Charles Vess (born June 10, 1951) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

fantasy artist and

comics artist A cartoonist is a visual artist who specializes in both drawing and writing cartoons (individual images) or comics (sequential images). Cartoonists differ from comics writers or comic book illustrators in that they produce both the literary and g ...

who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His influences include British "Golden Age" book illustrator

Arthur Rackham Arthur Rackham (19 September 1867 – 6 September 1939) was an English book illustrator. He is recognised as one of the leading figures during the Golden Age of British book illustration. His work is noted for its robust pen and ink drawings, ...

, Czech

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...

painter

Alphonse Mucha Alfons Maria Mucha (; 24 July 1860 – 14 July 1939), known internationally as Alphonse Mucha, was a Czech painter, illustrator and graphic artist, living in Paris during the Art Nouveau period, best known for his distinctly stylized and decorat ...

, and comic-strip artist

Hal Foster Harold Rudolf Foster, FRSA (August 16, 1892 – July 25, 1982) was a Canadian-American comic strip artist and writer best known as the creator of the comic strip '' Prince Valiant''. His drawing style is noted for its high level of draftsmanship ...

, among others. Vess has won several awards for his illustrations. Vess' studio, Green Man Press, is located in

Abingdon, VA Abingdon is a town in Washington County, Virginia, United States, southwest of Roanoke. The population was 8,376 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Washington County. The town encompasses several historically significant sites and f ...

Biography

Early life and career

Charlies Vess began drawing comic art as a child. He graduated with a BFA from

Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) is a public research university in Richmond, Virginia. VCU was founded in 1838 as the medical department of Hampden–Sydney College, becoming the Medical College of Virginia in 1854. In 1968, the Virgini ...

(VCU) in 1974. While at VCU, Vess' comics appeared in the ''Fan Free Funnies'', a comic tabloid published by the student newspaper. His first professional position was as a commercial animator for Candy Apple Productions in Richmond, Virginia, which he held for approximately two years. In 1976 he moved to New York City and became a freelance illustrator. He contributed illustrations to publications including '' Heavy Metal'', Klutz Press (now an imprint of Scholastic Press), and '' National Lampoon''. One notable publication from this early period was ''The Horns of Elfland'' () published by Archival Press in 1979, which Vess wrote and illustrated. From 1980-82 Vess worked as an art instructor at the Parsons School of Design in New York City. During that period, his work appeared in one of the first major museum exhibitions of science fiction and fantasy art, held at the

New Britain Museum of American Art The New Britain Museum of American Art is an art museum in New Britain, Connecticut. Founded in 1903, it is the first museum in the country dedicated to American art. A total of 72,000 visits were made to the museum in the year ending June 30, 200 ...

in 1980.

Mainstream fantasy

By the late 1980s Vess had found a niche in the world of fantasy comic art with publications such as ''The Raven Banner: A Tale of Asgard'' written by

Alan Zelenetz Alan Zelenetz is an American film producer and comic-book writer best known for co-creating the series '' Alien Legion'' for the Marvel Comics imprint Epic Comics and a founder of Ovie Entertainment. Zelenetz also wrote several issues of Marvel' ...

and published by

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

in 1985, ''The Book of Night'', published by

Dark Horse Comics Dark Horse Comics is an American comic book, graphic novel, and manga publisher founded in Milwaukie, Oregon by Mike Richardson in 1986. The company was created using funds earned from Richardson's chain of Portland, Oregon comic book shops known ...

in 1987, and "The

Warriors Three The Warriors Three are a group of fictional characters appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The characters served as supporting cast members in ''Thor''. The Warriors Three are the Asgardians Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg ...

Saga" in ''

Marvel Fanfare ''Marvel Fanfare'' was an anthology comic book series published by American company Marvel Comics. It was a showcase title featuring a variety of characters from the Marvel universe. Volume one ''Marvel Fanfare'' featured characters and settings ...

''#34–37 (Sept. 1987–April 1988). He painted the cover of the debut issue of ''

Web of Spider-Man ''Web of Spider-Man'' is the name of two different monthly comic book series starring Spider-Man that have been published by Marvel Comics since 1985, the first volume of which ran for 129 issues between 1985 and 1995, and the second of which ran ...

'' (April 1985), wrote and drew a backup story in ''

The Amazing Spider-Man ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' is an ongoing American comic book series featuring the Marvel Comics superhero Spider-Man as its main protagonist. Being in the Earth 616, mainstream continuity of the franchise, it began publication in 1963 as a bim ...

'' #277 (June 1986), and crafted the ''Spider-Man: Spirits of the Earth'' graphic novel (1990). In 1991 he illustrated the official comic-book adaptation of

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

’s ''

Hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

'' and had an eleven issue run (#129–139) as cover artist of ''

Swamp Thing The Swamp Thing is a superhero in American comic books published by DC Comics. A humanoid/plant elemental List of swamp monsters, creature, created by writer Len Wein and artist Bernie Wrightson, the Swamp Thing has had several humanoid or mo ...

'' by

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

in 1993.

Collaborations with Neil Gaiman

In 1990, Vess began one of his best-known collaborations to date, with writer

Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon GaimanBorn as Neil Richard Gaiman, with "MacKinnon" added on the occasion of his marriage to Amanda Palmer. ; ( Neil Richard Gaiman; born 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, gr ...

. He illustrated "The Land of Summer's Twilight", one of the four episodes in the original ''

The Books of Magic ''The Books of Magic'' is the title of a four-issue English-language comic book mini-series written by Neil Gaiman, published by DC Comics, and later an ongoing series under the imprint Vertigo. Since its original publication, the mini-series has ...

'' mini-series, and worked on three issues of Gaiman’s critically acclaimed '' The Sandman'' series. ''Sandman'' #19 ("

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a comedy written by William Shakespeare 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One subplot involves a conflict amon ...

") is a meta-fictional adaptation of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's play and in 1991, that issue won the

World Fantasy Award The World Fantasy Awards are a set of awards given each year for the best fantasy fiction published during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by the World Fantasy Convention, the awards are given each year at the eponymous ann ...

for Best Short Story, the only comic book to hold the honor, as award organizers subsequently amended the rules to specifically exclude comics. Vess contributed eight drawings for a prose-based inset that appeared in ''Sandman'' #62 (" The Kindly Ones: 6") and illustrated the final issue of the series, ''Sandman'' #75, a second Shakespeare adaptation (" The Tempest"). He drew the covers for the '' Books of Faerie'' spin-off series ''Molly's Story'' (1999).

Stardust

Between 1997 and 1998 the collaboration between Vess and Gaiman continued in the four-part series '' Stardust'', a prose novella to which Vess contributed 175 paintings. The series was collected and published in trade paperback form by DC Comics' Vertigo imprint. ''Stardust'' won an

Alex Award The Alex Awards annually recognize "ten books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults ages 12 through 18". Essentially, the award is a listing by the American Library Association parallel to its annual Best Books for Young A ...

from the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members a ...

. It received a

Mythopoeic Award The Mythopoeic Awards for literature and literary studies are given annually for outstanding works in the fields of myth, fantasy, and the scholarly study of these areas. Established by the Mythopoeic Society in 1971, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Awa ...

, and Vess was given the 1999

World Fantasy Award for Best Artist In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

for his work on the series. In 1999, Vess's own

Green Man Press Charles Vess (born June 10, 1951) is an American fantasy artist and comics artist who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His influences include British "Golden Age" book illustrator Arthur Rackham, Czech Art Nouveau pai ...

produced a portfolio as a benefit for his wife Karen, injured in a car accident, titled ''A Fall of Stardust'', which contained two chapbooks and a series of art plates.

Blueberry Girl

Between 2004 and 2007 Vess adapted a poem by Neil Gaiman into a children's book, ''

Blueberry Girl ''Blueberry Girl'' is a book by Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess. It was conceived as a poem of the same name, written in 2000 by Neil Gaiman for his goddaughter Tash, the daughter of his friend Tori Amos. In 2004, Neil Gaiman announced that Charles ...

''. The book was published by

HarperCollins HarperCollins Publishers LLC is one of the Big Five English-language publishing companies, alongside Penguin Random House, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, and Macmillan. The company is headquartered in New York City and is a subsidiary of News Cor ...

in 2009.()

Tales and Sagas

Beginning in 1995 Vess self-published a biannual series of comics entitled ''The Book of Ballads and Sagas'' through his Green Man Press. In this series Vess illustrated adaptations of traditional Scottish and English ballads written by a variety of contributors, including

Emma Bull Emma Bull (born December 13, 1954) is an American science fiction and fantasy author. Her novels include the Hugo- and Nebula-nominated '' Bone Dance'' and the urban fantasy '' War for the Oaks''. She is also known for a series of anthologies ...

Charles de Lint Charles de Lint (born December 22, 1951) is a Canadian writer of Dutch, Spanish, and Japanese ancestry. He is married to, and plays music with, MaryAnn Harris. Primarily a writer of fantasy fiction, he has composed works of urban fantasy, cont ...

Sharyn McCrumb Sharyn McCrumb (born February 26, 1948) is an American writer whose books celebrate the history and folklore of Appalachia. McCrumb is the winner of numerous literary awards, and the author of the Elizabeth McPherson mystery series, the Ballad ...

, Jeff Smith, and

Jane Yolen Jane Hyatt Yolen (born February 11, 1939) is an American writer of fantasy, science fiction, and children's books. She is the author or editor of more than 350 books, of which the best known is ''The Devil's Arithmetic'', a Holocaust novella. He ...

. Issues 1-4 were collected and published as ''Ballads'' in 1997. The work was reprinted as a hardback by

Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles, and is the largest publisher of Chinese scien ...

in 2004 with additional material, including an introduction by

Terri Windling Terri Windling (born December 3, 1958 in Fort Dix, New Jersey) is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. She has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, and the Bram S ...

Collaborations with Terri Windling and Ellen Datlow

Vess has illustrated a series of anthologies edited by Terri Windling and Ellen Datlow, published by

Viking Press Viking Press (formally Viking Penguin, also listed as Viking Books) is an American publishing company owned by Penguin Random House. It was founded in New York City on March 1, 1925, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim and then acquire ...

. They are: ''The Green Man: Tales from the Mythic Forest'' (2002), ''The Faery Reel: Tales from the Twilight Realm'' (2004), and ''The Coyote Road: Trickster Tales'' (2007).

Collaborations with Charles de Lint

Vess worked with longtime friend and writer

on at least half a dozen publications, including ''Seven Wild Sisters'' (

Subterranean Press Subterranean Press is a small press publisher in Burton, Michigan. Subterranean is best known for publishing genre fiction, primarily horror, suspense and dark mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. In addition to publishing novels, short stor ...

, 2002) and related projects ''A Circle of Cats'' (

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

, 2003), and ''Medicine Road'' (Subterranean Press, 2005, as well as a later edition by

Tachyon Publications Tachyon Publications is an independent press specializing in science fiction and fantasy books. Founded in San Francisco in 1995 by Jacob Weisman, Tachyon books have tended toward high-end literary works, short story collections, and anthologies ...

, 2009), along with others mentioned above. In 2004 Vess did both a color cover and front page illustration and additional black and white interior illustrations for a 20th anniversary (signed, limited) edition of Moonheart, by de Lint (Subterranean Press).

Collaboration with Ursula K. Le Guin

Vess was chosen by Saga Press to illustrate ''The Books of Earthsea: The Complete Illustrated Edition'' (2018), a compilation of all five Earthsea novels, as well as short stories, including some previously unpublished works. During the process, Vess had a chance to work closely with Le Guin, translating her vision onto the page. Vess described their work together as a true collaboration, saying in 2018 "... I don’t think she believed me when I said I wanted to collaborate. But, after four years and lord knows how many emails, she sent me a copy of her latest book, her essay book, and her dedication to me was ‘To Charles, the best collaborator ever.’” The book was published in October 2018, and went on to win a 2019 Locus Award for Best Art Book and a 2019 Hugo Award for Best Art Book.

Influences

In a 2004 interview, Vess cited among many artistic influences, beginning with the 19th-century British book illustrator

, saying,

Exhibitions

Starting in 1989 with "The Art of Fantasy and Science Fiction" at the

Delaware Art Museum The Delaware Art Museum is an art museum located on the Kentmere Parkway in Wilmington, Delaware, which holds a collection of more than 12,000 objects. The museum was founded in 1912 as the Wilmington Society of the Fine Arts in honor of the artis ...

in Wilmington, Delaware, a series of gallery exhibitions have featured Vess's artwork. The gallery show "Storyteller" appeared in 1992 at Frameworks Gallery in Bristol, Virginia. The following year he showed work under the title "The Mythic Garden" at the Open Air Birch Garden in Devon, England, and "The Magic" at Repartee Gallery in Park City, Utah. In 1994, after he moved to southwestern Virginia, a local museum asked Vess to organize a show which became The DreamWeavers: a travelling exhibition of 15 fantasy artists from a variety of fields including children's book illustrators

Jerry Pinkney Jerry Pinkney (December 22, 1939 – October 20, 2021) was an American illustrator and writer of children's literature. Pinkney illustrated over 100 books since 1964, including picture books, nonfiction titles and novels. Pinkney's works addres ...

, Dennis Nolan,

Gennady Spirin Gennady Spirin (born 25 December 1948) is a Russian painter and children's book illustrator. A graduate of the Surikov School of Fine Art in Moscow and the Moscow Stroganov Institute of Art, he is noted for his unique style of watercolor illust ...

Ruth Sanderson Ruth Sanderson (born 1951) is an American illustrator and writer of children's books. Biography Sanderson graduated from the Paier College of Art in Connecticut in 1974.Stevens (2001), 107. She is a member of the Society of Illustrators, the S ...

and David Wisnieski; comic book illustrators

Michael Kaluta Michael William Kaluta, sometimes credited as Mike Kaluta or Michael Wm. Kaluta (born August 25, 1947), is an American comics artist and writer best known for his acclaimed 1970s adaptation of the pulp magazine hero ''The Shadow'' with writer De ...

, and Vess himself; science fiction/fantasy book jacket artists Dawn Wilson and

James Gurney James Gurney (born June 14, 1958) is an American artist and author known for his illustrated book series '' Dinotopia'', which is presented in the form of a 19th-century explorer's journal from an island utopia cohabited by humans and dinosaurs ...

; commercial book illustrators Scott Gustafson,

Brian Froud Brian Froud (born 1947) is an English fantasy illustrator and conceptual designer. He is most widely known for his 1978 book ''Faeries'' with Alan Lee, and as the conceptual designer of the Jim Henson films '' The Dark Crystal'' (1982) and ' ...

, Alan Lee and Alicia Austin, and fine artist

. The show ran from fall 1994 through summer 1995. Since that time Vess's work has appeared in gallery showings and museum exhibitions including: * "The Tempest" Spring 1996. Four Color Images Gallery, New York City * "Stardust" Spring - Summer 1998

Cartoon Art Museum The Cartoon Art Museum (CAM) is a California art museum that specializes in the art of comics and cartoons. It is the only museum in the Western United States dedicated to the preservation and exhibition of all forms of cartoon art. The permanen ...

, San Francisco. * "Good Goddess Arts Exhibition", Johnson City, and Abingdon, USA, March 1998, 1999, and 2000. * "Into the Light," Comic Art Symposium, Avilles, Spain, Fall 2000. * "Fantasy, Visionaries of the Fantastic" Turin, Italy, Spring 2002. * "A Circle of Cats," 153W Bookstore & Gallery, Abingdon, Summer 2003 * "Ancient Spirit, Modern Voice," (Co-curator and participating artist) The DeFoor Centre, Atlanta, Spring 2004. * "

Earthsea ''The Earthsea Cycle'', also known as ''Earthsea'', is a series of high fantasy books written by the American writer Ursula K. Le Guin. Beginning with ''A Wizard of Earthsea'' (1968), ''The Tombs of Atuan'', (1970) and ''The Farthest Shore'' ( ...

Imagined" Massillon Museum, Massillon, Ohio, Spring 2018.

Awards

Inkpot Award The Inkpot Award is an honor bestowed annually since 1974 by Comic-Con International. It is given to professionals in the fields of comic books, comic strips, animation, science fiction, and related areas of popular culture, at CCI's annual conv ...

: For excellence in comic art, 1990. *

: Best short story, 1991 for ''Sandman'' #19, by

and Vess. *

Eisner Award The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books, sometimes referred to as the comics industry's equivalent of the Academy Awards. They are named in ...

: Best Single Issue, 1991 for ''Concrete Celebrates Earth Day'', by

Paul Chadwick Paul Chadwick (born 1957) is an American comic book creator best known for his series ''Concrete'' about a normal man trapped in a stone body. Biography Born in Seattle, Chadwick grew up in its suburb Medina, where his father, Stephen F. Chadw ...

, Vess, and Jean "Moebius" Giraud. * Comic Creators' Guild: 1993 Best Cover (''Dark Horse Presents'' #75). * Silver Award (Comics) 1995, Spectrum Annual of Imaginative Art. * Eisner Award: Best Penciler/Inker, 1996 for ''The Book of Ballads and Sagas'' and ''Sandman'' #75. * World Fantasy Award: Best Artist, 1998 for ''Stardust'', written by Neil Gaiman. * Eisner Award: Best Painter/Multimedia Artist, 2002 for ''Rose'', written by Jeff Smith * World Fantasy Award: Best Artist, 2010.
The Hugo Awards
Best Professional Artist, 2019 *The Hugo Awards: Best Art Book, 2019 for ''The Books of Earthsea: The Complete Illustrated Edition'', illustrated by Charles Vess, written by Ursula K. Le Guin (Saga Press /Gollancz) *Locus Awards: Best Artist, 2019 *Locus Awards: Best Art Book, 2019 for ''The Books of Earthsea: The Complete Illustrated Edition'', illustrated by Charles Vess, written by Ursula K. Le Guin (Saga Press /Gollancz

Comics bibliography

Aardvark-Vanaheim

* ''

Cerebus ''Cerebus'' (; also ''Cerebus the Aardvark'') is a comic book series created by Canadian cartoonist Dave Sim, which ran from December 1977 until March 2004. The title character of the 300-issue series is an anthropomorphic aardvark who takes on ...

'' #196 (1995)

Archival Press

* ''The Horns of Elfland'' (1979)

Cartoon Book

* ''

Rose A rose is either a woody perennial flowering plant of the genus ''Rosa'' (), in the family Rosaceae (), or the flower it bears. There are over three hundred species and tens of thousands of cultivars. They form a group of plants that can be ...

'' #1–3 (2000–2002)

Dark Horse Comics

* ''Book of Night'' #1–2 (1987) * ''

Dark Horse Presents ''Dark Horse Presents'' was a comic book published by American company Dark Horse Comics from 1986. Their first published series, it was their flagship title until its September 2000 cancellation. The second incarnation was published on MySpace, r ...

'' #75, 78 (1993)

DC Comics

* ''

The Big Book Of ''The Big Book Of'' is a series of graphic novel anthologies published by American company DC Comics imprint Paradox Press. Publication history The ''Big Books'' were published between 1994 and 2000. Just over half of them (ten out of seventeen) ...

Grimm'' #1 (1999) * ''

'' #3 (1991) * ''

The Dreaming The Dreaming, also referred to as Dreamtime, is a term devised by early anthropologists to refer to a religio-cultural worldview attributed to Australian Aboriginal beliefs. It was originally used by Francis Gillen, quickly adopted by his co ...

'' #47 (2000) * ''

Fables Fable is a literary genre: a succinct fictional story, in prose or verse, that features animals, legendary creatures, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature that are anthropomorphized, and that illustrates or leads to a particular moral ...

: 1001 Nights of Snowfall'' HC (2006) * ''Neil Gaiman and Charles Vess' Stardust'' #1–4 (1997–1998) * ''

Promethea ''Promethea'' is a comic book series created by Alan Moore, J. H. Williams III and Mick Gray, published by America's Best Comics/WildStorm. It tells the story of Sophie Bangs, a college student from an alternate futuristic New York City in 1999 ...

'' #4 (1999) * ''

Sandman The Sandman is a mythical character in European folklore who puts people to sleep and encourages and inspires beautiful dreams by sprinkling magical sand onto their eyes. Representation in traditional folklore The Sandman is a traditional charact ...

'' #19, 62, 75 (1990–1996)

Green Man Press

* ''The Book of Ballads and Sagas'' #1–4 (1995–1997)

HM Communications

* '' Heavy Metal'' #v1#12, #v2#5, #v2#6, #v3#7, #v8#6 (1978–1984)

Marvel Comics

* ''

'' #277 (1986) * ''

Conan the Barbarian Conan the Barbarian (also known as Conan the Cimmerian) is a fictional sword and sorcery hero who originated in pulp magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, films (including '' Conan the Barbarian'' and '' Conan the Destroyer'') ...

'' #163 (1984) * ''Conan the King'' #20 (1984) * '' Epic Illustrated'' #5, 8–10, 16, 21–22, 24, 27 (1981–1984) * '' Heroes for Hope Starring the X-Men'' #1 (1985) * '' Hook Magazine'' #1 (1992) * ''

Kull the Conqueror ''Kull the Conqueror'' is a 1997 fantasy film about the Robert E. Howard character Kull starring Kevin Sorbo. It is a film adaptation of Howard's Conan novel ''The Hour of the Dragon'', with the protagonist changed to the author's other barbari ...

'' #4 (1984) * ''

'' #6 (

Doctor Strange Doctor Stephen Strange is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by Steve Ditko, the character first appeared in ''Strange Tales'' #110 (cover-dated July 1963). Doctor Strange serves as Sorce ...

); #13 (Tales of Asgard); #34–37 (

) (1983–1988) * ''

Marvel Graphic Novel ''Marvel Graphic Novel'' (''MGN'') is a line of graphic novel trade paperbacks published from 1982 to 1993 by Marvel Comics. The books were published in an oversized format, 8.5" x 11", similar to French albums. In response, DC Comics establi ...

'' #15 ("The Raven Banner") (1985) * ''

Prince Valiant ''Prince Valiant in the Days of King Arthur'', often simply called ''Prince Valiant'', is an American comic strip created by Hal Foster in 1937. It is an epic adventure that has told a continuous story during its entire history, and the full stretc ...

'' #1–4 (1994–1995) * ''

Spider-Man Spider-Man is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-editor Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko, he first appeared in the anthology comic book '' Amazing Fantasy'' #15 (August 1962) in the ...

: Spirits of the Earth'' HC (1990) * ''

Thor Thor (; from non, Þórr ) is a prominent god in Germanic paganism. In Norse mythology, he is a hammer-wielding god associated with lightning, thunder, storms, sacred groves and trees, strength, the protection of humankind, hallowing, an ...

'' #400 (1989)

Renaissance Press

* ''The Forbidden Book'' #1 (2001)

Spiderbaby Grafix & Publications

* ''

Taboo A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannica ...

'' #1, 4 (1988–1990)

References

External links

* *
An autobiographical essayCharles Vess
at the Comic Book Database *
Charles Vess
at Mike's Amazing World of Comics

at the Unofficial Handbook of Marvel Comics Creators {{DEFAULTSORT:Vess, Charles 1951 births 20th-century American artists 21st-century American artists American comics artists American comics writers American illustrators DC Comics people Eisner Award winners for Best Painter/Multimedia Artist (Interior) Eisner Award winners for Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team Fantasy artists Place of birth missing (living people) Inkpot Award winners Living people Marvel Comics people Parsons School of Design faculty Role-playing game artists Virginia Commonwealth University alumni World Fantasy Award-winning artists Writers from Lynchburg, Virginia