Larry Elmore

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Biography

Larry Elmore grew up in Grayson County in midwestern Kentucky. His rural school did not offer an art program, and Larry was a self-described "pretty bad student" who preferred hot rods over studying, and frequently got into trouble for drawing in class.cite journal
last =
first =
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = TSR Profiles
journal = Dragon
volume =
issue = #107
pages = 63
publisher = TSR, Inc.
location = Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
date = March 1986
url =
format =
issn =
accessdate = 2008-06-27 ] He majored in art at Western Kentucky University, explaining "I didn't think I could do anything else". Although fantasy art was not a line of study at the time, Larry knew that he wanted to work in a field different from the norm. It was the Celts and Celtic influence that led him into fantasy artwork. In 1971 he received his Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts, married and was drafted into the army all within 4 months. After the army in 1973, Larry began his career in art, working as an illustrator for the United States government. In the late 70s he was first published commercially in "National Lampoon" and "Heavy Metal" magazines.

In 1981, he moved to Lake Geneva, WI, to become a cover artist for TSR Inc. (the company that produced the game "Dungeons & Dragons" ). While at TSR, Larry played a key role in developing a completely new look for the products - a look that carried over into the rest of the role-playing game industry. Because of this, Larry is one of the most widely known artist in this industry. His covers on the Dragonlance series helped put these books on the bestsellers lists. Besides creating covers for Dungeons & Dragons, AD&D and other gaming books, he may be best known for his work with the world of Dragonlance. Since 1987, he has been working as a freelance illustrator, doing covers for comics, computer games, magazines, fantasy and science fiction books. He has also created his own comic series, "SnarfQuest", which ran in "Dragon" magazine. Recently, he provided cover art for the MMORPG "EverQuest".

Personal life

Larry Elmore currently lives in Leitchfield, Kentucky, with his wife, Betty and two children, Jennifer and Jeremy. Each year, he attends several Fantasy & Science Fiction conventions held in the United States, and on some occasions, in Europe. His original paintings have been purchased by collectors throughout the United States, and in Europe.

Alleged plagiarism of Elmore's work

In 2003, a Flash animation slideshow titled [http://www.geocities.com/familyartcorner/ Family Art Corner] was released anonymously, alleging that a woman named Jan McRae had plagiarized the work of many artists, including Elmore, for reproduction in proselytization tracts printed by the Children of God cult. [ [http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Plagiarized_art Plagiarized art] at xFamily.org] Elmore's piece titled "Sword Fight" was compared. After the slideshow was released, Karen Zerby, leader of the Children of God acknowledged that McRae had copied the work of others, as did McRae herself, and McRae admitted wrongdoing. [ [http://www.xfamily.org/index.php/Which_Comes_First:_The_Revelation_or_the_Artwork%3F Which Comes First: The Revelation or the Artwork?] , xFamily.org]

References

* [http://eq2.tentonhammer.com/index.php?module=ContentExpress&func=display&ceid=785 Judging a Book by its Cover, An exclusive interview with Larry Elmore by: Coyote Sharptongue © Copyright 2000 - 2006 Master Games International]
* [http://people.mainz.netsurf.de/~engler/person_elmore.html Wonderland Libraries]
* [http://www.dragoncon.org/people/elmorel.html Dragon Con Biography]

External links

* [http://www.larryelmore.com/ Official site]
* [http://www.pen-paper.net/rpgdb.php?op=showcreator&creatorid=586 Pen & Paper RPG Database listing for Larry Elmore]
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