It’s been 20 years now since the launch of Everquest, and while the graphics for the original EQ might have been groundbreaking for an online game at the time, the game still had to rely on some high-quality artwork to draw in and immerse players into the world of Norrath.
One artist helped build and define Everquest more than any other. Keith Parkinson was already a giant in the fantasy art world having worked at TSR with other legends such as Larry Elmore and Jeff Easley. Later he painted covers for the books of Terry Goodkind, Margaret Weis, and Terry Brooks.
Parkinson painted the cover for the original game and it’s first four expansion, along with doing concept art for the game.
Firiona Vie, who was the main focus on the cover paintings became a figurehead for the Everquest Franchise.
He later became a co-founder and art director of Sigil Games but passed away from leukemia before the game was finished. The cover art was done by his friend Donato Giancola.
The left side of the cover was made to look like Parkinson’s signature style that had earlier defined the look of Everquest, whereas the right is more in the personal style of Donato Giancola.
Prints, sketches and even original painting can still be bought at his website Keithparkinson.com.
After Parkinsons departure from Sony Online Entertainment, the developers still had a strong emphasis on quality artwork to represent the game and it continued into Everquest 2. Below is some of my personal favorites from the long history of Everquest.
Lucas Graciano
Graciano is a traditional fantasy artist working in oils. He’s done artwork for Magic The Gathering, World of Warcraft and Dungeons and Dragons amongst others. He’s also painted several cards for Legends of Norrath and some iconic key art for Everqquest 2.
Kerem Beyit
Another artist who has left his mark on the Everquest franchise and especially Everquest 2, is Turkish artist Kerem Beyit. He also worked on Legends of Norrath before making some fantastic key art pieces.
Various Everquest Art
Let us know what you favorite Everquest artist or artwork is in the comments!