James McKay

Graphic Novels - Shortlisted 2010

James McKay began producing graphic novels at the age of 15, with a fantasy epic, “Stormcrow”. He graduated with 1st class honours in illustration and graphic design from Middlesex University in 1998. Since then he has worked as a freelance comic artist and illustrator and has published books and graphic novels in collaboration with writers including Gary Spencer Millidge (‘Strangehaven’) and Ben Dickson (‘Falling Sky’).

McKay’s most ambitious work to date, City of Secrets, was presented at the Angouleme festival in France in 2006 following 18 intensive months of work. The series is now published in France by Mosquito Editions, and James attends several of the biggest French graphic novel festivals each year promoting it. In 2007, artwork from City of Secrets was exhibited in Grenoble, France.
James’ theme as an artist and storyteller is the age-old conflict between civilisation and the natural world. City of Secrets is the natural culmination of his work to date; it presents a vision of the distant future, where humans have destroyed all life, along with the history of humanity’s desecration of the ancient paradise and a possible redemption.
James’ interests lie in European-style graphic novels - especially those in the areas of science fiction, fantasy and historical fiction, creating worlds and characters that are unbounded.