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Mark Wilkinson

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For other people with the same name, seeMark Wilkinson (disambiguation).

Mark Wilkinson
Born(1952-10-03)3 October 1952(age 72)
Windsor, Berkshire,England
Known forAlbum covers, comics, illustration

Mark Wilkinson(born 3 October 1952) is an English illustrator. He is best known for the detailedsurrealisticcover art he created for a number of British bands.[1]

Wilkinson's breakthrough came through his association with theneo-progbandMarillionin the 1980s. He went on to design art for the subsequent solo career of their lead singer,Fish,as well as bands such asJudas PriestandIron Maiden.Though versed in a number of techniques, he is considered to be a master of the airbrush.

In 2012, his sleeve for the 1984 Marillion albumFugaziwas chosen byGigwiseas the 29th greatest album artwork of all time.[2]In 2015, Wilkinson designed the artwork for the Tya Brewery in Øvre Årdal, Norway.[3]

Biography

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Wilkinson was inspired by 1960s artists such asHapshash and the Coloured Coat(a collaboration betweenMichael EnglishandNigel Waymouth) andRick Griffin.[4]

Wilkinson's break came with his designs forMarillionin the 1980s, who were then second only toIron Maidenin terms of their sales of T-shirts and merchandise.[4]Wilkinson's first artistic creation for Marillion was the cover of their debut 12 "EPMarket Square Heroes(1982). Subsequently, Wilkinson's art work would be used on all of Marillion's albums and 12 "releases throughThe Thieving Magpie(1988). WhenFishleft the band Wilkinson went with him, providing the artwork for many of his albums and singles; aside from compilations,Songs from the Mirroris the only studio album by Fish not to feature cover art by Wilkinson. In 1997, he collaborated with Bill Smith Studios (which had replaced him as Marillion's official art group) on theBest of Both Worldscompilation CD. The compilation included songs from the eras of the band with and without Fish, and the record label,EMI,decided it should also include artwork reflective of both eras. In 2000, Fish and Wilkinson collaborated on a book,Masque,which, in "back and forth" format, described the process by which the Fish and Marillion album covers were created.[5]Wilkinson will likely always be most closely identified with Fish and Marillion (in a similar fashion toRoger Dean's association withYesorPaul Whitehead's association withGenesis).

Wilkinson's work for Marillion gained attention and led to him designingMonsters of Rockposters. This in turn brought him to the attention ofheavy metalbandJudas Priest.[4]He has named "The Four Horsemen" from Judas Priest's 2008 albumNostradamusas the work he is most pleased with.[4]He has designed miscellaneous pieces forBon Jovi,Jimmy Page,the WhoandKylie Minogue.Outside of the music community, he has also done numerous book covers, advertisements, comic art (including a 1993Judge Andersonepisode in theJudge Dredd Megazine) and commissioned pieces.

Partial list of works

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Album covers

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Marillion

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Fish

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Judas Priest

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Iron Maiden

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Comics

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Comics covers

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References

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  1. ^"Judas Priest Once Again Working With Cover Artist Mark Wilkinson".blabbermouth.net.13 April 2008.Retrieved27 July2015.
  2. ^Frith, Holly (2 April 2012)."The Greatest Album Artwork of All Time".Gigwise.Retrieved12 December2016.[dead link]
  3. ^"Tya Brewery craft beer labels designed by Mark Wilkinson".2015.
  4. ^abcdPerry, Tom (8 August 2011)."Home of Metal - Part One: The Art of Mark Wilkinson".Drowned in Sound.Archived fromthe originalon 5 September 2015.Retrieved27 July2015.
  5. ^Wilkinson, Mark (2000).Masque: The Graphic World of Mark Wilkinson, Fish and Marillion.Babel Books.ISBN978-0953955107.
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