Portfolio Review: Dan Lish Creates Captivating Illustrations of Hip-Hop Legends and Fantasy Worlds

Image via Complex Original

"DJ Premier has a great face to draw. It’s full of character. He’s a self-confessed nerd, tinkering away in his studio of sound. Featured here are speaker imps, Brooklyn blocks, keyboards, and oddball characters."

"With J Dilla, I not only wanted to celebrate his creativity but also his willingness to experiment and push his sonic sound. My interpretation wanted to celebrate the child within, the fun of being in the moment, and his soul free to travel, leading to his next adventure."

"KRS1 sits, writing, creating, and reminiscing. There are lots of metaphorical visual indications in this piece. Some are linked to past lyrics, some represent self-empowerment, and some are what may be/might have been going through his head at the time."

"MF Doom has so much lyrical imagery to play with. It’s a theme within a theme. Here Doom is featured being taken for a gentle Sunday stroll by a robot while he examines his pen and pad. While creating this illustration, I was on an extremely bumpy train ride, which led to a lot of happy accidents that I played with."

"When creating the Pete Rock illustration, I focused on an honest 'in the moment' interpretation with him fiddling, experimenting, turning knobs, pushing buttons, and making his music 'in the lab' in the basement."

"I created this while living in NYC, travelling to the Bronx and Brooklyn, hanging out, and becoming good friends with a lot of pioneers and folks of this era. This was originally created for Break DJ Leacy's LP cover entitled Breaksploitation. It captures a moment in time from hip-hop's original golden age of NYC Block Party/Park Jams. The timeframe was of the late '70s and very early '80s, so the fashion/style had to be right. I had fun envisioning what Break beats would have been cut up back then. I wanted to capture the excitement in the air."

"These are all pages from Book 1 and Book 2 of my ongoing epic graphic novel Cartigan, published in France by Akileos. I'm currently working on Book 2, which will be available in English. The story of Cartigan is split between two separate timelines: the present, chronicling the time of young Cartigan; and the past, detailing the background stories told through flashbacks by the core characters. Based on an alternative Earth and set over a period of 20 days, the story follows the adventures of Cartigan’s son as he seeks out and recruits old comrades from Cartigan senior’s war days in his attempt to (hopefully!) become his father’s salvation. Look out for a possible Kickstarter campaign to keep the publication independent."

"These started as illustration in my sketchbook over a holiday while visiting family. Presently sketchbooks are a very important part of my creative process. When I explore an idea that excites me, there are subtle and at times unconscious themes running through the work, and this series, called 'A Girl's Best Friend,' is a good example. I may put these out as limited edition prints at a later date."