Jim Fitzpatrick
Even if you've never heard of Jim Fitzpatrick, it's pretty safe to assume that you've seen his work. A few times. Not ringing any bells? You may have seen his famous two-toned portrait of revolutionary leader, Che Guevara. Yeah? We thought so.
A self-taught Irish artist, Jim Fitzpatrick managed to become an internationally known artist without any formal education or training. For Jim, art was a mode of expression and entertainment that carried him through the many illnesses he suffered as a child, including a two year bout with tuberculosis.
His artistic ability was noticed and nurtured when he was in school at Gormanstan College, where he eventually became the editor, writer and chief cartoonist for the college magazine.
After college, Jim Fitzpatrick found a job as a junior assistant art director at an advertising firm, where he would work for the next seven years. But even though the position was financially secure, it was also artistically frustrating, and he decided to quit his comfortable job and take a chance with his art.
Jim struggled with the realities of his decision for a while, but before he could hit bottom, he was presented with two opportunities that came along just in time. First, Motif Editions in London decided to create a line of posters and greeting cards from some of his Celtic works. More importantly, his work sparked the interest of Alan Aldridge, an extremely successful UK artist and agency owner.
While neither of these opportunities put him on the map, they earned him enough to survive until he met Philip Lynott. Lynott was the frontman for Thin Lizzy, and also Jim Fitzpatrick's most important collaborator. Fitzpatrick worked with the Irish band to create incredible art for their album sleeves. The art was widely recognized and well received.
Jim's work with Thin Lizzy pretty much guarantees his place in Irish rock history, but it was his unique Celtic Revival work that really gained him an international following. Published in 1978, The Book of Conquests is a compilations of an Irish myth cycle, accompanied by Jim Fitzpatrick's intricate illustrations. He followed this work with The Silver Arm, a continuation of the myth cycle.
Now, Jim is focused on creating new work, including a new series with the working title "Mostly Women". Also on the horizon is the highly anticipated and overdue publication of a series of his cover artwork from the Thin Lizzy albums. But regardless of what Jim Fitzpatrick decides to create next, you can be sure that it will be worth waiting for.
Our Jim Fitzpatrick T-shirts are fully licensed, endorsed and custom made from the softest, prewashed and shrunk cotton jesery. We faithfully reproduce the original article as tracked down by Worn Free from archive images.
Vintage Rock T-shirts for today.
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