BRYAN BUMMINGTON - British Heroes

 

(2B pencil on 140mm x 130mm paper)

"They're not flag-waving wannabes, or finger-pointing-blamemongers. They're true British Heroes! They were born with spines of steel, have spunk by the bucketload, and their upper-lips aren't just stiff, they're rock-solid! They're the type who'll kick those mad-dogs aside and proudly march, bare-arsed, into the midday sun!"

We must all accept "God's Will"

SHARDONAY JIZZBY - British Heroes

 

(2B pencil on 147mm x 133mm paper)

"They're not flag-waving wannabes, or finger-pointing-blamemongers. They're true British Heroes! They were born with spines of steel, have spunk by the bucketload, and their upper-lips aren't just stiff, they're rock-solid! They're the type who'll kick those mad-dogs aside and proudly march, bare-arsed, into the midday sun!"

Flashes of genius can come from the most unlikely people at the strangest of times. The beauty of it is that it thoroughly annoys those who work far too hard to try and achieve the same thing.

EUGINE COCKSHAFT - British Heroes

(2B pencil on 141mm x 118mm paper)

 "They're not flag-waving wannabes, or finger-pointing-blamemongers. They're true British Heroes! They were born with spines of steel, have spunk by the bucketload, and their upper-lips aren't just stiff, they're rock-solid! They're the type who'll kick those mad-dogs aside and proudly march, bare-arsed, into the midday sun!"

And, without even looking, you can bet there's a conspiracy theory similar to it!

BARRY ANALBY - British Heroes

(2B pencil on 140mm x 135mm paper)

"They're not flag-waving wannabes, or finger-pointing-blamemongers. They're true British Heroes! They were born with spines of steel, have spunk by the bucketload, and their upper-lips aren't just stiff, they're rock-solid! They're the type who'll kick those mad-dogs aside and proudly march, bare-arsed, into the midday sun!"

The images themselves are quite ordinary. It's the text alongside that changes the nature of them. And real heroes are like that. They really are just ordinary-looking people.

THE COCK & BALLS

(Gel Fineliner on A5 Paper)

I did it as a crude pub sign with the words “free house” on it because anyone can draw a simple cock and balls, whether they're young or old. It's a basic form of disapproval, of protest and defiance. They don't take long to do and the message they have is universally understood. And there's always something which deserves to have one.

Like Inktober for example.

THE HORROR

(Gel Fineliner on A5 Paper)

There are fewer images of horror than this. You're sat going through the motions and when you turn to reach for the toilet paper you find there is none but a mocking scrap left. You could be at home when this happens or, even worse, in a public toilet. It's a situation that wouldn't be out of place in Danzig's Inferno. In such a vulnerable predicament, you know the only solution to it is to make the ultimate sacrifice....You're going to have to use your socks or underwear!

I know what some of you are thinking: “Yep, been there!”

Merry Christmas 2023: DICKIE DUGGS

 

(HB Pencil on 120mm x 90mm paper)

For the artwork and story for this year's Christmas card, I've focused on a hapless stand-up comedian, and how not believing in fairies can be very bad for your health!

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And you can read the stories from previous Christmas cards by just clicking on each of the years below:

2014 - 2015 - 2016 - 2017 - 2018 - 2019 - 2020 - 2021 - 2022

FF SPOOF Page VIII: "DRACOS"

Fighting Fantasy Spoof: Page VIII

 

(2B pencil on 134mm x 100mm paper)

This would be the last page of the Fighting Fantasy spoof that I'm doing, but I've decided to add one more page to it before finishing with it completely.

FF Spoof Page VII: "MILTON KEEN"

Fighting Fantasy Spoof: Page VII

 

(2B pencil on 150mm x 126mm paper)

Still continuing with my little celebration of the 40th anniversary of the Fighting Fantasy gamebooks, I created this little character: "Milton Keen" (who's from Milton-Keynes) and bumps into the player whilst playing the same "solo adventure" gamebook!

What he lacks in friends, he more than makes up for in body odour.

FF Spoof Page VI: "THE THOMPSONARI BOW"

 

Fighting Fantasy Spoof Page VI

(2B pencil on 158mm x 128mm paper)

Page 6 of this spoof Fighting Fantasy series that I'm doing shows a dark elf with a machine gun. The background is a simple outline of a castle, diffused as if in a mist. I did this because the focus of the image was the character itself.

FF Spoof V: "THE NUBILE NYMPHS OF NUMARA"

 

Fighting Fantasy Spoof Page V

(2B pencil on 180mm x 120mm paper)

Still continuing with the spoof celebration of 40 years of Fighting Fantasy books, I added this particular example of the difficult traps some of the FF books would have for the player.

FF Spoof IV: "DARIUS JUN"

 

Fighting Fantasy Spoof page IV

(2B pencil on 150mm x 130mm paper)

I decided to go for the traditional wizard for the fourth Fighting Fantasy spoof image. Like with all these images, they work well on their own without the text, which is the way i want to keep them.

FF Spoof III : "THE OPPRESSED ORCS"

"The Oppressed Orcs"

(2B pencil on 150mm x 118mm paper)

It's been nearly 23 years since I did the first two of these Fighting Fantasy spoof images. I never planned to do any more, but since it's now the 40th Anniversary of the original Fighting Fantasy books, I thought I'd return to it, starting with this one.

You can see the previous two here

Unlike those first two pieces, the artwork for this third one (and the others I'll do) is pure Skav Art, meaning I only used one medium and no pre-concepts.

And it turned out quite well!

Merry Christmas 2022: THE QUIET LADY

 

2B Pencil on 160mm x 140mm paper

It's that time of year again, and again I've done another image for the Christmas cards I give out to people. This time, though, the story is written by that famous northern novelist, Archie Felch. You may not have read any of his books and, after reading his take on Christmas stories, you probably won't want to, but enjoy it nevertheless.

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Previous Christmas card images and stories can be found below:

2014 - 2015 - 2016 - 2017 - 2018 - 2019 - 2020 - 2021

The Little Black Book (vidi vici veni)

"Megadonna"

"Witch Hazel"

"Jane Playne"

"Captain Jessie Belle"

"Villora-Zar"

"Celeste Goodheart"

"Kitty Kain"

"The Wife"

The Little Black Book Cover

A "Little Black Book" was something of a quasi-mythic thing, long before phones and social media absorbed physical address books. It was associated with promiscuous men and women, who'd record the contact details of their sexual partners. Many would claim to have such a book, but few actually did. Which is why it was rare to actually see one. Someone always knew someone who had one.

Its origins seem to stem from Henry VIII who was believed to have kept a "book of sin." This particular book, however, was probably used more to note his enemies, rather than a book of sexual conquests, but. it was that "sin" part of it which evolved into something which became the iconic "Little Black Book" we refer to today. Now, it's relegated itself to being nothing more than a common turn of phrase.

But, because it was such an iconic thing, I thought it might be a good idea to reference it with the above artwork. The one I've done is obviously fictitious, echoing the almost mythic nature they had. It's drawn with a 2B pencil in a small, eight page, A7 pad I made for myself. The comments, the tallies, and even the reworked latin phrase on the cover, pretty much sum up what they were and how they were used.

They were certainly of their time.

The Balloon Seller

(HB pencil on 125mm x 75mm note paper)

- NOT AVAILABLE -

 

Don't expect this old balloon seller to be made into a Royal Doulton porcelain figure anytime soon!

Nobody knows her name, but she does have her own unique way with children. If they misbehave, she'll start by taking away their pets - one by one. If they still persist in being unruly, then she'll take away their parents - one by one. Sooner or later they learn manners and morals. If they don't, and they grow up into misbehaving adults, then she punishes them by cutting off their hands - one by one.

But mostly, she sells balloons.