Posted in: Comics | Tagged: Luton, Steve Dillon

Steve Dillon Gallery Exhibition Starts Tomorrow In Luton

Tomorrow, the Culture Trust Luton presents a gallery of work by the late comic book artist Steve Dillon, co-creator of Preacher, co-creator of Abslom Daak and founder of Deadline magazine. The exhibition is made up of over 50 works, following his work from 1978 to 2016, when he died attending the New York Comic Con of a ruptured appendix at the age of 54.

Preacher, Punisher and Judge Dredd: the work of British Comic book legend Steve Dillon begins with a selection of drawings in pencil and ink, completed by Dillon during his school years in Luton and goes on to show work he produced for both Marvel and DC comics. Dillon, who lived and worked in Luton, began his professional career aged 16 when he was hired to draw Nick Fury for Marvel UK's Hulk Weekly. He went on to create Abslom Daak for Doctor Who Weekly while at Marvel. He worked on Judge Dredd series for 2000 AD, as well as on John Constantine: Hellblazer with the writer Garth Ennis who became his long-term collaborator, and who created Preacher together in 1995, turned into a TV show ten years later on which Dillon was an executive producer. They would also work together on Punisher, picked by Joe Quesada and Jimmy Palmiotti to revamp the character for Marvel Knights.

Steve Dillon grew up in Luton and was known and loved by the community up until his last days. At the launch event tomorrow, his brother, Glyn Dillon, will talk about the impact his brother's work, and untimely death in 2016, had on him, as well as his own career, inspired by his brother, as an award winning comic artist, story boarder, and more recently as a costume designer for the Star Wars films, and The Batman – creating Robert Pattison's new batsuit. Proceeds from this talk will be split between Culture Trust Luton and The Hero Initiative.

The work on display includes many of the emblematic images from Steve Dillon's career. This includes the promotional material of Preacher's central trio (shown above), Reverend Jessie Custer, his ex-girlfriend Tulip and Irish vampire Cassidy. Dillon's intricate linework establishes each character's personality in a single frame, while his inky black clouds rumble in the background near a contrastingly angular church spire, hinting at the controversial religious themes which fuelled the cult status of this apocalyptic-themed comic.

In contrast to the comic artists of the 1980s, who typically were drawing impossibly muscular men and using explosive imagery designed to shock rather than to advance the stories or understanding of the characters on the page, Steve Dillon favoured took a more subversive approach.

In his work on the satirical lawman Judge Dredd, Dredd's hypermasculinity passes from superhuman into animalistic, with claws bursting out of his uniform and mouth open in a grimace, showing a row of fangs rather than an all-American smile. Dillon's depiction of heroes as men and women who could be seen in any village pub made his work a refreshing change. His depictions of simple yet vivid facial expressions and physical interactions between his characters helped develop story-lines beloved of readers without ever sacrificing the artistry of the medium.

Samuel Javid, Creative Director of The Culture Trust Luton says 'This new show brings together some of the most iconic and original imagery form the world of comics and superheroes. We have some of Steve's earliest works on show here, including some of his childhood drawings. We're honoured to be working on this show with Steve's family. He has a special place in this town – we have roads called Preacher Close and Cassidy Close, some of his ashes are buried here, and his local pub has a picture of him behind the bar, sticking his middle finger up…'

The exhibition is being staged at the Hat House Basement located in Luton's historic Hat District, from the 2nd of June to the 7th of July 2022.

Established in 2008, the Culture Trust, Luton is a vibrant and progressive independent charity and our mission is 'to connect communities through culture'. We do this through our accredited museums, theatres, galleries, creative workspaces and Arts Centre in Luton. Pre-Covid we attracted over 285,000 visits per annum. We animate six sites: The Hat Factory Arts Centre, Luton Library Theatre, Hat House creative workspace, Storefront Gallery, Wardown House Museum & Gallery and Stockwood Gardens & Museum. We present multi-cultural and year-round programme of events, exhibitions, workshops and performances. We support creative talent and skills by providing opportunities, platforms and cultural career progression for young people. We care for a collection of over 2 million artefacts, 1.5 million photographs and maps and hold the most extensive and complete hat and headwear collection in the UK. We co-produce activity with our community, Museum Makers volunteers and team of cultural experts.

The Trust is funded through an annual donation from London Luton Airport and as a National Portfolio, the Trust also receives regular funding from Arts Council England. The Trust also has a special partnership with Luton Borough Council which includes caring for and sharing the town's Museums, collections and heritage venues.

Hat House basement is a new project and exhibition space in the heart of Luton's Hat District. Curated by the Culture Trust, it aims to host new and cutting-edge audio and visual artists, and special one-off exhibition. It describes its rough and ready vaulted brick-basement as "a space to dare, take risks, collaborate, and showcase emerging genres and techniques." And comic books.

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!

Stay up-to-date and support the site by following Bleeding Cool on Google News today!