Artist: Jesper Myrfors

Today I kick off a new series, to be featured every December (at minimum): looking at the artists of Magic. Each post will feature an artist whose work on game cards is either voluminous (they've illustrated many cards) or iconic (their illustrations are revered by the community). And where better to start than with one of the artists whose art is featured on both sides of the card? Today, we look at the art of Jesper Myrfors.

Jesper Myrfors was the original art director for Magic and one of the game's 25 original artists. He, with Christopher Rush, created the design that is featured on the back of every single Magic card (minus double-sided cards and commemorative products), shown above. That may make is the most mass-produced piece of art in the world. But he also illustrated some fronts, of course.

Scryfall is a great place to see all the works any artist produced. The syntax of interest today is intuitive:

artist:"[name]" not:digital

Entering "Jesper Myrfors" in the above on the site yields 57 unique cards. He was active for the first nine sets, his work featuring in them as follows:

- 23 cards in Alpha

- 24 cards in Beta

- 24 cards in Unlimited

- 5 cards in Arabian Nights

- 4 cards in Antiquities

- 27 cards in Revised

- 9 cards in Legends

- 10 cards in The Dark

- 3 cards in Fallen Empires

(This list does not add up to 57 cards because many in Alpha were reprinted in Beta, Unlimited, and Revised.)

Per his MTG Wiki entry, Myrfors' style trended towards Lovecraftian horror. Below is a sample of either iconic or personally nostalgic cards he has done: 

While not one of my favorite artists, I do appreciate his impact on the game.