Dave McKean was born in Taplow, Berkshire in 1963. He attended Berkshire College of Art and Design from 1982-86 and, before leaving, started working as an illustrator. In 1986 he met author Neil Gaiman with whom he has collaborated on many projects since. Their collaborations include Black Orchid (1988), Signal To Noise (1990) and Mr. Punch (1975). Dave has contributed all the cover illustrations and design for the popular Sandman series of graphic novels. Arkham Asylum (1989) written by Scottish author/playwright Grant Morrison, the most successful graphic novel ever published, was also illustrated by Dave. Between 1990 and 1996, Dave also wrote and illustrated the comic novel Cages, which won the Harvey Award for Best New Series in 1992, the International Alph Art award and Italy's Pantera di Lucca Award in 1999.
Dave has illustrated and designed several children's books, five with Neil Gaiman, The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, Coraline, The Wolves in the Walls, (NYTBR Best Illustrated Book of the Year) Mirrormask and Crazy Hair, and Varjak Paw with S. F. Said (winner of the Smarties Gold award in 2004). He has also worked on a book with Stephen King (Wizard & Glass), the autobiography of John Cale, What's Welsh for Zen, and books and films with Iain Sinclair.
Dave directed the title sequence for Neil Gaiman's first TV series, Neverwhere. In 1995 he produced the image to launch Sony Playstation, and in 1996 was one of four photographers chosen by Kodak and Saatchi to launch their new colour film with a book, video and global ad package. He has also produced campaigns for Smirnoff, British Telecom, BMW/Mini, Nike and Eurostar.
Dave has contributed many illustrations to magazines including The New Yorker and has contributed promotional work for the films Blade, Alien Resurrection and Sleepy Hollow, and production designs for the second and third Harry Potter films. Dave has designed, illustrated and photographed over one hundred and fifty album covers since 1990, including releases by Michael Nyman, Tori Amos and Counting Crows. Also in 1995 he was one of the winners exhibited at the Victoria & Albert Museum for the National Book Awards for Mr. Punch, and in 2002 took overall first prize for his collection of short comics Pictures That Tick. Dave won a World Fantasy Award for the Sandman covers.
In 1996 he composed and performed the music for the BBC Radio adaptation of Signal to Noise. He has exhibited in America and Europe, including solo shows at The Four Color Gallery, New York, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Madrid, and The Maritime Museum, Carlisle.
In the last few years he has concentrated on making films. His second short film
N[eon] won first prize at the Clermont-Ferrand Film Festival, the biggest short film festival in the world. He is currently designing and directing his first feature, Mirrormask, for Columbia/Tristar/Hensons.
He lives on the Isle of Oxney with his wife and studio manager Clare, and their two children.
Things you didn't know about Dave McKean
1. I fell in love with comics when I was off school with the flu, and my mother bought me copies of The Mighty World of Marvel, numbers 3 and 4.
2. My father worked in shipping. He used to look after the equipment for the then unknown Elton John (or John Elton as he called him). Nearly 40 years later I worked on Elton's musical Lestat.
3. When I was 9, I drew a map of Ethiopia at school, and then presented it in person to the Emperor Haile Selassie during a visit to a local Agricultural Centre.
4. I met my wife for the first time when I was 12.
5. My first professionally published illustration was a dove for a cd cover for Isao Tomita.
6. I recorded the music for the BBCRadio production of Signal to Noise at Real World in Box, near Bath. Peter Gabriel had just written a song that week called Signal to Noise, and came to see what we were doing.
7. I have a storm-cloud coloured cat called Stormy. She was born on a stormy night.
8. I play badminton twice a week, poorly, but with great competitive spirit, and employing any psychological advantage I can think of; distracting shirts, aggressive posture, unnecessary noises etc.
9. In my film MirrorMask, I played the small porcupine in trousers and braces, the announcer on hospital radio introducing Close To You and Spiny Norman, who is a snail-like object on the Prime Minister's lectern.
10. The first piece of artwork that film director Guillermo del Toro bought was a page from my Batman graphic novel, Arkham Asylum.
Illustrator photo copyright: Clare McKean
