Eagle and Swift artist Roy Cross‘ new book The Art of Roy Cross is finally out from Crowood Press and includes a chapter on his comics work along with his later Airfix work and his more modern aviation and maritime fine art paintings.

As we’ve previously noted, Roy Cross RSMA GAvA began work as an illustrator in Fairey Aviation during World War Two. Over the next thirty years, he progressed from line illustration, via colour artwork, to top-class advertising art for the aircraft industry and other companies, including Airfix, for whom he produced many hundreds of artworks to adorn model kit boxes over a ten-year period.

His illustrations for Airfix included superb depictions of aircraft, cars, ships, spacecraft, armoured vehicles and dioramas.

But although Roy is perhaps most famous for his Airfix box art, and is Honorary President of the Airfix Collectors Club, his work has encompassed book, comic and magazine illustrations, including highly detailed cutaways and other technical drawings.

In more recent years, he has concentrated on the production of his magnificent maritime paintings.

• The Art of Roy Cross is on sale now in all good bookshops and AmazonUK (Affiliate Link)

• The Airfix Collectors’ Club web site | Read some sample articles of the Club’s magazine, Constant Scale

• You might also want to check out The Vintage Years of Airfix Box Art and More Vintage Years of Airfix Box Art (AmazonUK affiliate links)

• There is a four part chronology of Roy Cross remarkable career on the unofficial Hatfield airfield web site

• Books by Roy Cross on AmazonUK (Affiliate Link)

With thanks to Jeremy Briggs

John Freeman

The founder of downthetubes, which he established in 1998. John works as a comics and magazine editor, writer, and on promotional work for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival. He is currently editor of Star Trek Explorer, published by Titan – his third tour of duty on the title originally titled Star Trek Magazine.

Working in British comics publishing since the 1980s, his credits include editor of titles such as Doctor Who Magazine, Babylon 5 Magazine, and more. He also edited the comics anthology STRIP Magazine and edited several audio comics for ROK Comics. He has also edited several comic collections, including volumes of “Charley’s War” and “Dan Dare”.

He’s the writer of “Pilgrim: Secrets and Lies” for B7 Comics; “Crucible”, a creator-owned project with 2000AD artist Smuzz; and “Death Duty” and “Skow Dogs” with Dave Hailwood.

Categories: Books, downthetubes News, Merchandise, Other Worlds

Tags: Airfix, Crowood Press, downthetubes News, Roy Cross, The Art of Roy Cross