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| The arms of Brian Abshier rendered in his style. Image source: Art by Brian Abshier website. |
I'm starting a new series to celebrate various heraldic artists around the world, as a means to showcase the modern relevancy heraldry enjoys well into the 21st century. Suffice it to say, the shear volume of these expert heraldic artists working today could easily keep any arminger busy submitting commissions for quite a long time--a great problem to have in our field.
Brian Abshier is a heraldic artist residing in the United States, and is one whom I've had the pleasure of working with for a few years. Abshier was my first commission during the COVID-19 pandemic--he was slammed busy with requests for heraldic art at that time.
Abshier gives us the following autobiography from his website:
"Artwork has always been a hobby and passion of mine, but it had always been done in traditional medium for most of my life. I first began seriously working with digital art in the late 2000's by creating textures and assets for various computer games. Through this, I became familiar with the techniques, tools, and software involved in the digital artwork.
Around 2016 I found the artwork of artists like Andrew Stewart Jamieson, Quentin Peacock, and others and found it very captivating. Like many others, heraldry created a natural bridge between the interests of medieval history and art" (Art by Brian Abshier, 11 September 2023).
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| Arms and Crest of Chad M. Krouse rendered by Brian Abshier in the "Bellenville style," March 2020. |
Initially, I commissioned Abshier in 2020 to have my arms and crest emblazoned in the "Bellenville" style. Abshier's rendering of the cardinal in this style is just pure genius--I love it!
According to Hofman (2017), the Bellenville Armorial was one of the most famous and admired works of heraldry developed between 1355-1380 and consisting of 75 folios. Abshier's interpretation of the style made famous by the armorial, illustrates the artist's depth of knowledge in medieval history along with his talent for creativity. Moreover, I just loved how unusual and historical my arms appear in the Bellenville style.
Not long after that commission, I asked Abshier for a full set to include a banner, badge, etc. I was not disappointed in the results. Abshier's style provides absolute identification of the individual bearing arms--as draftsmanship and blazoning are vital elements for good heraldry. As Pierre de Chaignon la Rose (1872-1941) once wrote concerning several designs for new arms,
"In determining the merits of these designs, they should be studied at a distance, and their relative effectiveness thus determined. The shield which is at a distance is the simplest and perspicuous--has the most 'carrying power'--is always the best heraldry" (la Rose, 1910, 4).
From any distance, I believe, Abshier's heraldic work provides that critical "carrying power" necessary for heraldry.
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| Who would want to attack the dashing knight bearing this shield? The arms of Chad M. Krouse rendered by Brian Abshier, March 2020. |
No other artist, that I have worked with so far, has rendered the flowering dogwood (cornus florida) quite like Abshier--my absolute favorite version. I admire the detail and shading techniques Abshier employs to render the cornus florida as an acceptable heraldic charge.
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| The flowering dogwood (cornus florida) rendered by Brian Abshier, March 2020. |
I hope the reader will consider Abshier for a commission--you simply cannot go wrong with an emblazonment in his Bellenville style. For more information, please click here to visit Abshier's website, which contains a full gallery of work, contact information for commissions, etc.
Hofman, E. (2017 July 7). Bellenville's two armorials. Heraldica Nova. https://heraldica.hypotheses.org/5785
La Rose, Pierre de. C. (1910 July 29). Arms for the University of Chicago. Unpublished document.
