D&D General Dungeons & Dragons art discussion

[Kodiak3D]

Caldwell's dragons are very distinct. It's one of the easiest ways to recognize his work.

 

[Rob Kuntz]

Jim Holloway. In an era where everything as gonzo cheesecake, he kept it real

And actually the most underrated and misunderstood of the TSR artists in Roslof's art department (before TSR purged them, en masse). Jim was so good and fast that he was always dumped upon with last minute illustration needs (like MM2) that no one else could have finished in time. This set a place & pace for him v-v TSR's perception of his worth. This perception is literally blown out of the water with his Paranoia covers and illos, of course; and when he later worked on 3 of my Pied Piper projects, Cairn of the Skeleton King, Tower of Blood and The Original Living Room. The man was a master painter, composer and keen-eyed line illustrator and even used airbrushing (in his garage) to the point where people confused it with computer assisted painting. He will be sorely missed. I include two covers he did for PPP. His interior B&Ws were outstanding as well.

 

[SirGrotius]

A large proportion of my inspiration during the halcyon days (for me) of D&D is derived from the wonderful cover art. Dragon magazine covers were like a maintenance drug.

Even the fonts were quintessential at the time and helped to create the aura of something historic, epic, and mysterious.

 

[Urriak Uruk]

I'm going to give some credit to Jason Rainville, as I doubt many folks in this thread are going to nominate an artist that contributed to 5E. Rainville made two of my favorite 5E covers, IMO some of the most detailed and evocative for the contents within.

 

[TwiceBorn2]

Agreed, those Rainville covers are awesome.

 

[Sacrosanct]

I’m an old school guy, but Rainville is an outstanding artist. The best of the modern artists IMO. I like him better than Jacobson even.

 

[Kodiak3D]

I've enjoyed watching how the art has evolved from edition to edition. I think 5e has some great work (as have all editions).

 

[The Grassy Gnoll]

It’s a Marmite choice I’m sure but Jeremy Godwin’s art on When A Star Falls was very evocative of a certain mood for me

 

[The Grassy Gnoll]

It’s a Marmite choice I’m sure but Jeremy Godwin’s art on When A Star Falls was very evocative of a certain mood for me

*Goodwin