Graham Humphreys

Graham Humphreys is an illustrator and designer with 40 years experience. One of the few contemporary illustrators using the traditional medium of gouache to paint his images, Graham is best known for his work within the horror genre.

Born 1960, in the West Country of England, Graham’s art training was completed at Salisbury College of Art in Wiltshire. Trained as a graphic designer, he nevertheless found that solutions to many projects gravitated towards illustrated versions, thus in his final and fourth year, illustration became his specialised subject.

Influenced by his love of the horror genre and the music and lyrics of the emerging UK punk scene, he sought a style and approach that encapsulated both. Moving to London in 1980, Graham’s freelance career slowly took shape as clients and commissions were found and professional relationships established.

During this first decade of work, in addition to the horror commissions, Graham also worked on book covers, magazine illustrations, record covers and in advertising.

In 2010, Arrow Video contacted Graham with a commission to illustrate their reissue of the 1986 film ‘Slaughter High’. Seeking a link to the period of the film’s original release, this marked a move away from the established photoshop conventions of DVD marketing. Arrow provided a supportive platform for illustration, an enduring strategy that has brought a new generation of film fans to the possibilities of the painted image.
Whilst most artists now work digitally, Graham remains dedicated to the medium that has supported him throughout his professional career, paint on paper.