Recent Sketches

Kurt, again :0

strangelove studies 💣😇

Johnson, I think his hair should be poofier tho

So much Alfred Hitchcock floating around in my head right now

A Guide to Gorillaz Art Styles: Phase 1

Nobody asked for it, but I wanna discuss some observations I’ve had over Jamie’s art style changing as I’ve researched it thoroughly in order to apply the different styles to my own work. Most people are aware of how much the art changes between phases, but naturally it evolves a lot during the phases too. One thing I think would be really interesting is to find an order in which the images were released in order to create a more solid timeline.

Early Phase 1 (1999 - 2000)

Not counting concept art, this is some of the first pieces created for Gorillaz; a lot of it is visible in Bananaz, circa 1999, some even with the older name “Gorilla” instead of “Gorillaz”. A lot of the characters are a little off-model around here, their personalities and designs not fully-formed yet. Most notable tells:

Visible in Bananaz

2D’s hair is very purple here and his skin is a little darker than later on in the phase

Russ’ skin is a bit darker and redder compared to the later more washed-out skin tone

Russ and 2D’s eyes are noticeably smaller.

Murdoc and Noodle’s hair are, for the most part, solid black or with very minimal shine

Little to no colour highlights

Mid-Phase 1 (2001)

(Group art, circa late 2000/early 2001)

(19-2000 promo art, some time after June 2001)

This is pretty much the main Phase 1 style, released alongside the self-titled album. Although naturally there’s still some experimentation, things are more consistent here as the characters are closer to their familiar looks. The images I’ve shown are actually fairly different; as the art evolution is far more fluid than just these sub-phases and you can pick out some of the notable points to place the upper image as earlier than the lower one. You’ll see this style on most magazines released in late 2000 - 2001. Most notable tells:

Far more detailed clothing; more pockets and zips and logos, etc rather than just the simple shirts and jumpers of early on in the phase

Highlights! Most notably on the faces and coats, this adds an extra dimension to the art and gives it a much prettier look

Murdoc is slightly greener. This is something of a trend

2D’s hair is still a simple gradient, but it’s looking a little bluer than purple

Late Phase 1 (2002 - 2003)

(Tomorrow Comes Today single rerelease, 2002)

(Celebrity Harvest concept art, 2003)

Since most of the hype of Gorillaz’ debut album had passed, art from this era kind of slowed down to a near-halt. This makes a lot of the changes far more noticeable as there’s less of a steady evolution here. The Celebrity Harvest-era art is probably the very peak of this, a lot of the colourless pencil art pretty much resembling Phase 2. Most notable tells:

Even more detail! You’ll see more hair lines, wrinkes, stitches and stubble here, along with more detailed fingers

Noodle’s not wearing her helmet! This is a fairly significant design change as you can see her become slightly older

Cortez (or a similar bird) starts appearing around this point, albeit only in a couple of images

Murdoc is basically fully green here

A lot of hair shine, looking a lot more reflective

2D’s hair is clearly blue in a lot of the art from this era, although there’s still a slight gradient look to it

There’s a lot of solid black shadows, Jamie clearly going for a more comic-style look

I miss the days when Abner Krill was the only broken man on my mind. Then I had to go get involved and now I have to deal with a sad little mechanic, an extremely traumatized man who draws mazes, a paranoid schizophrenic, and an unhinged English teacher

Ah yes, another homosexual

I’m scout rainbows make me cry

fish and flies

orr and also appleby is there... bring on catch 22 spring/summer 2025 revival

Mime in Love (c. 1912) Autochrome photographs by Alfonse Van Besten