Dave McKean on how he experienced the sexual assault allegations against Neil Gaiman

The allegations of sexual assault involving Neil Gaiman have only just begun. It has been some time since we heard the news, but there is still no final judgement and it looks set to be a case with a long tail. Despite having an enviable career as a writer, his actions have caused a great degradation in public perception. Separating an author from his work is always complicated and difficult for many, and that is what Dave McKean, illustrator who collaborated with Gaiman for over twenty years, spoke about at the Naples Comicon with Fumettologica.

"I've never had a problem separating the art from the artist, I say that because a lot of the art I like is old," said Dave McKean. "It's probably harder to do that with a contemporary artist. Our collaboration goes back a long time, I drew those works 20 or 30 years ago."

Speaking specifically about Neil Gaiman, the illustrator commented that he felt he knew the writer well enough. "I haven't spoken to Neil for ten years. We were good friends and I thought I knew him well. Maybe he's changed over the years. You can imagine, if you have a friend you think you know and, even if it's from his past, something changes the perception you had of him. I don't know the truth, I'm waiting for a court to decide".

His list of collaborations is very long, starting with Violent Cases (1987) to the illustrated book Crazy Hair (2009), and including The Sandman (1989-1996, as cover artist) or Black Orchid (1988). Also, in a few days you will be able to watch the full interview that Dave McKean himself gave to Gamereactor at the Comicon Napoli this past weekend, so stay tuned to this space.