This year marks the 40th anniversary of landmark British comic 2000 AD and of its most enduring character: Judge Dredd, who is the law. And what better way to celebrate than with some thrill-powered visuals?
That’s why U.K. printing company Vice Press is sponsoring a Judge Dredd/2000 AD-themed art exhibit to celebrate the galaxy’s greatest comic and the toughest lawman of them all. The exhibit, titled Zarjaz!: An Art Tribute to 40 Years of 2000 AD, debuts in September as part of the Thought Bubble comic convention in Leeds, England.Zarjaz! will feature work from established Dredd artists including Mike McMahon, Chris Weston, and legendary Judge Dredd co-creator Carlos Ezquerra, as well as artists who joined the magazine in more recent years, like Jake Lynch, and contemporary artists with few 2000 AD connections but a hell of a lot of talent, such as Hawkeye artist David Aja and illustrator Florian Bertmer. (As a matter of fact, Aja did do a cover for 2000 AD‘s 40th anniversary issue. “Zarjaz” is right!)
And there’s more good news. At this exhibit, you can do more than just look. All art on show at Zarjaz! will be available for purchase as limited edition prints, so if you see it, want it, and have the pounds to pay for it, you can own a piece of the celebrations. Already my mouth is watering and my bank account is crying. Get your art storage cases ready, folks, because competition for those pieces is going to be fierce.
Although Zarjaz! opens on September 1st, the official launch event–sponsored by 2000 AD–isn’t until September 22nd, the night before Thought Bubble. In an official press release sent to Nerdist, Vice Press has promised appearances from featured artists plus “a few memorable surprises and highly exclusive releases” at the launch, as well as a “riotous” afterparty with live art demonstrations (and presumably a truckload of booze. One lives in hope!).
Are you attending Zarjaz!, and if so, which artists’ work are you hoping to bring home? Do you wish there could be similar 2000 AD events in America or in other countries? Tell us your thoughts in the comments!
Images courtesy of Vice Press/2000 AD
