Jeff Easley | |
|---|---|
 Jeff Easley atGenCon Indy 2014 | |
| Born | 1954 (1954) |
| Known for | Fantasy art,Illustration |
| Spouse | Cynthia |
Jeff Easley (born 1954)[1] is anoil painter who createsfantasyartwork for role-playing games, comics, and magazines, as well as non-fantasy commercial art.
Easley was born inNicholasville, Kentucky in 1954. He spent time drawing as a child, particularly creatures such as ghosts and monsters. "I watched lots of monster movies on the late show, and built every monster model kit I could get my hands on," he said.[1] He attended high school in Nicholasville, and then earned aBachelor of Fine Arts in painting fromMurray State University in Kentucky.[2]
After Cynthia finished grad school, the couple moved toMassachusetts with some friends, where Easley began his career as a professional artist. "I did freelance work forWarren Publications, including covers and comic strips forCreepy,Eerie, andVampirella, and forMarvel Comics magazines, including covers forSavage Sword of Conan andBizarre Adventures. But my real income came from my job at theOkey-Doke Popcorn Company."[1] He cites mid-20th-century artistFrank Frazetta as a major influence.[3]
Easley met fellow Kentucky native and artistLarry Elmore through a mutual friend. "When I heard that Larry was planning to leaveFort Knox to joinTSR, I got in touch with him and discovered that there might be other job opportunities there."[1] He applied for a job with TSR, publisher of the popularrole-playing gameDungeons & Dragons: "I... started here in March 1982. My first project was to paint gemstones on the spines of the first fourEndless Quest books, but it was definitely uphill from there."[1] Easley's first RPG piece for TSR wasLost Caverns of Tsojcanth, as an interior artist.[4] His first published cover for TSR was the cover to theRevenge of the Rainbow DragonsEndless Quest book.[5]
He went on to do much of the front cover artwork for the popular series ofAdvanced Dungeons & Dragons hardback rulebooks of the 1980s and 1990s. Some of his artwork from the period was featured on the covers of book such as theAD&DPlayer's Handbook,Dungeon Master Guide,Tome of Magic, theMonstrous Manual book, and over a dozenMonstrous Compendium supplements, as well several editions of the basicD&D box.[2] Some of his notable works include the cover art of the 1st edition incarnations of theMonster Manual,Monster Manual II,Legends & Lore,Unearthed Arcana,Oriental Adventures, andDungeoneer's Survival Guide, as well as the 2nd edition core books (thePlayer's Handbook,Dungeon Master's Guide, andMonstrous Manual). He also painted the first editionBattlesystem cover, the revisedGamma World cover, and numerous modules andEndless Quest book covers and aDragonlance Calendar cover.[1] He did the cover ofDragonlance Adventures and other artwork for the Dragonlance series.[6][7] One of his pieces of artwork, "Red Dragon", was featured on the cover of the AD&D book,Monster Manual, from 1983-1989.[8]With the acquisition of TSR byWizards of the Coast, Easley provided illustrations for forty-nine cards for theMagic: The Gathering game sets fromMercadian Masques throughEventide.[9] While working freelance, Easley designed gold-and-ivory dragon inlays for deluxe limited-edition guitars.[2] He also provided the artwork for Italian power metal bandRhapsody of Fire's 2006 albumTriumph or Agony.[10]
In 2014, Scott Taylor ofBlack Gate, named Jeff Easley as #5 in a list of The Top 10 RPG Artists of the Past 40 Years, saying "His work covered every singleAD&D 1E hardcover core book as well as theAD&D 2E Player's Handbook andDMG. He has also done countless b/w illustrations and there is no artist out there who has filled more RPG pages with artwork than Jeff."[11]
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
