Brett Ewins (1955 – 16 February 2015) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

comic book artist best known for his work on ''

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'' (1977), which is a British weekly anthology comic. He is the magazine's longest-running ...

'' and ''

Rogue Trooper ''Rogue Trooper'' is a science fiction strip in the British comic book, comic ''2000 AD (comics), 2000 AD'', created by Gerry Finley-Day and Dave Gibbons in 1981. It portrays the adventures of a "Supersoldier, Genetic Infantryman" named Rogue ...

'' in the weekly

anthology comic A comics anthology collects works in the medium of comics, typically from multiple series, and compiles them into an anthology or magazine. The comics in these anthologies range from comic strips that are too short for standalone publication t ...

'' 2000 AD''.

Biography

Ewins studied Conceptual Art at

Goldsmiths College Goldsmiths, University of London, officially the Goldsmiths' College, is a constituent research university of the University of London in England. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by the Wo ...

, where he was also taught fine art by

Michael Craig-Martin Sir Michael Craig-Martin (born 28 August 1941) is an Irish-born contemporary conceptual artist and painter. He is known for fostering and adopting the Young British Artists, many of whom he taught, and for his conceptual artwork, '' An Oak Tre ...

. Ewins met future collaborator

Peter Milligan Peter Milligan (born 24 June 1961) is a British comic book writer who has written extensively for both British and American comic book industries. In the UK, Milligan has contributed to numerous anthology titles including '' 2000 AD'', '' Revo ...

at Goldsmiths, and left in 1977. In 1980, Ewins held a solo exhibition of his work at

Frestonia Frestonia was the name adopted by the residents of Freston Road, London, when they attempted to secede from the United Kingdom in 1977 to form the Free and Independent Republic of Frestonia. The residents were squatters, many of whom eventual ...

's ''Car Breaker Gallery'' in London, a squat in

Ladbroke Grove Ladbroke Grove () is an area and a road in West London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, passing through Kensal Green and Notting Hill, running north–south between Harrow Road and Holland Park Avenue. It is also a name given ...

's Republic of Frestonia. Ewins formed a long-term collaborative partnership with fellow artist Brendan McCarthy who also showed at the Car Breaker Gallery, creating the comic ''Sometime Stories'', which faltered after the first issue leaving the second issue completed but unpublished. On the strength of ''Sometime Stories'', Ewins soon started providing covers for '' 2000 AD'', the first being issue #33 published in October of the same year. Ewins and McCarthy continued working together on ''

Future Shocks ''Tharg's Future Shocks'' is a long-running series of short strips in the British weekly comic '' 2000 AD'' in 1977. The name originates from the fictional editor of 2000 AD and the book titled ''Future Shock'', written by Alvin Toffler, publi ...

'' and ''

'', but soon after Ewins began working solo on ''

'' and later ''

Judge Anderson Judge Cassandra Anderson is a fictional law enforcer and psychic appearing in the British science fiction comics '' 2000 AD'' and the ''Judge Dredd Megazine''. Created by writer John Wagner and artist Brian Bolland, Anderson made her debut as a ...

''. In 1985 Ewins started working on ''

Bad Company Bad Company are an English rock supergroup that was formed in 1973 by singer Paul Rodgers, guitarist Mick Ralphs, drummer Simon Kirke and bassist Boz Burrell. Bad Company ''AllMusic'' Peter Grant, who managed the rock band Led Zeppelin, a ...

'', a sci-war epic, written by Peter Milligan with artwork by Ewins and Jim McCarthy (brother of Brendan). Brett Ewins did the cover art for the ''

Judgement Day The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

'' (1986) supplement for Games Workshop's '' Judge Dredd: The Role-Playing Game''. Along with Steve Dillon, he started the comic magazine ''

Deadline Deadline(s) or The Deadline(s) may refer to: * Time limit, a narrow field of time by which an objective must be accomplished Arts, entertainment, and media Comics * Deadline (DC Comics), a fictional villain * ''Deadline'' (magazine), a British ...

'' in 1988, which continued for another seven years. At the same time as Ewins was starting ''Deadline'', he began working on '' Skreemer'' for American comics publisher, DC. Ewins was also still contributing art to ''2000 AD'' at the same time. This level of work was to have a serious impact of Ewins' health. He "suffered a serious breakdown from overwork" in 1991 and was unable to take on work that had a deadline, which led to lost commissions from

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 ...

and

Penguin Books Penguin Books is a British publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers The Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the following year.Ewins, Brett "Introduction," ''The Dark Gate'' page 4-5 His plan to recover was to create an anthology based on work from friends in the industry like

, Alan Grant and

Alan McKenzie Alan McKenzie is a British comics writer and editor known for his work at '' 2000 AD''. Biography McKenzie worked for Marvel UK during the early 1980s, editing '' Starburst'', ''Cinema'' and '' Doctor Who Monthly'' magazines. After leaving the ...

, as well as friends like musician Michael White. The volume was finished off with, "Machine," a story written by Ewins based on his breakdown. He worked on the stories from 1995 to 2003 and the book was published as ''The Dark Gate'' in 2004 by Cyberosia Publishing. Ewins also was a painter and had a number of exhibitions. Ewins was also an influence on street art, especially The IFC and the

Mutoid Waste Company The Mutoid Waste Company are a performance arts group founded in London, England by Joe Rush and Robin Cooke in collaboration with Alan P Scott and Joshua Bowler. It started in the early 1980s, emerging from Frestonia's 'Car Breaker Gallery'. The ...

, and a Ewins-influenced exhibition was held in November 2011. In 2011, Air Pirate Press published a biographical retrospective book of Ewins' life and work,
The Art of Brett Ewins
' (). In January 2012 it was reported that he had sustained head injuries during a confrontation with police, in which one policeman received stab wounds. He subsequently appeared before

Uxbridge Uxbridge () is a suburban town in west London and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Hillingdon. Situated west-northwest of Charing Cross, it is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. Uxb ...

Magistrates Court in February 2012 charged with causing Grievous bodily harm with intent. On 17 February 2015, people received the news from his niece that Brett had died in hospital from emphysema.

Bibliography

Comics work includes: *''

Tharg's Future Shocks ''Tharg's Future Shocks'' is a long-running series of short strips in the British weekly comic '' 2000 AD'' in 1977. The name originates from the fictional editor of 2000 AD and the book titled ''Future Shock'', written by Alvin Toffler, publi ...

'': ** "Robot Repairs" (with writer Robert Flynn and artist Jim McCarthy, in '' 2000 AD'' #37-38, 1977) ** "The Man Who Was Too Clever" (with

, in ''2000 AD'' #216, 1981) *''

'': ** "Bring Me The Head of Judge Dredd!" (with

John Wagner John Wagner (born 1949) is an American-born British comics writer. Alongside Pat Mills, he helped revitalise British comics in the 1970s, and continues to be active in the British comics industry, occasionally also working in American comics. ...

, as "John Howard", and sharing art duties Brendan McCarthy, in ''2000 AD'' #88, 1978) ** "The DNA Man" (with John Wagner, as "John Howard", in ''2000 AD'' #114-115, 1979) ** "The Haunting of Sector House 9" (with John Wagner, as "T. B. Grover", in ''2000 AD'' #359, 1984) ** "The Wally Squad" (with John Wagner and Alan Grant as "T.B. Grover", in "2000 AD" #390 - 392 (1984) *''

ABC Warriors ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

'': "The Order of Knights Martial" (with

Pat Mills Patrick Eamon Mills (born 1949) is an English comics writer and editor who, along with John Wagner, revitalised British boys comics in the 1970s, and has remained a leading light in British comics ever since. He has been called "the godfather ...

, in ''2000 AD'' #124, 1979) *''

'': "Bagman Blues" (with

Gerry Finley-Day Gerry Finley-Day (born 1947, Broughty Ferry, Dundee) is a Scottish comics writer, prolific from the 1960s to the 1980s, best known as the creator of "Rogue Trooper". Career He began his career at D.C. Thomson & Co., before becoming the edito ...

, in ''2000 AD'' #261-262, 1982) *'' Strange Days'' #1-3 (with Peter Milligan,

Eclipse Comics Eclipse Comics was an American comic book publisher, one of several independent publishers during the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1978, it published the first graphic novel intended for the newly created comic book specialty store market. It was ...

, 1984–1985) *''The Johnny Nemo Magazine'' #1-3 (with Peter Milligan, Eclipse Comics, 1985–1986) *''

'' (pencils, with Peter Milligan and inks by Jim McCarthy): ** "Bad Company" (in ''2000 AD'' #500-519, 1986–1987) ** "The Bewilderness" (in ''2000 AD'' #548-557, 1987–1988) ** "Young Men Marching" (in ''2000AD Annual 1989'', 1988) ** "The Krool Heart" (in ''2000 AD'' #576-585, 1988) ** "Simply" (in ''2000 AD'' #601, 1988) ** "Ararat" (in ''2000AD Annual 1990'', 1989) ** "Kano" (in ''2000 AD'' #828-837, 1993) ** "Down Among the Dead Men" (in ''2000AD Annual 2001'', 2000) ** "Bad Company 2002" (in ''2000 AD'' Prog 2002 and #1273-1277, 2001–2002) *''

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

'' #70 (with

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 ...

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 ...

, 1988) *''

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

'' #7-8 (with

Jamie Delano Jamie Delano (; born 1954) is an English comic book writer. He was part of the first post-Alan Moore "British Invasion" of writers which started to feature in American comics in the 1980s. He is best known as the first writer of the comic book s ...

, Vertigo, 1988) *'' Skreemer'' (pencils, with writer Peter Milligan and inks by Steve Dillon, 6-issue

limited series Limited series may refer to: *Limited series, individual storylines within an anthology series *Limited series, a particular run of collectables, usually individually numbered *Limited series (comics), a comics series with a predetermined number of ...

, 1989,

, trade paperback, 169 pages, 2002, )''Skreemer'' trade details at DC
/ref> *'' Secret Origins'': "

Shine On You Crazy Diamond "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" is a nine-part Pink Floyd composition written by David Gilmour, Roger Waters, and Richard Wright. It appeared on Pink Floyd's 1975 concept album ''Wish You Were Here''. The song is written about and dedicated to Syd B ...

" #23 (with Rick Veitch, DC Comics, February 1988) *'' Mr X Special'' (with Peter Milligan, one-shot,

Vortex Comics Vortex Comics is a Canadian independent comic book publisher that began operation in 1982. Under the supervision of president, publisher, and editor Bill Marks, Vortex was known for such titles as Dean Motter's ''Mister X (Vortex), Mister X'', How ...

, 1990) *''The Dark Gate'' (editor and artist, with Peter Milligan,

and Alan Grant, 64 pages, Cyberosia Publishing, 2004, )

Awards

1990 File:1990 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1990 FIFA World Cup is played in Italy; The Human Genome Project is launched; Voyager I takes the famous Pale Blue Dot image- speaking on the fragility of humanity on Earth, astrophysicist ...

: Won "Favourite Single or Continued Story US" Eagle Award, for ''Skreemer''

Notes

References

*
Brett Ewins
at Barney *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ewins, Brett 1955 births Date of birth missing 2015 deaths British comics artists Games Workshop artists Place of birth missing Role-playing game artists Deaths from emphysema English Buddhists People from Hammersmith