Summary
The popularMagic: The Gatheringartist John Avon has announced his temporary retirement in apost on Facebook.
Avon, 64, has been working with Wizards of the Coast for 29 years, having made his Magic: The Gathering debut with Mirage, Magic’s ninth-ever expansion.
Avon is best known for his beautiful basic land illustrations, having drawn some of the most memorable lands in the trading card game. Avon was commemorated in an October Superdrop in 2023, a set of four cards was released where Avon created the art and wrote the flavour text.
A Beloved Artist
Unfortunately, Avon has been forced to take a step back from his work on Magic: The Gathering due to ongoing chronic health issues.
“I need to retire from all commercial work, for at least 12 months, maybe indefinitely. And see if I can get well again,” Avon writes. “The decision has been forced upon me largely on health grounds. So I felt, as I am somewhat in public, it was right to say what’s going on, be honest and communicate, as best as I can.”
Avon goes on to recount his time painting for Magic: The Gathering, saying he “feels part of the furniture at Wizards of the Coast” and that Magic has “pushed [his] creative brain and imagination to [their] limits.”
“My body, especially my neck and back, just cannot take the strain of working anymore. I am visiting the osteopath every week to get fixed,” the post continues. “It’s not just physical, but emotional. I find ‘hitting my standard’ now so stressful. I can paint, I know what to do, but it’s just so hard to do my technique and after just 2 hours, I’m in bad pain.”
Avon explains that he’s developed fibromyalgia, a condition characterised by widespread bodily pain. He also suffers from chronic fatigue syndrome and irritable bowel syndrome.
“I assumed as I got older, painting would get easier… no. Not for me, the performance gets harder. Maybe that’s just the way I function. And I don’t want to start handing in a lower standard of work. It’s not ego, it’s self-esteem, if that makes sense?”
Another reason for Avon’s temporary retirement is that he wants to pursue personal projects, something spurred on by the death of close ones in recent years.
“Huge gratitude to anyone who has supported me over the years. God, I have shaken the hands of so many great folk,” the post concludes.
