John Sibbick
Encyclopedia
John Sibbick is a British
freelance illustrator
, perhaps best known for his reconstructions of prehistoric life in several media.
Sibbick studied Graphics and Illustration at Guildford College
of Art in the south of England
. Thereafter he worked for design studios in London
, embarking upon a career as a freelance illustrator in 1972.
Sibbick's artwork has toured group shows like "Dinosaurs: a Global View", and he has had many one man shows in the United Kingdom
, including at the Natural History Museum, London, the Museum of Scotland, Glasgow
and Sea Dragons Gallery in Bristol
, and abroad, such as at the Gamagori Museum, Japan
. Sibbick designed the dragons for Animal Planet
's The Last Dragon docudrama, whilst the pterosaur
Ludodactylus sibbicki was named after John Sibbick in 2003.
In addition to his natural history work, Sibbick is also known for his work in the fantasy genre, having produced fantasy illustrations for Time Life Books, and numerous covers and interior illustrations for Puffin's Fighting Fantasy
line. During the late 1980s, Sibbick became associated with Games Workshop
when he provided the cover painting for the first edition of the company's Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay
rules. He went on to produce covers for the third edition of Warhammer Fantasy Battle
and the first edition of Warhammer 40,000
, an image later used by thrash metal band Bolt Thrower for the cover of their album Realm of Chaos, as well as a cover for the Warhammer
supplement Realm of Chaos: Slaves to Darkness. A number of these pieces graced the covers of various issues of White Dwarf
, and he provided an original illustration of the titular White Dwarf himself for the cover of issue 90. Sibbick and his work were featured in an Illuminations exposè in White Dwarf 83.
Sibbick's colour work is executed in gouache on artist's board, and often benefits from the production of detailed preparatory sketches and even 3D models for reference.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
freelance illustrator
Illustrator
An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...
, perhaps best known for his reconstructions of prehistoric life in several media.
Sibbick studied Graphics and Illustration at Guildford College
Guildford College
Guildford College of Further and Higher Education in Guildford, Surrey caters for students of age 16+ in full-time and part-time study. It has three campuses, one at Stoke Road, adjacent to Stoke Park in Guildford; the second at Merrist Wood near Worplesdon and the third Farnham College...
of Art in the south of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Thereafter he worked for design studios in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, embarking upon a career as a freelance illustrator in 1972.
Sibbick's artwork has toured group shows like "Dinosaurs: a Global View", and he has had many one man shows in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, including at the Natural History Museum, London, the Museum of Scotland, Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
and Sea Dragons Gallery in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, and abroad, such as at the Gamagori Museum, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Sibbick designed the dragons for Animal Planet
Animal Planet
Animal Planet is an American cable tv specialty channel that launched on October 1, 1996. It is distributed by Discovery Communications. A high-definition simulcast of the channel launched on September 1, 2007.-History:...
's The Last Dragon docudrama, whilst the pterosaur
Pterosaur
Pterosaurs were flying reptiles of the clade or order Pterosauria. They existed from the late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous Period . Pterosaurs are the earliest vertebrates known to have evolved powered flight...
Ludodactylus sibbicki was named after John Sibbick in 2003.
In addition to his natural history work, Sibbick is also known for his work in the fantasy genre, having produced fantasy illustrations for Time Life Books, and numerous covers and interior illustrations for Puffin's Fighting Fantasy
Fighting Fantasy
Fighting Fantasy is a series of single-player fantasy roleplay gamebooks created by Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone. The first volumes in the series were published by Puffin in 1982, with the rights to the franchise eventually being purchased by Wizard Books in 2002...
line. During the late 1980s, Sibbick became associated with Games Workshop
Games Workshop
Games Workshop Group plc is a British game production and retailing company. Games Workshop has published the tabletop wargames Warhammer Fantasy Battle and Warhammer 40,000...
when he provided the cover painting for the first edition of the company's Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay
Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay is a role-playing game set in the Warhammer Fantasy setting. Over the years, it has been through a number of phases and different publishers, most of which were related in some way to Games Workshop...
rules. He went on to produce covers for the third edition of Warhammer Fantasy Battle
Warhammer Fantasy Battle
Warhammer: The Game of Fantasy Battles is a tabletop wargame created by Games Workshop. It is the origin of the Warhammer Fantasy setting....
and the first edition of Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40,000 is a tabletop miniature wargame produced by Games Workshop, set in a dystopian science fantasy universe. Warhammer 40,000 was created by Rick Priestley in 1987 as the futuristic companion to Warhammer Fantasy Battle, sharing many game mechanics...
, an image later used by thrash metal band Bolt Thrower for the cover of their album Realm of Chaos, as well as a cover for the Warhammer
Warhammer Fantasy (setting)
Warhammer Fantasy is a fantasy setting, created by Games Workshop, which is used by many of the company's games. Some of the best-known games set in this world are: the table top wargame Warhammer Fantasy Battle, the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay pen-and-paper role-playing game, and the MMORPG...
supplement Realm of Chaos: Slaves to Darkness. A number of these pieces graced the covers of various issues of White Dwarf
White Dwarf (magazine)
White Dwarf is a magazine published by British games manufacturer Games Workshop. Initially covering a wide variety of fantasy and science-fiction role-playing and board games, particularly the role playing games Dungeons & Dragons, RuneQuest and Traveller...
, and he provided an original illustration of the titular White Dwarf himself for the cover of issue 90. Sibbick and his work were featured in an Illuminations exposè in White Dwarf 83.
Sibbick's colour work is executed in gouache on artist's board, and often benefits from the production of detailed preparatory sketches and even 3D models for reference.
Notable publications
- The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs (1985)
- Dinosaurs: a Global View (1990)
- The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Pterosaurs (1991)
- Prehistoric Life, the Rise of the Vertebrates (1994)
- The Kingfisher Illustrated Dinosaur Encyclopedia (2001)
External links
- Titannica Gaming Wiki page on Sibbicks Fghting Fantasy work