Simon Carr
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scarrartist.bsky.social
Simon Carr
@scarrartist.bsky.social
Freelance fantasy and sci-fi artist
www.scarrindustries.com
He/Him 100% Human Art
My entry to the 2025 Folio Society Book Illustration Competition entitled ‘The Witch’. The subject matter for this year was Rapunzel by the Brothers Grimm.
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#scarrillustration #foliosociety #bookillustration #rapunzel #brothersgrimm
November 19, 2025 at 7:23 PM
November 12, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Excited to reveal my cover art for The Call of the Rift: Fuse by Jae Waller. Painting the covers for this series over the years has been both challenging and very rewarding. The book will be available on April 28, 2026 from ECW Press and you can pre-order the book now!
November 11, 2025 at 6:40 PM
Shade

A photo study which I then developed into a final painting. I chose this particular photo as I was drawn to the interesting lighting and I really enjoy the challenge of painting fabric folds.
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Photo credit: Tamara Velazquez
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#scarrillustration #photostudy
November 6, 2025 at 7:50 PM
A while back I had a folio review where I was told my work looked generic. 
So I went back & started studying artists that I admired. The 1 thing that resonated, their use of brushstrokes. Since then, & even more recently, I’ve made a real effort to highlight brushstrokes in all of my work.
October 28, 2025 at 3:36 PM
A recent cover illustration that I created for “The Pilot,” Book 4 of “The Last Horizon” by Will Wight! This painting was right up there challenge - wise but, in the process, I learned some new things which I’m excited to carry forward into future illustrations.
October 15, 2025 at 1:32 PM
One of the thing’s that helped me level up my art was adding texture. By that I mean rendering different elements to emulate their associated textures, rather than painting everything to look the same. Not only is this a lot more appealing to the eye but it also adds a level of realism to your work.
October 7, 2025 at 2:17 PM
An alternative movie poster illustration for ‘American Psycho’ that I created a while back. This is an oldie but a goodie. Do you have any older paintings that you still like?
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#scarrillustration #movieposterart #horror #americanpsycho #digitalartistry #patrickbatemanfanart
October 1, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Finally managed to carve out some time to finish my latest personal painting, ‘On My Signal’.
September 24, 2025 at 5:53 PM
A recent illustration which was created for Monte Cook Games’ Gunslinger Knights series, entitled ‘Observing From A Distance’. The knights are gun-toting warriors & ride custom made motorcycles… totally my vibe:)
© 2025 Monte Cook Games
#montecookgames
September 16, 2025 at 2:03 PM
The Marauders - A creative sketch from a while back that I developed a bit further. My finished work tends to be on the more detailed side & so to break things up I like to do some fast & loose sketches. As a result, I tend to find doing these sketches to be rewarding and fun.
September 10, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Bartle Frere

This was another portrait that I created a while back for a documentary about the Anglo Zulu war of 1879 entitled ‘Amashinga’. For this portrait I decided to handle certain areas in a more painterly manner, & I think it improved the illustration overall. #amashinga #bartlefrere
September 1, 2025 at 6:53 PM
Recently got my copy of The Pilot by Will Wight, and it’s amazing to see the book in person! This project was such a fun one to work on, and I’m really happy with how the cover turned out in print. If you want to check out the book, here’s the link: www.willwight.com. #scarrillustration #willwight
New York Times Best-Selling Author of 'Cradle'
Hidden Gnome will be hosting WillCon , our regularly scheduled event during the weekend of DragonCon in Atlanta.  Join us to ask Will about his deepest, darkest secrets and the stock market. We will.....
www.willwight.com
August 29, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Here’s a sneak peek of what I’m working on. Another step in developing my new style - this time I’m pushing the contrast by adding more saturated colour to the focal points, while keeping the supporting elements less detailed. Still packed with all the texture, grit, & drama I love to paint.
August 25, 2025 at 4:18 PM
Sergio Aguero - A painting from a while back where I was experimenting with a retro directional effect. I also went back to the Photoshop/Artrage combo to see if the traditional look & feel that I’d used for other paintings would work for this type of illustration. #manchestercityfc #sergioaguero
August 14, 2025 at 2:55 PM
This was one of a series of illustrations I created for the book ‘Full Moon Over Noah’s Ark’ by Rick Antonson. And this is my favourite piece from that project, a portrait of Irving Finkel.
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#scarrillustration #portraitart #brushstrokes #blackandwhiteart #freelanceartist #digitalartistry
August 12, 2025 at 3:39 PM
King Vs. Kings: Golden Era by J. L. Johnson

This illustration turned out to be one of my all-time favorite book cover commissions! I just love the dark and menacing vibe of the character and the simplicity of the composition. 💀😈

#scarrillustration #bookcoverartist
August 7, 2025 at 4:42 PM
As hinted in a recent post, I’ve created another Assassin painting - & here’s the result. I went through a TON of iterations before arriving at this final painting and I’m really happy with the progress that I’ve made so far. I think it’s good to shake things up in order to move the creative needle.
August 5, 2025 at 1:03 PM
A favourite from last year that I created for Monte Cook Games entitled ‘Other Worldly Rider’. I haven’t created many Western illustrations but I really enjoyed painting this one! It’s giving major Pale Rider, High Plains Drifter, Eastwood vibes:)

© 2024 Monte Cook Games
August 4, 2025 at 2:42 PM
Theophilus Shepstone
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This is one of a series of portraits that I created a while back for a documentary about the Anglo Zulu war of 1879 entitled ‘Amashinga’.
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#scarrillustration #portraitpaintings #amashinga #theophilusshepstone #bandoolaproductions #documentaryart
July 30, 2025 at 3:35 PM
When I started out, I thought that if an artist was able to emulate a photograph then that was my benchmark on how ‘good’ they were. Over the course of creating many paintings I realized that it was the ‘imperfections’, use of texture, & style that gave the art character & would hold my interest.
July 29, 2025 at 2:56 PM
The Guardian

A personal painting from a while back that I’m still pretty happy with.

#scarrillustration #fantasyart #freelanceartist #personalartwork #myartstyle #digitalartistry
July 22, 2025 at 3:31 PM
In the past, I disliked the ‘Ugly Stage’ in the painting process & would try to get past it as quickly as I could. But IMO, this is where the ‘real’ work happens. Nowadays I spend as long as I can in this stage & know that I’ll be able to create a great illustration in the end.
July 21, 2025 at 5:07 PM
An illustration that I created for the @hireillo Versus Evil trading card series a while back.

“Vorlak was once a king and master swordsman of forgotten times before being cursed for all eternity to be the demon guard, with his sword Expire, of the Kagrath Pass in the Minao Mountains.”
July 17, 2025 at 3:17 PM
'Chansta's Execution' - a sketch that I created some time ago for my world Fyrian, a mix of medieval, magic & a little bit of sci-fi. ‘Chansta closed her eyes for the last time to the sound of a distant crow, squawking angrily in defiance…’
July 15, 2025 at 3:38 PM