Gavin L. O'Keefe is an Australian-born

book A book is a structured presentation of recorded information, primarily verbal and graphical, through a medium. Originally physical, electronic books and audiobooks are now existent. Physical books are objects that contain printed material, ...

illustrator An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicate ...

and

designer A designer is a person who plans the form or structure of something before it is made, by preparing drawings or plans. In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, products, processes, laws, games, graphics, services, or exper ...

. He resided in the USA for a number of years, returning to live in Australia in 2018. O'Keefe has been the dustjacket designer and illustrator, and occasional commissioning editor, for US publisher Ramble House for 25 years.

Biography

Early life

Gavin O'Keefe was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and lived in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

from the early-1980s to 1990. During that period, his artwork (usually black and white, though sometimes colour) was included in a variety of non-fiction books, science-fiction and horror magazines and other publications. His earliest covers were for books by Australian writers

Jacob G. Rosenberg Jacob G. Rosenberg (1922–2008) was an author and Holocaust survivor. Rosenberg's poetry and prose have been published in both Australia and overseas. Life Jacob G. Rosenberg was born in 1922 in Łódź, Poland and grew up as the youngest membe ...

, Alex Skovron, Walter Adamson, and Ian Kennedy Williams. O'Keefe is a classically trained musician and plays the viola.

Career

Twentieth Century

O'Keefe's illustrative work has appeared in many publications, including ''Aphelion'', ''Crypt of Cthulhu'', ''Culture Magazine'' (illustrated serial "Down the Rabbit Hole"), ''Eidolon'', ''Esoterica'', ''Phantastique'', ''Scarp'', ''Shadowplay'', ''24 Hours'' (

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is Australia’s principal public service broadcaster. It is funded primarily by grants from the federal government and is administered by a government-appointed board of directors. The ABC is ...

), ''

Terror Australis ''Terror Australis: the Australian Horror and Fantasy Magazine'' (1988–1992) was Australia's first mass market horror magazine. It succeeded the '' Australian Horror and Fantasy Magazine'' (1984–87) edited by Barry Radburn (who has gone on ...

'', ''Theosophy in Australia'' and ''Wildfire''. He has also provided illustrations for anthologies such as '' Terror Australis: Best Australian Horror'', and for ''The Australian H.P. Lovecraft Calendar 1990''. He contributed illustrations to Sally B. Boillotat's ''

Polocrosse Polocrosse is a team sport that is a combination of polo and lacrosse. It is played outside, on a field (the pitch), on horseback. Each rider uses a cane or fiberglass stick to which is attached a racquet head with a loose, thread net, in which ...

: Australian Made, Internationally Played'' (1990). His cover designs appear on Ian Kennedy Williams' ''Stopping Over'' (1988), Walter Adamson's ''The Man With the Suitcase'' (1989), Roslyn Taylor's ''Uncle Abe'' (1989), Peter Coaldrake and J.R. Nethercote's ''What Should Government Do?'' (1989) and John Leonard's ''Contemporary Australian Poetry: An Anthology''. (1990) Other works include ''Eight Illustrations for the

Gormenghast Gormenghast may refer to: * ''Gormenghast'' (series), a trilogy of novels by Mervyn Peake ** ''Gormenghast'' (novel), second in the series * ''Gormenghast'' (opera), an opera based on the books * ''Gormenghast'' (TV serial), a BBC adaptatio ...

Books by

Mervyn Peake Mervyn Laurence Peake (9 July 1911 – 17 November 1968) was a British writer, artist, poet, and illustrator. He is best known for what are usually referred to as the '' Gormenghast'' books. The four works were part of what Peake conceived ...

''

This was followed in 1995 by O'Keefe's illustrated version of

Lewis Carroll Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...

's classic ''

The Hunting of the Snark ''The Hunting of the Snark'', subtitled ''An Agony, in Eight Fits'', is a poem by the English writer Lewis Carroll. It is typically categorised as a nonsense poem. Written between 1874 and 1876, it borrows the setting, some creatures, and eig ...

: An Agony in Eight Fits'

His continued interest in illustrating Carroll is evinced by his 2004 compilation ''A Snark Selection'' (Ramble House)

O'Keefe's first illustrations for

's ''

Alice's Adventures In Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...

'' (subtitled 'The GO Alice') were published in

in 1990 by the Carroll Foundatio

In a review of this volume, it was stated "the hardbound volume intrigues the reader from the first glance at the mysterious black and red dustjacket. O'Keefe's illustrations are stark black and white drawings which have some of the foreboding one expects in

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...

. There is a humor here also, and though there is nothing particularly Australian about these drawings, there is much that we have not seen before, and the collector of innovative illustrated editions will certainly want to add this to his shelf." A new edition of 'The GO Alice' with entirely new illustrations was published by

Ramble House Ramble House is a small American publisher founded by Fender Tucker and Jim Weiler in 1999. The press specializes in reprints of long-neglected and rare crime fiction novels, modern crime fiction, 'weird menace' / 'shudder pulps' - short story c ...

in 2011. O'Keefe has a longstanding interest in the art of Australian painters Norma Bull and Vali Myers. He has also written essays on writers and artists, such as "Sita and Salome: A Short Comparative Look at the Art of

Aubrey Beardsley Aubrey Vincent Beardsley ( ; 21 August 187216 March 1898) was an English illustrator and author. His black ink drawings were influenced by Woodblock printing in Japan, Japanese woodcuts, and depicted the grotesque, the decadent, and the erotic. ...

and

" in ''Peake Studies'' 2, No 3 (Winter 1991) and "Alice's Odyssey in Oz", ''Oz Arts'' 7 (1993).

Twenty-First Century

O’Keefe has illustrated

Philip José Farmer Philip José Farmer (January 26, 1918 – February 25, 2009) was an American author known for his science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy novels and short story, short stories. Obituary. Farmer is best known for two sequences of novels, t ...

’s ''The Green Odyssey'' and ''Love Song'',

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake has become a seminal figure in the history of the Romantic poetry, poetry and visual art of the Roma ...

's ''An Island in the Moon'' (Purple Mouth Press),

Aleister Crowley Aleister Crowley ( ; born Edward Alexander Crowley; 12 October 1875 – 1 December 1947) was an English occultist, ceremonial magician, poet, novelist, mountaineer, and painter. He founded the religion of Thelema, identifying himself as the pr ...

's ''The Poem'' and Leanne Frahm's ''Borderline'' (MirrorDanse Books). He designed the cover for the Lovecraftian novel ''Marblehead'' by

Richard A. Lupoff Richard Allen Lupoff (February 21, 1935 – October 22, 2020) was an American science-fiction and mystery author, who also wrote humor, satire, nonfiction and reviews. In addition to his two dozen novels and more than 40 short stories, he ...

, published by Ramble House

and cover designs for the novels of

Harry Stephen Keeler Harry Stephen Keeler (November 3, 1890 – January 22, 1967) was a prolific but little-known American fiction writer, who developed a cult following for his eccentric mysteries. He also wrote science fiction. Biography Born in Chicago in ...

. (O'Keefe is the cover designer at

and has been prolific in designing their covers since the turn of the century.) He is also one of the publisher's commissioning editors.

''Time Line: Selected Illustrations'' (

, 2010) collects a range of O'Keefe's illustrations from his first four decades, including designs inspired by the macabre stories of

H. P. Lovecraft Howard Phillips Lovecraft (, ; August 20, 1890 – March 15, 1937) was an American writer of Weird fiction, weird, Science fiction, science, fantasy, and horror fiction. He is best known for his creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. Born in Provi ...

Tod Robbins Clarence Aaron Robbins (25 June 1888 – May 10, 1949), billed as C. A. Robbins and better known as Tod Robbins, was an American author of horror and mystery fiction, particularly novels and short story collections. Biography Robbins was born ...

and

, illustrations for science-fiction works by

Robert Sheckley Robert Sheckley (July 16, 1928 – December 9, 2005) was an American writer. First published in the science-fiction magazines of the 1950s, his many quick-witted stories and novels were famously unpredictable, Absurdist fiction, absurdist, and ...

and

, drawings for the ‘nonsense’ stories of

and

Edward Lear Edward Lear (12 May 1812 – 29 January 1888) was an English artist, illustrator, musician, author and poet, who is known mostly for his literary nonsense in poetry and prose and especially his limerick (poetry), limericks, a form he popularised. ...

, drawings inspired by the music of

King Crimson King Crimson were an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968 by Robert Fripp, Michael Giles, Greg Lake, Ian McDonald (musician), Ian McDonald and Peter Sinfield. Guitarist Fripp remained the only constant member throughout the ...

Queen Queen most commonly refers to: * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a kingdom * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen (band), a British rock band Queen or QUEEN may also refer to: Monarchy * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Q ...

and

Brian Eno Brian Peter George Jean-Baptiste de la Salle Eno (, born 15 May 1948), also mononymously known as Eno, is an English musician, songwriter, record producer, visual artist, and activist. He is best known for his pioneering contributions to ambien ...

, cover illustrations for mystery novels by

Chelsea Quinn Yarbro Chelsea Quinn Yarbro (born September 15, 1942) is an American writer. She is known for her series of historical horror novels about the vampire Count Saint-Germain. Biography Yarbro was born in Berkeley, California. She attended Berkeley sch ...

, Mark Hansom, Walter S. Masterman, Richard E. Goddard and Arlton Eadie, and a range of

fairy A fairy (also called fay, fae, fae folk, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature, generally described as anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic, found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Cel ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...

. A new edition of

L. Frank Baum Lyman Frank Baum (; May 15, 1856 – May 6, 1919) was an American author best known for his children's fantasy books, particularly '' The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'', part of a series. In addition to the 14 ''Oz'' books, Baum penned 41 other novels ...

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' is a 1900 children's novel written by author L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. It is the first novel in the Oz series of books. A Kansas farm girl named Dorothy ends up in the ma ...

with O'Keefe's black-&-white illustrations was released by

in 2013; these illustrations follow the symbolism of

Theosophy Theosophy is a religious movement established in the United States in the late 19th century. Founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and based largely on her writings, it draws heavily from both older European philosophies such as Neop ...

and the

Tarot Tarot (, first known as ''trionfi (cards), trionfi'' and later as ''tarocchi'' or ''tarocks'') is a set of playing cards used in tarot games and in fortune-telling or divination. From at least the mid-15th century, the tarot was used to play t ...

. O'Keefe's English translation, with numerous black-&-white illustrations, of Lautréamont's

Les Chants de Maldoror ''Les Chants de Maldoror'' (''The Songs of Maldoror'') is a French poetic novel, or a long prose poem. It was written and published between 1868 and 1869 by the Comte de Lautréamont, the ''nom de plume'' of the Uruguayan-born French writer Isi ...

was published by Ramble House in 2018, entitled
The Dirges of Maldoror
'. ''

Ramsey Campbell Ramsey Campbell (born 4 January 1946) is an English horror fiction writer, editor and critic who has been writing for well over fifty years. He is the author of over 30 novels and hundreds of short stories, many of them winners of literary awa ...

: Masters of the Weird Tale'' (

Centipede Press Centipede Press is an American independent book and periodical publisher focusing on horror, weird tales, crime narratives, science fiction, gothic novels, fantasy art, and studies of literature, music and film. Its earliest imprints were Cocytus ...

2020
includes four new illustrations by O'Keefe, among a host of other illustrators. O'Keefe is currently working on a third illustrated edition of

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland'' (also known as ''Alice in Wonderland'') is an 1865 English Children's literature, children's novel by Lewis Carroll, a mathematics university don, don at the University of Oxford. It details the story of a ...

, this time in 'radioactive' colour.

Bibliography

, ''

'' (1993) *

, ''

An Island in the Moon ''An Island in the Moon'' is the name generally assigned to an untitled, unfinished prose satire by William Blake, written in late 1784. Containing early versions of three poems later included in ''Songs of Innocence and of Experience, Songs of ...

'' (Newport News, Virginia: Purple Mouth Press, 1998) *

, ''The Alice Books:

Through the Looking-Glass ''Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There'' is a novel published in December 1871 by Lewis Carroll, the pen name of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, a mathematics lecturer at Christ Church, Oxford, Christ Church, University of Oxford. I ...

'' (Ramble House, 2011). *
Time Line: Selected Illustrations
' (Ramble House, 2010).

Awards

*2002 Sixth Annual Imitate Keeler Competition, for the story "Turn Up on Time!"

References

*''Alice 125: A Celebration''. Melbourne: Carroll Foundation, 1990 (exhibition catalogue; includes biography on, and article by, O'Keefe), p. 216 *"Illustrators of Peake", ''Peake Studies'' 2, No 1 (Winter 1990), pp. 28–29. *"The O'Keefe File" (interview by Bryce J. Stevens), ''Choking Dog Gazette'', 4 (Winter 1999). *"Two Interviews with Gavin L. O'Keefe" (interviews by

Leigh Blackmore Leigh (David) Blackmore (born 1959) is an Australian horror writer, critic, editor, occultist, musician and proponent of post-left anarchy. He was the Australian representative for the Horror Writers of America (1994–95) and served as the ...

), ''Mantichore'' 3, No 4 (Whole Number 12) (Feb 2009). {{DEFAULTSORT:Okeefe, Gavin Living people Australian illustrators Australian comics artists Lewis Carroll Year of birth missing (living people)