I am heavy with sorrow at the news that my favourite contemporary illustrator Angus McBride died of a heart attack on the 15th of this month. I don't know why I should feel so much for a man I've never met, but I've regarded McBride's work with such pleasure over the years that I'm saddened by his death as though he were an old friend. The same thing happened when I learned of the death of Patrick O'Brian. It was like a blow to the chest. Great artists both, their work has touched my heart many times.-
Angus McBride was probably not very well known outside the gaming world. He's been a house illustrator with Osprey Publishing for a very long time and he also did work for ICE's middle Earth games. His style was simple but effective. He painted realistic images with clear, concise details and was brilliant at understating the unusual. He was excellent at depicting the human form and subsequently taught me a lot over the years. I've poured over his work many a time and tried to pull them apart. For the most, he used guache colours over simple pencil transfers (the good old fashioned way of doing it) and his genius lay in the translation between the two. He was an excellent draughtsman, perhaps the best I've ever seen and an expert in the use of the guache medium.
-I was planning on dedicating a month to him eventually but now he automatically becomes Artist of the month for June. May he find pleasure in what ever follows this life.
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