About

The Black Ink Warlock, a.k.a. Justin Bartlett, applies boundless visual style to depictions of the arcane. His developed portfolio representing clients of various trades exposes an illustrative language often derived from the occult, where theology and religion meet strife. Here he has mastered visual manipulation of his equally imaginative clients within several genres of extreme music — as well as of select collaborative efforts with visual and sound artist Stephen O'Malley of SUNN O))) fame. Although most profound in music, Bartlett has also adapted his style to film, such as Los Angeles-based SA Studios Global, and he has made a mark in the fashion world, weaving grim illustration into the heavy metal denim of Anti-Sweden jeans.

His work takes inspiration from Rudimentary Peni's Nick Blinko and Voivod's Michel "Away" Langevin, both whose styles amass similar detail and abstract dimension. With pen and ink, Bartlett renders visions unseen by the naked eye, awakening apparitions as ambiguous as those creatures created by Edgar Allen Poe or ideas fostered by Aleister Crowley. Self-taught, the illustrator/designer has developed a style that's equally recognizable as it is versatile. The beauty lies within infinite detail, where imagination and cheeky humor conspire. Corpses decay. Wolves howl. Creatures spawn and slay. All is ugly and hauntingly inhuman.

Bartlett's work has been selected for worldwide exhibitions and shows, including the Dark Nature exhibition in London and the Catalyst show at San Franscisco's FIFTY24SF Gallery. His illustrations have cloaked the pages of Vice Magazine and he has been featured in Illustration Now! and 3X3 Magazine. Recently, Bartlett is continuing his journey into the entertainment world. When daylight falls, the bleak visions and demented creatures sprung from Bartlett's imagination come out to play … It is then that we shall embrace visual hell.