Kev Walker
| Kev Walker | |
|---|---|
| General Information | |
| Status | Active: Mirage to present |
| Style | high contrast black line style |
| Scryfall Statistics | |
Kevin "Kev" Walker is a British comics artist and illustrator, and the most prolific Magic artist, with more than 470 artworks contributed to the game since 1996. Walker has repeatedly topped lists of the game's most well-regarded artists.[1][2] He rarely attends conventions, but signs cards through arrangements with his agent.[3][4]
Style and impact
Walker is self-taught and works primarily with acrylics for his illustrations. He also uses colored pencils and various software programs, including Photoshop, which he has used in lieu of airbrushing for lighting. He prefers digital models to physical, but holds a low opinion of his modelling.[5][6] Many of his illustrations focus on 3/4 body shots of the subject, emphasized against atmospheric backgrounds. Some of his Magic artwork reflects his comics work, with exaggerated musculature and strong contrast between pastels and deep shadows.[7]
Art director Sue Ann Harkey recruited Walker for Magic, and his first card art was published in Mirage.[8] Fellow artist Jesper Ejsing admired Walker's technique so much that he hoped to contribute to Magic in order to come into contact with him.[6] Walker illustrated some of the game's most iconic artwork, including the pairing of Seventh Edition's Wrath of God and the colorshifted Planar Chaos Damnation, the often-reprinted Ninth Edition Llanowar Elves, and Vintage mainstay Gush, a card so mechanically nuanced that a book was written about it.[9]
Walker was selected for the Artist Series of Secret Lair Drops, in which the chosen artists are given complete freedom to illustrate and write flavor text for cards of their choosing. Artist Series: Kev Walker was released as a part of Fall Superdrop 2023.[10]
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Forsaken Wastes was one of Walker's first card artworks. -
The iconic Seventh Edition Wrath of God. -
Damnation, the mirror of Wrath of God. -
Walker has illustrated several major characters, from Greven in 1997... -
...to this 2022 artwork of Tezzeret. -
This variant art of Vivien demonstrates Walker's comics style.
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Other work
Before working for Magic or in comics, Walker worked as a packaging designer. He continued working in that industry while he began freelancing, finding his first success with a commission for Games Workshop in 1987, followed by a story commission for 2000 AD.[5] In addition to Warhammer and several 2000 AD franchises, he provided artwork for the James Bond series Young Bond, and has worked for both DC Comics and Marvel Comics. Several of his projects are collaborations with co-author Jim Campbell.
References
- ↑ Steve Vrooman (January 16, 2025). "The 24 Best Artists in Magic Ranked". Draftsim.
- ↑ Ismael David Mujahid (Feb 22, 2025). "The 10 Best Magic: The Gathering Artists of All Time". TheGamer.
- ↑ Harry Becker (Aug 13, 2023). "A Guide to Signed Magic: The Gathering Cards". TCGPlayer.
- ↑ Artist Signatures. MTGKingpin.
- ↑ a b Jonathan Green (12 April 2012). "K is for Kev Walker"
- ↑ a b Jesper Ejsing (October 21, 2015). "Kevin Walker Process"
- ↑ Rhystic Studies (Jan 13, 2016). "The Magic Art of Kev Walker"
- ↑ Jesse Mason (April 21, 2015). "an interview with sue ann harkey, magic's greatest art director". killing a goldfish.
- ↑ Rob Bockman (November 30, 2020). "Choose Your Own Damnation". Hipsters of the Coast.
- ↑ Artist Series: Kev Walker. Wizards of the Coast.