Kelley Jones

Infobox Comics creator

---

imagesize = 150
caption =
birthname =
birthdate = July 23, 1962
location = Sacramento, California
deathdate =
deathplace =
nationality = American
area = Penciller; Inker
alias =


notable works =
awards =

Kelley Jones (born July 23, 1962 in Sacramento, California) is an American comic book artist best known for his runs on "Batman" with writer Doug Moench and on "Sandman" with writer Neil Gaiman. Jones, along with inker John Beatty, first collaborated with writer Moench on a series of non-continuity Batman tales including "Batman: Dark Joker the Wild" and the vampire Batman saga beginning with "Batman and Dracula: Red Rain". Both of these comics were very dark and moody, even for a Batman comic, crossing the line at times from superhero comic into horror. Batman fans were mixed as to Jones' run on the regular "Batman" book (1995-1998), some praising his bleak and grim portrayal of Batman and others feeling that his style was too radical. Going for style and mood over realism, Jones' was known for drawing Batman's ears incredibly long, giving him a demonic look.

In addition to his stint on "Batman", Jones also illustrated the story arc for "Sandman", his style lending itself well to a story in which the main character must travel to Hell to free a former lover. Jones is also well known for revamping the character Deadman in the late 80s, redesigning him to look thin and skeletal. His face, formerly drawn to resemble a normal human's head with pale white skin, now looked like a skull. More recently, Jones has drawn the series "The Crusades" for Vertigo Comics (2000-2001), and the four-issue mini-series "Conan: The Book of Thoth" for Dark Horse Comics (2006; script by Kurt Busiek and Len Wein).

Since 1997, Jones has also produced a number of works as a writer-artist for Dark Horse, including several miniseries and one-shots starring his creation "The Hammer" (1997-1999): the one-shot "ZombieWorld": "Eat Your Heart Out" (1998; later included in the 2005 trade paperback "ZombieWorld: Winter's Dregs"), and the four-issue miniseries "The 13th Son" (2005-2006). He is currently working on illustrating the graphic novel adaptation of The Messengers for Dark Horse.

In 2008 Jones once again illustrated the character Batman, this time in a twelve-issue series entitled "Batman: Gotham After Midnight", written by Steve Niles.

References

* [http://www.sidebarnation.com/my_weblog/2008/08/first-let-us-sa.html An audio interview with Kelley Jones by SiDEBAR]