Bisley started his career doing magazine and album covers, his first work being a T-shirt design for heavy metal magazine
Kerrang! He started with work on
ABC Warriors in 1987, later moving to
Sláine and
Judge Dredd. Simon Bisley significantly contributed to the visual and conceptual development of the character
Lobo (DC Comics) in the comic book universe.
Alan Grant and
Keith Giffen initially contacted Bisley to rework Lobo's appearance. Bisley added distinctive elements such as big biker boots, skull knee guards, a hook and chain around Lobo's arm, and made the character much more muscular, transforming him into an impressive space biker. He also created Lobo's dog, “Dawg”, incorporating the character into the story despite it not being in the original script. Bisley's tendency to add more than what was written in the script sometimes led Grant to rewrite sections of the book. Bisley's distorted and surreal artistic style, combined with garish colors and crude language, emphasized the character's violent and absurd nature. He illustrated the 1990 4 issues mini-series
Lobo: The Last Czarnian, written by Keith Giffen and Alan Grant, where Lobo, the intergalactic bounty hunter, escorts a mysterious prisoner. Simon Bisley also illustrated the 1992 four-issue mini-series ''Lobo's Back'', where Lobo is killed and sent to both heaven and hell, only to fight his way back to life. The series is filled with dark humor, over-the-top violence, and Lobo's characteristic irreverence. In addition to his interior artwork, Bisley also produced iconic painted covers that became closely associated with Lobo's brutal and offbeat image. Originally a minor character, Bisley significantly contributed to the reinvention of Lobo with an anarchic touch that left a lasting impact, making it one of his most iconic contributions to the comic book world. The original painting for
Lobo #1 sold for $192,000 at auction in 2021. Since 1997, Bisley has been a regular contributor to the comics magazine
Heavy Metal. Bisley has done design work for several music videos, including
Chippendales' "Room Service". In the early 2000s, Bisley was commissioned to create artwork for the
drum kit used by
System of a Down drummer
John Dolmayan, an avid comic book collector and vendor. Dolmayan commissioned Bisley to illustrate the
Hulk and
Thing on one drum, while the art for other drums in the kit, which depicted other characters and scenes, were produced by
Kevin Eastman,
Tim Vigil, and
Arthur Adams. ==Influences==