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Although I am still technically undecided, I am thinking of pursuing illustration as my major at SCAD. When I think of practising illustrators that might have influenced my in this decision, two favorites spring to mind. They are Stephen Gammell and Dave McKean. McKean is the more reknowned of the two, but Gammell's work has more personal significance to me. They are by no means the only artists I like, as I appreciate work in many fields. My interests are considerably more nebulous than my career goals.
Stephen Gammell is an illustrator for children's books. The only work of his that I've ever been exposed to was in a short series of books called "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark", which were written by Alvin Schwartz and first published in 1981. It's likely that some of you know what I'm talking about. There were three books in the series and I had them all when I was young. The stories themselves were sufficiently scary, but I used to just flip through them and stare in horror at the sinister, black-and-white images. I continually to stared at them in horror, off and on, throughout my formative years. They were just pencil drawings, but they had an uncanny quality that I hadn't seen before. As a matter of fact, I haven't really seen anything like them since, although I expect you never see such terrifying things as you do in your childhood. In my eyes, Stephen Gammell's illustrations didn't just compliment the dark material of the "Scary Stories" books, they were the books.
Dave McKean is another illustrator I enjoy and admire. He has worked on children's books as well, but he is by far a more prolific artist, as he has worked in virtually all forms of media. His method is apparently more involved than that of Stephen Gammell; his works combine a wide range of mediums. His method is a mix of his pen drawings, paintings, photos, digital images and sculptures. His stuff is everywhere: magazines (The New Yorker), books (Stephen King), CD covers (Alice Cooper), and comics (Sandman). He also directed a movie recently called MirrorMask that showcases his unique style.
Another main source of inspiration for me is the surreal work of H.R. Giger (of Alien fame). The "Birth Machine" is definitely my favorite, even though they are all respectably weird. Also, if there is any one artist that looks most like he might be a serial killer, it is probably Giger. Other standby idols include the undeniable talents of Salvador Dali and M. C. Escher, overrated as they might be.