Abigail Larson is an American illustrator. She creates mixed media original artwork in the dark fantasy genre, drawing on themes from Gothic and horror literature. Her illustrations often feature Victorian fashion and fantasy or horror elements such as ghosts. She uses a combination of traditional sketching and digital coloring to complete her illustrations.
Larson works primarily as a freelance artist. Her credits include coloring books, tarot decks, comic books, and television shows. She has illustrated for several major publishing and production companies, including DC, Dark Horse Comics, Netflix Animation, and Disney Books. She has also served as a character designer on several projects. She won the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist in 2016.
Early life and education
Larson was born and raised in Virginia.[1] Her father is an archaeologist and her mother is a cultural anthropologist.[1] At one point in her childhood, her mother worked as a seamstress — this inspired one of Larson's first drawings, a self-portrait of her future self in a wedding dress.[2] As a child, she dreamed of becoming an opera singer, but suffered from severe stage fright; she also dreamed of joining the circus.[2][3] Larson's family has been supportive of her career as an artist.[1][4]
Larson attended Virginia Commonwealth University, graduating in 2010 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Arts. Her concentration was Drawing and Illustration.[5] She credits her high school art teacher with being an early supporter of her work and encouraging her to apply to art school.[4]
Career
Character design
Larson was the character designer for The Huntsman: Winter's Curse, a video game created in 2016 by Universal Pictures and Desert Owl Games as a companion to the film Snow White & the Huntsman. While the game itself received poor reviews, the art was praised by reviewers.[6] Larson has contributed artwork to several games by Choice of Games.[7] She has also designed a loading screen for Fortnite.[8] Beginning in 2020, Larson was a character designer on the Netflix Animation original series Blue Eye Samurai.[9][10] She worked full-time on the series, and was particularly involved in designing the show's costumes.[10][9]
Comic books
Abigail Larson's cover art for Evanescence: Tales from the Void#1.
As a freelancer, Larson has accumulated 20 comic book art credits from companies including DC, Dark Horse, Image, and Titan. Many of these credits are for single issues of longer runs. In 2020, Larson did the covers for the mini-seriesLady Baltimore: The Witch Queens, written by Mike Mignola and Daniel Golden with artwork by Bridgit Connell.[11][12][13] In 2021, Larson worked on the first issue of rock band Evanescence's graphic anthology series Echoes from the Void.[14] The series featured stories inspired by the band's music. Larson contributed both cover art and interior illustrations.[15][16] Her cover for issue #1 was later turned into an NFT as part of a project by the band.[17] In 2023, Larson returned to do the cover art for the one-shot sequel to the mini-series The Witch Queens, Lady Baltimore: The Dream of Ikelos.[18]
Other projects
Other projects that Larson has worked on include book cover art, tarot decks, coloring books, sticker books, illustrated re-publications of classic stories, children's literature, and tabletop RPGs.[19] Larson is an Official Fluevog Creator, as the advertisement she designed for their "The Queen of Prussia Ludovika" shoe won their FleuvogCreative contest in 2014.[20][21] The advertisement ran in print in Vice and Bust.[20] In 2021, Larson published Crimson, a 248-page art book containing a selection of her pieces spanning a decade.[22][23] The project was funded through Kickstarter.[24]
Between 2010 and 2015, Larson contributed artwork to multiple events at The Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia.[25] At a 2014 Halloween event, her illustrations were used on a wine bottle label for the Vincent Price Signature Wine Collection and the can for a local craft brewery's red ale.[26][27] She also illustrated posters for Richmond's annual Zombie Walk.[28][29]
Personal life
Larson lives in Turin, Italy, with her husband.[5] She works primarily out of her home studio there.[1]
Artistry
Style and technique
Larson is known for her Gothic style. She often works within the dark fantasy genre; her illustrations contain macabre themes and are heavily influenced by horror movies and literature, sometimes depicting creatures such as vampires and ghosts.[1][30][28] She frequently centers women and femininity in her illustrations, and has emphasized the importance of storytelling in her process and finished pieces.[30][31][32] Larson often exaggerates perspective and proportions in her work.[20] She describes movement as important to illustration, and therefore favors dynamic poses.[31]
Larson works in mixed media — she does her initial sketches, line work, and coloring on paper, and finishes her coloring digitally.[1] She completes initial sketches on Canson paper with mechanical pencil, then transfers her final sketch onto watercolor paper.[33] She then inks the drawing and does a watercolor wash, which adds depth and texture to the final piece. Finally, she scans the drawing and does the final colors in Photoshop.[32] Larson has stated that although she has tried digital drawing, drawing on paper "feels better" to her, and she likes the way ink on paper looks.[1]
In 2022, her art book Crimson was a finalist in the Prix Imaginales [fr] Illustration category.[37]
Publications and credits
Book covers
Gothic Blue Book IV: The Folklore Edition (short story anthology, Burial Day Books, 2014, ISBN9780984730445)
Loteria by Cynthia Pelayo (first edition, CreateSpace, 2012, ISBN1477695621)
Titan Magic: Body and Soul by Jodi Lamm (2013, CreateSpace, ISBN9781494336691)
Literary Noir: A Series of Suspense Vols. 1–3 (collection of Cornell Woolrich stories, published by his estate and Renaissance Literary & Talent, 2018) [19]
VANITY: The True Story Behind The Scarlet Countess Elizabeth Bathory by Jurii Kirnev (first edition, Chaos Imperium Press, 2017)[19]
Sam the Spectator Book 1:The Haunter by Kendra Alvey (2018) [19]
Sam the Spectator Book 2: Ghostapalooza by Kendra Alvey (2019) [19]
Sam the Spectator Book 3: The Ghosts of Summers Past by Kendra Alvey (2020) [19]
Gothic Blue Book VI: A Krampus Carol (short story anthology, Burial Day Books, 2020) [39]
Santa Muerte and The Missing by Cynthia Pelayo (original cover art for each book, published by Post Mortem Press in 2012 and 2016 respectively; and the cover art for the 2021 combined reprint published by Thunderstorm Books) [19][40]
Rear Window and Other Murderous Tales (collection of Cornell Woolrich stories, published by his estate and Renaissance Literary & Talent, 2022) [19]
^ abcdefghijklmLarson, Abigail (February 15, 2020). "Published Work". abigaillarson.com. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
^ abcd"Abigail Larson". John Fluevog Shoes. Archived from the original on June 21, 2016. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
^Larson, Abigail (January 28, 2021). "Crimson Art Book". abigaillarson.com. Archived from the original on February 17, 2024. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
^ abMarin-Barutcieff, Silvia (2015). "Death and the Maiden in 20th Century Literature and Visual Arts". In Teodorescu, Adriana (ed.). Death Representations in Literature: Forms and Theories. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. pp. 402–405. ISBN9781443872980.
^ abWright, Amanda (November 1, 2018). "Interview with Abigail Larson". Ink & Arrows Magazine. No. 12. pp. 35–36. Archived from the original on February 25, 2023. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
^"FAQ". Abigail Larson. February 15, 2020. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024.
Keogh, Ian. "Teen Titans Go! To Camp!". The Slings & Arrows Graphic Novels Guide. Archived from the original on February 17, 2024. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
^"When You Give an Imp a Penny". Kirkus Reviews. October 15, 2015. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024. The pictures have a quality of Disney animation about them, lively and familiar-looking without much verve.
^"Disney Cautionary Tales". Kirkus Reviews. August 15, 2022. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024. Larson's illustrations are eerie and beautiful, and they also help readers track the threads of the storyline.
^Knox, Graceley (August 5, 2021). "Review: Dark Wood Tarot by Sasha Graham". The Nerd Daily. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024. ...with art by the incredibly talented Abigail Larson...the artwork is incredible on them...
^Coyle, Deirdre (October 24, 2023). "10 Tarot Decks for Fantasy Lovers". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024. Tim Burton's beloved '90s characters are captured by Abigail Larson-a veteran of Gothic Fantasy illustration-in artwork that manages to be both spooky and sweet, like the source material.
^Bokor, Marielle (October 26, 2022). "Review: The Horror Tarot Deck Is a Great Spooky Addition to Your Halloween". Third Coast Review. Archived from the original on February 18, 2024. Retrieved February 18, 2024. As an art piece, it's also spectacular, with beautiful illustrations by Abigail Larson on every single card and in the guidebook.
