Artists I Like: Kaja Foglio

I don't know as much about Kaja Foglio as I would like to. Somehow I knew the name Phil, but Kaja slipped under my radar for the longest time. Which is a shame because she also strikes such a perfect note with me. Cartoon art that ascends to levels of bliss I only strive to achieve in my own work.

Kaja is an artist, writer, and publisher. Her writing includes a great deal of work on the Hugo Award winning Girl Genius comics. But I know her mainly from drawing some lovely Magic: the Gathering cards. I certainly used that Sorcerous Queen quite frequently when I was playing between 1994-1996.

Artists I Like: Phill Foglio

My first encounter with Phil Foglio's art was almost certainly in the pages of Dragon Magazine, probably around 1985-1987. But I can't be sure. I only saw a handful of issues during those seminal years when I was new to RPGs. But I do recall the name What's New with Phil and Dixie and would have seen it at least once.

The first time I remember actually seeing and noticing Foglio's work was on Magic: the Gathering cards. My wife and I discovered that game in 1994. We were broke and about to leave the city to move back to our home town and we foolishly bought a bunch of packs so we could play and feel a bit of joy in a fairly bleak time for us. Somewhere in the mix was some Foglio art*.

Foglio for me strikes the perfect balance of cartooning and fantasy art. Whimsical, but solid, Exceptional drawing skills mixed with a fertile imagination and willingness to be goofy. Just wonderful stuff.

I also appreciate that he can draw perfectly safe, family-friendly material and also get butt naked with some adult comics. A man after my own heart.

*Important note: Phil worked with his wife Kaja Foglio on M:tG cards. I probably have her work and his jammed up in my head from that time period. I love her work too and she'll get an Artists I Like blog post soon.