Liam Sharp

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Liam Sharp
My Ugly Mug 02.jpg
Liam Sharp
BornLiam Roger Sharp
(1968-05-02) 2 May 1968 (age 56)
Derby, England, UK
NationalityBritish
Area(s)Artist, writer, publisher
Pseudonym(s)Liam Roger McCormack-Sharp
Ralph Raims (anagram)
Roger M. Cormack
Notable works
AwardsApple's best of 2012 apps, Madefire, Hidden Gems.
Inkwell Awards All-in-One Award, 2018 and 2020
http://www.sharpy.net

Liam Roger Sharp (born 2 May 1968) is a British comic book artist, writer, publisher, and co-founder/CCO of Madefire Inc.

Contents

Early life

Liam Sharp was born in Derby. He went to school at Brackensdale Junior then infants school, before moving to Allestree Lawn Junior school because of his parents' work. At the suggestion of his teachers he was advised to meet with the Gifted Children's Society, who in turn advised St. Andrew's Prep School in Meads, Eastbourne, to take Sharp on and establish their first Art Scholarship. He then went on to win the first Art Scholarship to Eastbourne College, where he stayed until his A Levels.

Career

Sharp made his debut in the 1980s for the science fiction magazine 2000 AD after a year's apprenticeship with Don Lawrence, artist on the Dutch comic Storm . His works included many Judge Dredd stories, the origin of Finn , ABC Warriors series and one of Tharg's Future Shocks . He later moved to Marvel UK, for which he drew the mini-series Death's Head II . [1] Thereafter he began working mainly in the United States on books as diverse as X-Men , Hulk , Spider-Man , Venom , Man-Thing (for Marvel Comics), Superman , Batman for DC Comics, and Spawn: The Dark Ages for Todd McFarlane.

Sharp has also worked on more mature themed books for Verotik, doing GOTH, Jaguar God and Frank Frazetta's "The Death Dealer". He briefly worked on a strip originated by Stan Winston called 'Realm of the Claw'. Later he co-created the Wildstorm series The Possessed with writer Geoff Johns, [2] and a strip for Heavy Metal magazine, entitled "A-crazy-A" featuring Playboy model Tiffany Taylor – for which he provided the art and script. He was also the complete author of the short story "Winter Rose" in the Vampirella magazine.

In 2004 Sharp set up his own publishing company, Mam Tor Publishing, with his wife Christina McCormack, to publish the artbook Sharpenings: the Art of Liam Sharp. [3]

After the early success with this, Sharp saw a hole in the comic book market for alternative independent comics, and together with his wife Christina, designer Tom Muller and friend John Bamber set out to expand the company to start publishing more work. This saw the launch of the critically acclaimed and award -winning [4] anthology Mam Tor: Event Horizon. Event Horizon featured art by Glenn Fabry, Brian Holguin, Ashley Wood, Simon Bisley, Alan Grant, Steve Niles, Emma Simcock-Tooth, Ali Powers, Kev Crossley, Lee Carter and Dave Kendall. [3]

Sharp went on to illustrate the controversial and critically well-received DC Vertigo comic Testament written by Douglas Rushkoff, [5] [6] and the Countdown -related title, Lord Havok and The Extremists with writer Frank Tieri. [7] After that he provided art for the biggest selling comic of 2008 in the US, the Wildstorm title based on the video game Gears of War . [8] [9]

Mam Tor and the advertising agency Mother produced a free sixteen page comic given away with Time Out for which Sharp was the art director, as well as providing the art for a story in the first two issues as well as the cover for the first issue. [10] [11]

In September 2008 he signed an exclusive deal with DC. [12]

Sharp wrote the 2011 novel God Killers. [13]

Sharp is involved with a UK Midland-based art movement Beardism, certain elements of which are similar to Dadaism. The practitioners are required to wear beards, though this can be interpreted as symbolic. A recent exhibition was held in the Crompton Arms, a Derby public house and alternative art gallery, featuring the work of Sharp, Ali Pow3rs, Adam Dutton and Chris Tree.

On 9 April 2011 Sharp was one of 62 comics creators who appeared at the IGN stage at the Kapow! convention in London to set two Guinness World Records, the Fastest Production of a Comic Book, and Most Contributors to a Comic Book. With Guinness officials on hand to monitor their progress, writer Mark Millar began work at 9am scripting a 20-page black and white Superior comic book, with Sharp and the other artists appearing on stage throughout the day to work on the pencils, inks, and lettering, including Dave Gibbons, Frank Quitely, John Romita Jr., Jock, [14] Doug Braithwaite, Ian Churchill, Duncan Fegredo, Simon Furman, David Lafuente, John McCrea, Sean Phillips and Liam Sharp, [15] who all drew a panel each, with regular Superior artist Leinil Yu creating the book's front cover. The book was completed in 11 hours, 19 minutes, and 38 seconds, and was published through Icon on 23 November 2011, with all royalties being donated to Yorkhill Children's Foundation. [14]

October 2011, Sharp co-founded Madefire with Ben Wolstenholme and Eugene Walden, in Berkeley, CA, and is the company's CCO. Madefire has been hailed as a revolutionary new digital reading experience, and is backed by True Ventures and associated with deviantART.

In 2017 Derby Museum hosted a ten week long retrospective of Liam's work, spanning his career from 2000ad to Wonder Woman.

Liam was awarded a wrought-Iron and mosaic star in the city's #MadeInDerby2 campaign, which can be found outside the Standing Order pub, near the front door of the house where Joseph Wright lived in Derby's cathedral quarter. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by Derby University in 2022.

Liam continues to live in Derby, and plays an active part in the community as well as serving on the University Court in an advisory capacity.

Bibliography

Comics

Role-playing games

Advertising

Project managed and contributed to design of Rubberduckzilla, plus provided ATL art for 96 sheet poster campaign for Oasis drink, cover art for comic in ad, plus art for animation in BG on TV: http://rubberduckzilla.com/

Books

Unsigned Jacketed Hardcover - ISBN   978-1-848638-47-1 Signed Jacketed Hardcover limited to 100 copies - ISBN   978-1-848638-48-8)

Film and television

Design work for television and film include:

Notes

  1. Death's Head II at the Appendix to the Handbook of the Marvel Universe
  2. Who You Gonna Call?: Liam Sharp on 'The Possessed', Comic Book Resources, 19 June 2003
  3. 1 2 Liam Sharp Launches Mam Tor & Event Horison Archived 15 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine , Newsarama, 14 December 2004
  4. Sci-Fi London Award Archived 11 May 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  5. Crossing The Pond: Liam Sharp talks "Testament," "Red Sonja" and "Event Horizon", Comic Book Resources, 7 October 2005
  6. Liam Sharp on Testament Archived 15 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine , Newsarama, 3 August 2008
  7. Liam Sharp & Mike Marts talk Lord Havok Archived 16 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine , Newsarama, 16 October 2007
  8. Ortega & Sharp on Gears of War Comic, Newsarama, 24 July 2008
  9. Sharp's Exclusive Gears of War Comic News Archived 13 August 2009 at the Wayback Machine , Comicon, 11 August 2008
  10. Four Feet From a Rat Archived 18 December 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  11. Mam Tor & Mother Take Time Out With 'Four Feet From a Rat' Archived 4 November 2010 at the Wayback Machine , Newsarama, 24 March 2008
  12. Liam Sharp on His DC Exclusive, Newsarama, 9 September 2008
  13. God Killers Archived 15 May 2009 at the Wayback Machine at Mam Tor
  14. 1 2 "Kapow! '11: Comic History Rewritten On The IGN Stage". IGN. 14 April 2011
  15. "Guinness World Records at Kapow! Comic Con" Archived 15 April 2011 at the Wayback Machine . Guinness World Records. 9 April 2011
  16. The Possessed trade details at DC Comics.com
  17. Necromachia, Mam Tor
  18. Testament: Akedah trade details at DC Comics.com
  19. Testament: West of Eden trade details at DC Comics.com
  20. Testament: Babel trade details at DC Comics.com
  21. Testament: Exodus trade details at DC Comics.com
  22. Countdown Presents: Lord Havok and The Extremists trade details at DC Comics.com
  23. Four Feet From a Rat #2, Mam Tor

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References

Interviews

Preceded by The Incredible Hulk artist
1995
Succeeded by