P. Craig Russell

Philip Craig Russell was born October 30, 1951[2] in Wellsville, Ohio.[3] He entered the comics industry in 1972[4] as an assistant to Dan Adkins.[5][6] Russell first became well known with his 11–issue Amazing Adventures run and subsequent graphic novel featuring Killraven, hero of a future version of H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds, collaborating with writer Don McGregor.[7] Comics historian Peter Sanderson wrote that, "McGregor's finest artistic collaborator on the series was P. Craig Russell, whose sensitive, elaborate artwork, evocative of Art Nouveau illustration, gave the landscape of Killraven's America a nostalgic, pastoral feel, and the Martian architecture the look of futuristic castles."[8] At DC Comics, Russell inked Batman stories in Batman Family and Detective Comics over the pencils of Michael Golden[6] and Jim Starlin respectively.[9]

Withdrawing for a while from mainstream comics, Russell produced a number of experimental strips, many of which were later published in his Night Music series and in Epic Illustrated.[6]

Russell's first Elric story, the Roy Thomas scripted "The Dreaming City", was published by Marvel Comics in 1982 as Marvel Graphic Novel #2, following initial publication of the first half of the graphic novel in Epic Illustrated. For the next series, "Elric of Melnibone", also written by Roy Thomas, Russell shared art duties with Michael T. Gilbert. This story was published by Pacific Comics as Elric issues #1–6 in 1983–1984. Russell did not return to Elric until 1997 when he collaborated directly with Michael Moorcock on Elric: Stormbringer, co-published by Dark Horse Comics and Topps Comics.[6]

In 1984, Russell began Night Music, an ongoing anthology series for Eclipse Comics featuring some of his most heralded literary and operatic adaptations. Russell has previously used the same title for a black and white collection of the earliest of these works, published by Eclipse Comics. Included in this series was "The King's Ankus", adapted from Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book. Russell had previously inked a number of Jungle Book adaptations drawn by Gil Kane, published in Marvel Fanfare #8–11 (May–Nov. 1983). The series included "Pelleas & Melisande", adapted from Maurice Maeterlinck's play of the same name which had been turned into an opera by Claude Debussy, and "Salome" adapted from Oscar Wilde's play of the same name which was the basis for Richard Strauss's opera. Opera would continue to resurface in Russell's work, including a four-part adaptation of The Magic Flute, taken from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's opera.[6]

Russell inked Mike Mignola's pencils on the Phantom Stranger limited series in 1987.[10] Russell illustrated issue #50 of writer Neil Gaiman's comic book series The Sandman.[11][12] The story was titled "Ramadan" and was later included in the collection The Sandman: Fables and Reflections. Russell drew the first story in Gaiman's later Sandman graphic novel, Endless Nights, and adapted both Gaiman's short story "Murder Mysteries" and his children's book Coraline into comics form.[13] He has adapted another Gaiman Sandman work, Sandman: The Dream Hunters, and a Robert E. Howard Conan the Barbarian story, "The Jewels of Gwahlur".[6] Russell got involved with a collaborative art project with the Web-based artist group Kaleidospace in 1994.[14]

Beginning in 2000, Dark Horse Comics published Russell's adaptation of Richard Wagner's operatic cycle, The Ring of the Nibelung as 14 comic books; in 2001, the series won two Eisner Awards: for Best Finite Series/Limited Series, and for Best Artist/Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team. The series since been published as a single-volume hardcover book.[15] He has adapted the fairy tales of Oscar Wilde into comic-book albums from NBM Publishing.[6]

In December 2007, Desperado published The Art of P. Craig Russell, a 256-page retrospective of Russell's career. It was nominated for the 2008 Eisner Award for Best Comics-Related Book.[16] A documentary feature about the artist, Night Music: The Art of P. Craig Russell, premiered at the 2008 Mid-Ohio Con in Columbus, Ohio.[17]

In November 2015, Wayne Alan Harold Productions published the P. Craig Russell Sketchbook Archives, a 250-page hardcover art book featuring the best of Russell's personal sketchbooks.[18] The same publisher is currently creating an Artist's Edition-type line of 12" x 17" hardcovers that reproduce Russell's original art at full-size,."[19]