Jim Holloway, RIP

As many of you no doubt already know, the artist Jim Holloway passed away just over a week ago (on June 28th).

Joseph Goodman has a brief essay on Holloway’s work—“Remembering Jim Holloway”—over at his Goodman Games website. I especially liked this observation:

“Jim brought a playfulness to TSR’s in-house stable of artists. His fine linework and natural humanoid poses were informed by an inner chuckle. You could tell this was a man who saw humor with every glance. As an artist, he brought that humor to the surface. Every battle, every monster, every spell: just beneath the surface—and occasionally right on top of it—there was a joke waiting to happen.”

Here is his famous cover illustration for B4, The Lost City (now rereleased as part of Goodman Games’ “Original Adventures Reincarnated” series):

Deep within the Lost City dwells the Lovecraftian horror "Zargon":

Holloway’s work for D&D, AD&D, and Paranoia are well-known. The interior art of Gary Gygax’s Monster Manual 2 was entirely by Holloway. He also did some work for ICE’s Middle-earth line. Below are some pictures from the Pirates of Pelargir module.

Holloway’s pictures often made me laugh. They frequently portrayed adventurers as fallible and foolish. I’m sad that we will see no new works from his prolific pen.

RIP