Frank Herbert’s Dune has a new deluxe hardcover edition, illustrated by artist and author Matt Griffin. As we fold space and time towards a future where Dune 2020 is on the big screen, we continue to speculate about what to expect. I recently caught up with Matt Griffin to talk about his work, his new hardcover design for the novel and what his hopes are for the up coming film.
“Over the years in London I had learned how to use Photoshop and Illustrator, so the transition to digital art was pretty natural.” Matt says. In his 20’s, Matt worked for Sky Sports and Channel 4, stating that he took a roundabout path towards becoming an illustrator, though his obsession had always been there since being very young. “My style has evolved from that as I got better technically and discovered my own way of working.”
Matt says his inspiration comes from all kinds of sources, books, films, wild weather and, my favourite, philosophical debates over a pint. I asked him about what materials he liked to use. “Mostly digital, – I do use ink and paper for a lot of it too – mostly making textures and custom type.”
DUNE: Matt Griffin’s Deluxe hardcover edition
“I am extremely excited about this.” Matt said, explaining that Dune has been a favourite of his since being a teen. “The image for the cover happened almost by accident – the result of a happy one, experimenting with various textures and mediums. I was playing with ink and water and thought the result looked like a kind of sandstorm. So I adjusted the colour, put a Paul Atredis character in it and shared the image online. People liked it, and it got shared a lot. One of the people who liked it was an Art Director (Adam Auerbach) I have worked with at Penguin, and he was putting a new edition of Dune together.”
Matt also says there’s an illustration on the inside of the dust jacket and two illustrations for the endpapers. “I illustrated a new map,” he told me, “the pages are going to be stained on the edges and overall it’s going to be a really special edition. It’s a dream come true really.
Mood, Tone and Working Process
“I often like to give my work a kind of mysterious quality, especially when it comes to sci-fi. So the intention was to give it this sense of intrigue – a sense that there is more to this than a man in a sandstorm. That’s why he’s almost silhouetted (except for his Spice-infused eyes of course). Around his head is a kind of subtle halo, hinting at the messianic nature of his story. And the bigger circle behind him is also meant to be quite ambiguous – it could be one of the moons, it could be Arrakis…the blue hints at the future transformation of the planet as Liet Kynes envisions it. Even the fact that he is standing quite happily in what look like very fast winds is on purpose – hinting at his power. They are a little like clues – an artistic interpretation.”
DENVER: “What is your working process when you approach a project? Do you move around a lot for ideas or do you already have plenty of drafts you return to?”
MATT: “It depends. Sometimes lightning strikes quickly and I know exactly what I’m going to do. Mostly I take some time to ruminate…I read the book, I watch the film.. I go for a walk and then doodle in a notebook. I let things gestate in my brain and see what it spits out! It’s probably my favourite part of the process – just thinking. Often on professional projects the client has a clear idea of what they’d like to see. So it does vary. That’s what keeps it interesting…”
Matt Griffin’s Books
DENVER: “I’d like to ask you about your writing, you have three books available. I know you like Irish mythology. Can you tell us about these books and how you got into this?
MATT: ” Yes I have three books for young readers (10+) collectively called The Ayla Trilogy. They are about a group of friends that are sucked into a lethal, scary adventure in ancient Ireland. I have always been interested in story telling (and writing), and have always dreamed up worlds and characters and creatures. And yes – as part of that I’ve always been interested in the amazing mythology we have here in Ireland (our history is very ancient). I was working with the Irish publisher O’Brien Press as a colourist on a graphic novel back in 2013 and the art director there asked me if I had any stories of my own I’d like to pitch. Something dark and based around Irish mythology (they knew me well at that stage!) So I pitched the story of book 1 (A Cage of Roots), they tested me by having me write a couple of chapters and then agreed to publish it. I was able to design the cover and do all the chapter illustrations too. I had plotted out the second book and so they agreed to publish that (Storm Weaver) and finally the trilogy ended with The Spiral Path.
DENVER: “Love the titles of those books, they sound great. Have you ever read American Gods?”
MATT: “Yes I have read American Gods a couple of times – love it (and all things Gaiman).”
DENVER: “Who is your favourite Irish mythical being?”
MATT: ” Favourite Irish mythical being? A boring choice but probably Cuchulainn (our main hero really) because he fought the armies of 4/5’s of Ireland single-handedly and he had these cool things called Warp Spasms (as seen in 2000 AD’s Slaine comics)”
In 2017, the Literary Association of Ireland named A Cage of Roots children’s book of the year. “I still pinch myself,” Matt says, “Yet another childhood dream come true.”
DUNE 2020, thoughts & Expectations
“My feeling is it couldn’t be in better hands.” Matt explains, a fact that’s not lost on those who have been watching the last run of science fiction films by director Dennis Villenueve. With Blade Runner 2049 surprising everyone with its aesthetic loyalty, it’s intriguing story, it’s expansion of the universe and introducing newer themes built on what was already there. “Look what he did with Blade Runner, (another life-long favourite of mine). He implemented his own amazing vision while staying true to the source. It’ll be even more interesting to see this as the source is the book, rather than a film. So he can put his own visual stamp on it, rather then retreading what Lynch/Masters/Ringwood did with the ’84 film (which I also love). I have no hopes positive or negative to be honest! I just look forward to seeing what they come up with. Can’t wait.”
DENVER: “What if you were asked to portray the battled from DUNE’s warring families, which battle scenes would you like to approach and how would you storyboard or demonstrate this as an illustrator?
MATT: “I’d love to approach the Fremen fighting the Sardukar. The Sardukar are meant to be the ultimate army, but the Fremen kick their asses! Gurney and the boys are often surprised at how easily the Fremen beat them. So depicting their ferocious and ferociously effective fighting style would be a blast.”
Leave a Reply