Christos "Chris" Achilléos[3] (26 August 1947 – 6 December 2021) was a Cypriot-born British painter and illustrator who specialised in fantasy artwork and glamour illustration.
Chris Achilléos | |
|---|---|
 Achilléos on Polcon 2007 | |
| Born | Christos Achilléos 26 August 1947 |
| Died | 6 December 2021 (aged 74)[1][2] |
| Nationality | Cypriot British |
| Known for | Fantasy art, illustration |
Biography
editBorn in Famagusta, Cyprus, his family emigrated to the United Kingdom in 1959, where he resided.[4] He attended the Hornsey College of Art.[5]
His work has appeared in Heavy Metal and Radio Times magazines, on book covers (including series based on the Conan the Barbarian character, TV's Doctor Who[6] and Star Trek,[7] as well as the Fighting Fantasy gamebook series),[8] and in collections of his own work. He has also participated in various film projects including Heavy Metal and Willow as a conceptual artist,[6] (his iconic poster image commissioned in 1980 featuring Taarna and her birdlike steed are still featured on the DVD release)[9] and created a proposed poster for Blade Runner.[10]
Achilléos created the controversial cover for Whitesnake's 1979 album, Lovehunter, which showed a naked woman straddling a giant serpent. In an interview with MelodicRock, Gary Hughes stated that Achilléos thereafter "had a policy of not working with bands".[11] The original artwork, along with several other pieces, were stolen from him in the 1980s and sold to a private collector.[12] However, he designed an album cover and artwork in 2003 with Gary Hughes' rock opera Once and Future King Part I.[13] His influence was also felt in the Kate Bush video for "Babooshka", in which the character's costume resembles the cover portrait he did of the heroine of the 1978 novel Raven - Swordsmistress of Chaos.[14][15]
Following 1990, he mostly worked in designing fantasy trading cards as well as selling prints and original works of art.[5]
Chris Achilléos died on 6 December 2021, at the age of 74.[1][2]
Collections
editAchilléos had published several book collections, including:[citation needed]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Marcus (9 December 2021). "Chris Achilléos 1947-2021". Retrieved 27 December 2021.
- ^ a b "Chris Achilleos (1947-2021)". Locus Online. 13 December 2021. Retrieved 27 December 2021.
- ^ Achilleos, Chris (October 2004). Amazona. London: Titan Books. p. 2. ISBN 1-84023-893-3.
- ^ Biography on Chris Achilléos' website Archived July 20, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b c d e f "SFE: Achilleos, Chris".
- ^ a b "Artist Showcase - Chris Achilleos". Archived from the original on 11 May 2015. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Chris Achilleos". scifiscarborough.co.uk. Archived from the original on 6 December 2020.
- ^ "GUEST BLOG Fighting Fantasy Fest 2014". 16 June 2014.
- ^ "HEAVY METAL 1980". Archived from the original on 19 June 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- ^ "Original Artwork of Unreleased Blade Runner Poster Project by Chris Achilleos". Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- ^ "Interviews: Gary Hughes - Once And Future King". Melodicrock.com. Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 31 October 2010.
He had a bad experience after his Lovehunter cover and for years he has had a policy of not working with bands anymore.
- ^ "Entrevista". Chris Achilleos. Archived from the original on 23 November 2015. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
- ^ "MelodicRock.com Interviews: Gary Hughes - Once And Future King". Archived from the original on 28 September 2018. Retrieved 19 June 2007.
- ^ "The Connection Between Kate Bush And Sexy Sword And Sorcery Novels". The Reprobate. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
- ^ "Polska Strona Kate Bush". www.katebush.pl. Retrieved 19 June 2018.
Artistic concepts and choreography throughout by Kate Bush Babooshka costume based on an illustration by Chris Achilleos and released by Pamela Keats.