KARL KOPINSKI (b. 1971)
Tau Empire codex cover
Details
KARL KOPINSKI (b. 1971)
Tau Empire codex cover
Sheet : 667 x 430 mm ; composition : 637 x 402 mm
Mixed media on thick drawing board.
Signed in pencil in the lower right margin, and in the composition in the lower right.
On the reverse, autograph mention by the artist, including a title (“TAU COVER”), and a date (22/07/2005).
Born and raised in Arnold Notts, only a stone’s throw from Nottingham -the funding place of Games Workshop- Karl Kopinski has been working in the illustration industry since 1997.
His first commissions for Games Workshop arrived early in his career, around 1999. He created some of the most recognizable images of both the Warhammer Fantasy battle and Warhammer 40,000 universes, contributing in shaping and expanding the visual representation of factions, cultures and, of course, battles beyond the tabletop.
The Tau faction, in the game itself, is a fairly young one, being added to the third edition of Warhammer 40,000, with an official announcement and introduction in the October 2001 issue of White Dwarf (no. 262).
It is a vast empire, gathering 75 worlds inside a 300 -lightyears wide span. Its society is strictly divided into four mains casts (the Fire cast, breeding warriors ; the Earth cast and its artisans and peasants ; the Water cast filling the bureaucracy and administrative structure of the Empire and finally the Air cast, providing pilots and messengers), all under the supervision of the Ethereals.
As with all the newly developed and created factions, the concept artists and illustrators, and the miniature designers worked hand in hand to build a coherent and awe-inspiring culture. Both Karl Kopinski and his brother Stefan worked on the first Tau Codex, the reference book for the faction both in terms of ruleset and “lore”.
Jes Goodwin, who supervised the creation of the first plastic kits, recalled that the Tau models " had obvious Japanese and Manga influence, but we tried to steer away from any one inspirational source, gleaning our ideas from a wider range”. For instance, the Fire Warrior, which is the basic infantry unit for the faction, were to wear an armour reminiscent of “Japanese Ashigaru foot soldiers, but we only wanted a subtle influence to come through. One such historical element is the shoulder pads. The basic design concept had already stated that these were missile based troops and so when designing the armour plating I came up with the idea of shoulder pads on their forward firing side to give them that extra protection”.
The Tau faction is mostly built upon missile based troops, playing with distance and escaping close quarters combat if possible, as they regard it “as a brutal, uncivilized affair”.
The most notable use of the present Kopinski artwork is certainly its appearance as the front cover of the Tau Empire Codex for the 4th edition of the game (2006). For many players, it was therefore the very first image they saw of this new faction, certainly for many of them one of the reasons for choosing to play and collect it -it had perfectly epitomize the aforementioned design characteristics, and to put it simply, to be breathtaking.
The striking contrast of the complimentary blue and orange hues ; all the figures marching (and, for some, jumping) towards the right outer margin of the composition, and the impression of all guns barred combat gives the player a strong sense of being part of a legendary battle, here involving the Tau against the Orks.
Its lasting impact and (certainly nostalgic) appeal for many players convinced Games Workshop to use it many times after its initial use : a full-page spread for the 7th Edition Tau Empire Codex (p. 7), and, quite recently, to grace the front cover of the Special Collector’s edition of the 10th Edition Tau Empire Codex, published in 2024 and only included in the Kroot Hunting Pack box set. The image was also to be used inside this edition of the codex, including one full-page spread.
Tau Empire codex cover
Sheet : 667 x 430 mm ; composition : 637 x 402 mm
Mixed media on thick drawing board.
Signed in pencil in the lower right margin, and in the composition in the lower right.
On the reverse, autograph mention by the artist, including a title (“TAU COVER”), and a date (22/07/2005).
Born and raised in Arnold Notts, only a stone’s throw from Nottingham -the funding place of Games Workshop- Karl Kopinski has been working in the illustration industry since 1997.
His first commissions for Games Workshop arrived early in his career, around 1999. He created some of the most recognizable images of both the Warhammer Fantasy battle and Warhammer 40,000 universes, contributing in shaping and expanding the visual representation of factions, cultures and, of course, battles beyond the tabletop.
The Tau faction, in the game itself, is a fairly young one, being added to the third edition of Warhammer 40,000, with an official announcement and introduction in the October 2001 issue of White Dwarf (no. 262).
It is a vast empire, gathering 75 worlds inside a 300 -lightyears wide span. Its society is strictly divided into four mains casts (the Fire cast, breeding warriors ; the Earth cast and its artisans and peasants ; the Water cast filling the bureaucracy and administrative structure of the Empire and finally the Air cast, providing pilots and messengers), all under the supervision of the Ethereals.
As with all the newly developed and created factions, the concept artists and illustrators, and the miniature designers worked hand in hand to build a coherent and awe-inspiring culture. Both Karl Kopinski and his brother Stefan worked on the first Tau Codex, the reference book for the faction both in terms of ruleset and “lore”.
Jes Goodwin, who supervised the creation of the first plastic kits, recalled that the Tau models " had obvious Japanese and Manga influence, but we tried to steer away from any one inspirational source, gleaning our ideas from a wider range”. For instance, the Fire Warrior, which is the basic infantry unit for the faction, were to wear an armour reminiscent of “Japanese Ashigaru foot soldiers, but we only wanted a subtle influence to come through. One such historical element is the shoulder pads. The basic design concept had already stated that these were missile based troops and so when designing the armour plating I came up with the idea of shoulder pads on their forward firing side to give them that extra protection”.
The Tau faction is mostly built upon missile based troops, playing with distance and escaping close quarters combat if possible, as they regard it “as a brutal, uncivilized affair”.
The most notable use of the present Kopinski artwork is certainly its appearance as the front cover of the Tau Empire Codex for the 4th edition of the game (2006). For many players, it was therefore the very first image they saw of this new faction, certainly for many of them one of the reasons for choosing to play and collect it -it had perfectly epitomize the aforementioned design characteristics, and to put it simply, to be breathtaking.
The striking contrast of the complimentary blue and orange hues ; all the figures marching (and, for some, jumping) towards the right outer margin of the composition, and the impression of all guns barred combat gives the player a strong sense of being part of a legendary battle, here involving the Tau against the Orks.
Its lasting impact and (certainly nostalgic) appeal for many players convinced Games Workshop to use it many times after its initial use : a full-page spread for the 7th Edition Tau Empire Codex (p. 7), and, quite recently, to grace the front cover of the Special Collector’s edition of the 10th Edition Tau Empire Codex, published in 2024 and only included in the Kroot Hunting Pack box set. The image was also to be used inside this edition of the codex, including one full-page spread.
Brought to you by
Vincent Belloy
Specialist