Twelve Gems #[nn]

Lane Milburn's Twelve Gems from Fantagraphics presents a striking cover that immediately pulls you into something ancient and strange: a crowned, multi-faced horned creature floats inverted against a turbulent crimson sky, ringed by a halo of glowing orbs, with dark jagged peaks rising from a blood-red landscape below. The intricate Celtic-style border framing the image gives the whole composition a ritualistic, artifact-like weight. This 2014 release announces itself as exactly the kind of singular, deeply personal work that makes Fantagraphics' catalog so rewarding to explore.