Gary Erskine is a Scottish comic book artist.

Career

Born in Paisley near

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

in 1968, Erskine grew up in

Rutherglen Rutherglen (, sco, Ruglen, gd, An Ruadh-Ghleann) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, immediately south-east of the city of Glasgow, from its centre and directly south of the River Clyde. Having existed as a Lanarkshire burgh in its own ...

and attended Burnside Primary and

Stonelaw High School Stonelaw High School is a non-denominational state high school located in Rutherglen, Scotland near the city of Glasgow. Admissions Stonelaw High School is a leading Scottish school delivering the new National 4/5 qualifications introduced by t ...

. Fellow comic artist

Frank Quitely Vincent Patrick Deighan (born 1968), better known by the pen name Frank Quitely, is a Scottish comic book artist. He is best known for his frequent collaborations with Grant Morrison on titles such as '' New X-Men'', ''We3'', ''All-Star Superma ...

(Vincent Deighan) is the same age and from the same town, but they attended different schools and did not work together in their youth. He started drawing work for fanzines while at art college and aspired to be a comic book artist. After sending samples of his work to

Marvel UK Marvel UK was an imprint of Marvel Comics formed in 1972 to reprint US-produced stories for the British weekly comic market. Marvel UK later produced original material by British creators such as Alan Moore, John Wagner, Dave Gibbons, Steve Di ...

he was eventually given ''

Knights of Pendragon The Knights of Pendragon is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. The team was published by the imprint Marvel UK in a self-titled comic from 1990 to 1993, and in the anthology title '' Overkill''. It wa ...

'' to draw on a regular basis in 1988. Erskine's work proved to be popular and he also drew '' Warheads'' for

. Erskine then expanded his work into '' 2000 AD'', drawing a

Judge Dredd Judge Joseph Dredd is a fictional character created by writer John Wagner and artist Carlos Ezquerra. He first appeared in the second issue of ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'' (1977), which is a British weekly anthology Comic book, comic. He is the ...

story written by

Garth Ennis Garth Ennis (born January 16, 1970) is a Northern Irish–American comics writer, best known for the Vertigo series ''Preacher'' with artist Steve Dillon, his nine-year run on Marvel Comics' Punisher franchise, and '' The Boys'' with artist Dar ...

. For ''2000 AD'', he also drew ''

Flesh Flesh is any aggregation of soft tissues of an organism. Various multicellular organisms have soft tissues that may be called "flesh". In mammals, including humans, ''flesh'' encompasses muscles, fats and other loose connective tissues, but ...

'' written by

Dan Abnett Dan Abnett (born 12 October 1965) is an English comic book writer and novelist. He has been a frequent collaborator with fellow writer Andy Lanning, and is known for his work on books for both Marvel Comics, and their UK imprint, Marvel UK, sinc ...

and Steve White, and for ''2000 ADs sister title ''

Crisis A crisis ( : crises; : critical) is either any event or period that will (or might) lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affair ...

'' he illustrated ''The Real Robin Hood'', written by Michael Cook, in 1991. Working with writer John Tomlinson he drew the '' Lords of Misrule''

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

for

Tundra In physical geography, tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. The term ''tundra'' comes through Russian (') from the Kildin Sámi word (') meaning "uplands", "treeless moun ...

in 1993. The novel was based upon old British legends and

urban myths ''Urban Myths'' is a British biographical comedy drama television series first aired on 19 January 2017 on the Sky Arts. Each episode featured a story surrounding popular culture which may or may not be true, ranging from Muhammad Ali talking ...

and was well received. Erskine by this time was drawing fill in issues for various

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 ...

titles, but ''Silencers'', a mini series written by

Warren Ellis Warren Girard Ellis (born 16 February 1968) is a British comic book writer, novelist, and screenwriter. He is best known as the co-creator of several original comics series, including ''Transmetropolitan'' (1997–2002), ''Global Frequency'' ( ...

for

Epic Comics Epic Comics (also known as the Epic Comics Group)Shooter, Jim. "Bullpen Bulletins: The Truth About the Epic Comics Group!" Marvel comics cover-dated November 1982. was an imprint of Marvel Comics from 1982 to 1996. A spin-off of the publisher's ...

was put on indefinite hold due to the collapse of Epic. Erskine spent much of the 1990s doing guest artist work on various titles such as James Robinson's ''

Firearm A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

'' (a two part story set in a cyberspace/punked version of his native Glasgow), as well as a selection of

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

titles for

Dark Horse A dark horse is a previously lesser-known person or thing that emerges to prominence in a situation, especially in a competition involving multiple rivals, or a contestant that on paper should be unlikely to succeed but yet still might. Origin Th ...

. He also drew a mini series based upon '' The Terminator'' films for

Malibu Comics Malibu Comics Entertainment, Inc. (also known as Malibu Graphics) was an American comic book publisher active in the late 1980s and early 1990s, best known for its Ultraverse line of superhero titles. Notable titles published by Malibu included '' ...

. In 2000, ''Silencers'' was finally printed by

Image Comics Image Comics is an American comic book publisher and is the third largest comic book and graphic novel publisher in the industry in both unit and market share. It was founded in 1992 by several high-profile illustrators as a venue for creator-ow ...

as '' City of Silence'', and Ellis and Erskine finally saw the story receive critical acclaim. The same year saw him ink

Chris Weston Chris Weston (born 1969) is a British comics artist who has worked both in the US and UK comics industries. Biography Weston was born in January 1969 in Rinteln, Germany, and lived in various countries as a child. His career began when he was ...

on an issue of '' War Story'' written by

, as well as drawing two issues of ''

Hellblazer ''John Constantine, Hellblazer'' is an American contemporary Horror fiction, horror comic-book series published by DC Comics since January 1988, and subsequently by its Vertigo Comics, Vertigo imprint since March 1993, when the imprint was introd ...

'' for

Vertigo Vertigo is a condition where a person has the sensation of movement or of surrounding objects moving when they are not. Often it feels like a spinning or swaying movement. This may be associated with nausea, vomiting, sweating, or difficulties w ...

. He also stepped in at the last minute to complete

Mark Millar Mark Millar (; born 24 December 1969) is a Scottish comic book writer and television producer who first came to prominence with a run on the superhero series '' The Authority'', published by DC Comics' Wildstorm imprint. Millar has written ex ...

's run of '' The Authority''. In 2002, he again inked

in the pages of

Grant Morrison Grant Morrison, MBE (born 31 January 1960) is a Scottish comic book writer, screenwriter, and producer. Their work is known for its nonlinear narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, w ...

's '' The Filth''. He also drew a ''

Justice Society of America The Justice Society of America (JSA, or Justice Society (JS)) is a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The team was conceived by editor Sheldon Mayer and writer Gardner Fox during the Golden Age of Comic ...

'' mini series in 2004 as well as another ''War Story''. In 2005, Erskine worked on ''

Jack Cross ''Jack Cross'' was a comic book series written by Warren Ellis and drawn by Gary Erskine. It was first published by DC Comics in 2005 in comics, 2005. Plot The title character is a ''gun-for-hire'' freelance anti-terrorist, who is brought in wh ...

'', an ongoing series written by

for

, which unfortunately stalled after the first story arc of four issues. Although mention of a further eight finished scripts and plots for twelve more issues was posted on various forums, the scripts were incomplete (requiring further dialoguing) and the book was placed on hiatus after the fourth issue. Later on, Ellis posted on his MySpace page that there will be "No more Jack Cross for DC". The rest of the year included digital painting of covers for ''X-Wing : Rogue Leader'', a ''

'' mini series published by

. 2006 brought about a new Vertigo series called '' Army@Love'' for Erskine to work on. The ongoing series written and pencilled by comic book veteran

Rick Veitch Richard Veitch (born May 7, 1951) is an American comics artist and writer who has worked in mainstream, underground, and alternative comics. Early life Rick Veitch is a native of the small town of Bellows Falls, Vermont. One of six children, he ...

is currently receiving good reviews from the industry and magazines, including ''

Military Times Sightline Media Group, formerly Gannett Government Media and Army Times Publishing Company, is a United States company that publishes newspapers, magazines, websites, and other publications about the U.S. and other militaries. The company's '' ...

''. The story centres on a group of diverse characters and the problems with their relationships and the madness of corporate involvement/ sponsorship of a Middle Eastern War. DC Comics have billed the book as "Desperate Housewives meets The War five years in the future". November 2007 saw the release of

' '' Dan Dare'', published by

Virgin Comics Liquid Comics is an Indian comic book Publishers company, founded in 2006 as Virgin Comics LLC, which produced stories (many of which are Indian-culture related) for an international audience. The company was founded by Sir Richard Branson and his ...

, and included full artwork by Erskine. The seven issue series saw the return of the classic British hero, previously published by '' 2000 AD'' and ''

Eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

'' (in various interpretations) since the 1950s. Erskine has also contributed character designs and storyboards for television, commercials and games development working with various companies over the last eighteen years. He has also worked on licensed properties such as the

DreamWorks DreamWorks may refer to: * DreamWorks Pictures, an American film production company of Amblin ** DreamWorks Television, an American television production company and division of the film studio ** DreamWorks Records, an American record label and f ...

characters (including

Shrek ''Shrek'' is a 2001 American computer-animated comedy film loosely based on the 1990 book of the same name by William Steig. It is the first installment in the ''Shrek'' franchise. The film was directed by Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenso ...

and

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Africa ...

) and for Sony, and occasionally freelances with the award winning Glasgow studio Axis Animation. Having moved to

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

, Erskine helped to organise a

comic book convention A comic book convention or comic-con is an event with a primary focus on comic books and comic book culture, in which comic book fans gather to meet creators, experts, and each other. Commonly, comic conventions are multi-day events hosted at con ...

Glenrothes Glenrothes (; , ; sco, Glenrothes; gd, Gleann Rathais) is a town situated in the heart of Fife, in east-central Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south of Dundee. The town had a population of 39,277 in the 2011 census, making i ...

beginning in 2017, as well as attending similar events in Rutherglen as a recurring guest.

Bibliography

*''

'' (with

/ John Tomlinson,

, 1990–1993) *''

'': "Twin Blocks" (with

and

Gina Hart Gina Hart is a British comics artist best known for her colouring work on the ''Rupert Bear'' strips. Unusually for a creator on this venerable strip, Hart enjoys close links with the fan community.The Followers of Rupert, ''Nutwood Newsletter' ...

, in ''2000 AD'' No. 741, 1991) *''

'': "Chronocide" (with

/ Steve White, in ''2000 AD'' #973–979, 1996) *'' ZombieWorld'': "Home for the Holidays" (with

Gordon Rennie Gordon Rennie is a Scottish comics writer, responsible for ''White Trash: Moronic Inferno'', as well as several comic strips for '' 2000 AD'' and novels for ''Warhammer Fantasy''. In May 2008, he announced he was leaving comics to concentrate f ...

, one-shot, 1997,

, collected in ''ZombieWorld: Winter's Dregs'', 2005 ) *''

Terminator Terminator may refer to: Science and technology Genetics * Terminator (genetics), the end of a gene for transcription * Terminator technology, proposed methods for restricting the use of genetically modified plants by causing second generation s ...

: Nuclear Twilight'' (with

Mark Paniccia Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Fi ...

) *''

HyperSonic In aerodynamics, a hypersonic speed is one that exceeds 5 times the speed of sound, often stated as starting at speeds of Mach 5 and above. The precise Mach number at which a craft can be said to be flying at hypersonic speed varies, since in ...

'' (with

/ Steve White,

, 1997–1998) *'' City of Silence'' (with

, 2000) *''

'' #144–145: "Ashes & Honey" (with

Darko Macan Darko Macan (born 1966) is a Croatian writer and illustrator who has created and collaborated on comics, essays and science fiction and fantasy. He is also an editor. Biography Born in Zagreb, where he still lives, he has a degree in history an ...

, 2000) * '' The Filth'' (inks, with

and pencils by

, 13-issue mini-series, 2002, tpb, 2004 ) *'' The Authority:

Brave New World ''Brave New World'' is a dystopian novel by English author Aldous Huxley, written in 1931 and published in 1932. Largely set in a futuristic World State, whose citizens are environmentally engineered into an intelligence-based social hiera ...

'' No. 29 (with

Wildstorm Wildstorm Productions, (stylized as WildStorm), is an American comic book imprint. Originally founded as an independent company established by Jim Lee under the name "Aegis Entertainment" and expanded in subsequent years by other creators, Wilds ...

, 2002, collected in ''Transfer of Power'',

Titan Books Titan Publishing Group is the publishing division of Titan Entertainment Group, which was established in 1981. The books division has two main areas of publishing: film and television tie-ins and cinema reference books; and graphic novels and c ...

, , DC Comics, ) *'' War Story'' (with

): ** "Johann's Tiger"' (inks, with pencils by

, one-shot, 2001, collected in tpb ''War Stories: Volume 1'', 2004, ) ** "Archangel" ( one-shot, 2003, collected in tpb ''War Stories: Volume 2'', 2006, ) * '' JSA Strange Adventures'' #1–6 – DC Comics, 2005 *''

'' (with

, 4-issue mini-series,

, 2005–2006) * Osprey Graphic History: **''Island of Terror: Battle of Iwo Jima'' (with

Larry Hama Larry Hama (; born June 7, 1949) is an American comic-book writer, artist, actor, and musician who has worked in the fields of entertainment and publishing since the 1960s. During the 1970s, he was seen in minor roles on the TV shows ''M*A*S*H'' ...

and Anthony Williams, 48 pages, October 2006, ) **''The Empire Falls:

Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under ...

'' (with Steve White and

Richard Elson Richard Elson (born 1962) is a British people, British comic book artist best known for his work on ''Sonic the Comic'', ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'' and ''Thor (Marvel comics), Thor''. Biography Richard Elson is a fine art graduate with over ...

, 48 pages, October 2006, ) **''Day of Infamy:

Attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

'' (with Steve White and Jerrold Spahn, 48 pages, February 2007, ) *'' Testament'' No. 16 (inks, with

Douglas Rushkoff Douglas Mark Rushkoff (born February 18, 1961) is an American media theorist, writer, columnist, lecturer, graphic novelist, and documentarian. He is best known for his association with the early cyberpunk culture and his advocacy of open sourc ...

and pencils by Peter Gross, March 2007) * ''

Time Twisters Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

'': "Back to the Führer" (with Michael Carroll, in '' 2000 AD'' #1566, 2007) *'' Army@Love'' (inks, with

, 2007, ongoing): **''The Hot Zone Club'' (tpb, collects #1–5, 128 pages, October 2007, ) **''Generation Pwned'' (tpb, collects #6–12, 168 pages, July 2008, )''Generation Pwned''
at DC Comics *'' Dan Dare'' (with

, 7-issue mini-series,

, November 2007 – May 2008, ongoing, tpb, hardcover, 208 pages, September 2008, )

References

Sources

* *
Gary Erskine
at Barney

External links

*
Gary Erskine blog

Gary Erskine homepage

{{DEFAULTSORT:Erskine, Gary 1968 births Living people People from Rutherglen People educated at Stonelaw High School Artists from Glasgow Scottish comics artists