Ten Awesome Artists Coheed Fans Might Recognize
The Coheed and Cambria universe is constantly fed on input from artists and creators who work outside of the immediate “inner circles”. I’ve always found the realm of all things Coheed to be a rich source of imagery and new art discoveries, so I wanted to share a few of my favorites. The ten artists featured here have made iconic contributions to the Fence, so take a minute to browse some of their other delicious work!
1. Brian Ewing is perhaps my favorite visual artist of all time. He has created some of the most memorable music images of my generation, including Coheed’s “I, Robot” poster from 2003 and numerous others. If you have a love of skulls, roses, classic tattoo art, and hot punk girls, check out his portfolio immediately. (Tumblr / Twitter)
2. EMEK is the critically-acclaimed “thinking man’s poster artist” with a talent for the surreal and psychedelic. Self-described as an “AAARGHtist at large”, this quirky individual gives iconic music imagery a new face as hybrid machines and strange creatures are the centerpieces of his modern Dali-esque creations. He’s no stranger to the Keywork either - Emek is responsible for the well-known six-winged dragonfly syringe (pictured above), 2006’s skull balloon, and 2010’s steampunk triceratops. His work holds many places of honor in various “Top Rock Posters of All Time” awards, and his portfolio is vast. (Facebook / Twitter)
3. Rob Dobi is rather a jack-of-all-trades on the art scene. He’s a photographer, poster artist, graphic designer, illustrator, and who knows what else. Coheed enthusiasts know him for his beautiful set of 25 tour posters for the 2004 run with Underoath and 3, but he has a massive collection of work ranging from bad-ass to funny to plain creepy (be sure to check out his photography of abandoned buildings). He also maintains a hilarious satire page called Your Scene Sucks - give that one a go, you might see yourself. (Tumblr / Twitter)
4. Tony Moore… we should all know Tony Moore by now. Walking Dead, anyone? He can also be credited with every Amory Wars: SSTB cover and the Key of Z #1 baseball variant. There’s not much more that needs to be said about Mr. Moore, other than he is a fantastic human being with a terrific family and scads of talent, so have a look at the comic goodness he has to offer. (Tumblr / Twitter)
5. Although David Seidman’s involvement with Coheed has been relatively brief to date, his abstract and often unsettling work is certainly worth a mention. Seidman’s portfolio seems to consist of things that he dredged up from the dark side of your subconscious. Much of it is admittedly very different from the Puerto Rico concert poster, Jersey City Devils shirt, cut-throat stage backdrop, and circuitboard dragonfly we know him for, but it’s all pretty damn cool. (Twitter)
6. Sam Wolfe Connelly is an illustrator whose works are no less intense for having a soft, fluid, watercolor-y feel. Dreamlike and pastel, everything Connelly creates seems intended to evoke an emotional reaction. He contributed the Amory Wars IKS #8 C2E2 variant cover to the Evil Ink catalog, and since then his work has won a place in my heart. (Tumblr / Twitter)
7. Aluísio Cervelle Santos is a nice young man who draws weird, super-high-action stuff. I don’t know how to phrase it better than that, but he’s insanely talented and the creator of his own comic RockStar. We know him best for his series of Hot Topic limited edition covers for Kill Audio, and his portfolio will make your brain tingle, for real. (Tumblr / Twitter)
8. Sheldon Vella (better known as Mr. Sheldon) is a hairy Australian degenerate metalhead whose hilariously surreal style and wildly inappropriate sense of humor made him the perfect candidate to bring Kill Audio and friends to life on the page. He has created his own comic, Supertron, and you should follow his blog for “Art, Comics, and Other Assorted Scallywag Behaviour” (possibly NSFW). (Twitter)
9. Christopher Shy is the man behind Studio Ronin, a creator of epic, hybridized digital art/illustrations that lean heavily towards a mythological bent. I love Shy’s images and still feel, six years later, that his rather terrifying conceptualist work was perfect for the Good Apollo storyline and the mindset of its creator. Never forget that this is the man we have to thank for the nightmare demon/Balrog-thing that is Ten Speed.
10. Ken Kelly has been a rock n’ roll artist since before those Coheed guys were even born. A student of legend Frank Frazetta, Kelly’s album covers probably graced your parents’ collections in the 80’s - KISS, Rainbow, and Fathom are among his conquests. While the NWFT album artwork was definitely a departure from the expected “Coheed style”, Ken Kelly deserves a shout-out here from the Dio lover in me, because his work is just so metal.
@Coheed 2004 tour posters by Rob Dobi (@robdobi)
The way to my heart. <3
