Andy Fish, SABRINA and BLACKWOOD artist, dead at 60

Per his obituary, artist Andy Fish died on Saturday, September 5, following a battle with two different types of blood cancer. He was 60 years old. Fish was best known for collaborating with his widow Veronica Fish on books like Blackwood, Kelly Thompson’s Sabrina the Teenage Witch run, and the graphic novelizations of Hide and Mister Magic, and also worked as a teacher, as well as Director of Comic Books and Graphic Novels for Makimono Entertainment.

Andrew Tiberius Fish was born in Massachusetts on December 27, 1965, and trained at the School of Visual Arts in New York, and the Rhode Island School of Design, where he studied under legends like Will Eisner, Jack Kirby, and Paul Ryan. He worked for the Worcester Telegram & Gazette, Worcester Magazine, Worcester Art Museum, the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, Emerson College, and other Massachusetts art organizations.

Other work included Steve Altes‘s semi-autobiographical graphic novel Geeks & Greeks; the retro superhero title Adam Bomb Adventures; the unofficial Golden Age throwback The Batman: Death Ray of Hugo Strange; TidalWave’s The Mis-Adventures of Adam West; Marvel’s Spider-Woman; a Gumby anthology from Papercutz; the dark comedies The Tragic Tale of Turkey Boy and Fly: A True Story Completely Made Up; the folklore guide Werewolves of Wisconsin and Other American Myths, Monsters and Ghosts; and the Dracula adaptations The Dead Travel Fast & Dracula’s Army.

Fish’s teaching expertise extended to him creating drawing guides for Chartwell and Walter Foster Publishing. Further projects outside comics included painting; illustrations for Nike and Coca Cola; a role as a creative consultant for UNICEF; and character design and storyboard art for Warner Bros. Animation. He also volunteered as a mentor and boxing coach for the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

Veronica Fish posted a tribute on Instagram, writing, “He fought valiantly. I have never loved and will never be loved like this again. Thank you, darling. And thank you to his family for welcoming me in, loving me so well, and calling me theirs. It is the joy of my life and more than words can express.” His final work was the adaptation of Kiersten White‘s horror novel Mister Magic, created with Veronica and Scott Peterson, which was published earlier this year.

As well as Veronica, Fish is survived by three sons from a previous marriage, his mother, two siblings, two daughters-in-law, a brother-in-law, and a sister-in-law. In lieu of flowers, the family has asked for any donations to be made to the Boys & Girls Club of Worcester, or the Hero Initiative. A GoFundMe, originally started to cover his expenses during chemotherapy, will remain active to help cover funeral costs. A Worcester Art Museum scholarship will also be established in his name in the future.