there style of John Blanche in the 2nd edition era. Think perhaps the only artists I think more fondly of are Les Edwards (who was around a bit earlier) and Adrian Smith.

There was an awesome classic artwork thread buried somewhere in the discussions section will have to dig it out!

Oh yeh you can tell he's executing his vision exactly as intended, it's impressive stuff, some of it just doesn't appeal to me aesthetically. I definitely prefer his grittier, blanche-esque work, the more it departs from that the less interest I seem to have but I can appreciate the quality. Edwards isn't really my cup of tea either but Smith's work is some of my favourite. A lot of it is just a matter of taste but I think, for me at least, it somewhat comes down to context and venue.

Love Smith, some of the new stuff he has done has been pretty good as well (love the new cover and work he did for the new Conan boardgame)

Without wanting to de-rail the thread away from MG, a great site here https://www.artstation.com/artist/adrian-smith

Couple of other MG pieces

This is one of my favourites of the Bretonnian Green Knight, does anyone have a non-blurred version of this?


And a 2nd edition-era pic of the Avatar. Look 40k newbies, something you don't see these days in artwork - a dead marine! He's not resting, or going to be saved by an apothecary, he's dead! Dead and has been melted from the inside-out!

Not just dead, I'm pretty sure he just recieved the mother of all tea bags!

Though the gates that stand between the mortal world and the immortal Realm of Chaos are now closed to me, still I would rather die having glimpsed eternity than never to have stirred from the cold furrow of mortal life. I embrace death without regret as I have embraced life without fear. - Kargos Bloodspitter

 Pacific wrote:
Without wanting to de-rail the thread away from MG, a great site here https://www.artstation.com/artist/adrian-smith

Thanks for the link!

That Green Knight is awesome, I don't think I've seen it before. Found a better copy on his facebook gallery:


I love the atmosphere captured in this piece:

Wow that is lovely. That is gibbons? :O

His peice of Kargos Bloodspitter is even more poiniant if you've read the World Eater's HH books.

 hutber wrote:
Wow that is lovely. That is gibbons? :O

Yeh both MG, sorry it looks a bit like I was attributing them to Smith but it's Gibbons for sure.

Cheers Casey

There is a quite fine thread if you want to look up more of the older artwork from a range of artists, well worth a look
https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/240/342983.page

 Pacific wrote:
Cheers Casey

There is a quite fine thread if you want to look up more of the older artwork from a range of artists, well worth a look
https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/240/342983.page

Oh man, that was so good that I feel a bit dirty! I was horrified to find out how many people can't appreciate Blanche though.

I hadn't seen this MG piece before and I think it's the perfect blend of what you were saying about Gibbons personal style meeting Blanche/Warhammer/grimdark. it is for me anyway.

He has created so much of the iconic artwork that I associate with Games Workshop.





This is what got me into 40k in the first place thanks to Space Crusade. I don't know who the artist is though.

Absolutely love that artwork (I think first featured in the Epic Horus Heresy game?), all the little marines involved in the mass battle like that.

That flying vehicle got inserted into the background by a lot of Pre-Heresy hobbyists as an example of the Stormbird, there were even a couple of 28mm custom miniatures made by members of the community.

lol so much cool stuff. I find it funny that GW let him put the MG's in all of his artwork

 hutber wrote:
lol so much cool stuff. I find it funny that GW let him put the MG's in all of his artwork

All the artists used to sign their work.

I never noticed anybody elses back then in the artwork :O

They may have signed it, but did they make the front covers etc with the signature in plain view?

 Silent Puffin? wrote:


This is what got me into 40k in the first place thanks to Space Crusade. I don't know who the artist is though.

i think it s Paul Bonner

Think you're right, definitely fits his style.

 hutber wrote:
I never noticed anybody elses back then in the artwork :O

They may have signed it, but did they make the front covers etc with the signature in plain view?

It was pretty common in the earlier days, especially when the artists were freelancers and were commissioned for specific pieces, rather than being employees of GW.

Perhaps not the box or book covers themselves (which are often a cropped version of the images) although seem to remember the White Dwarf covers pre-150 or so would have had the signatures on them.

All the old rulebooks and White Dwarf issues would have the artists' logos in the "credits" section.

For me it just has to be this badass...

The Catachan one always made me laugh. He's got no neck, his powerfist has a knife attached to it and the pistol on his chest is set up for him to draw with his power fist hand. Truly the rule of cool at work.

Dude, shows what you know, he draws and fires the pistol with his mouth.

He is a Catachan, he fires the pistol with his powerfist.