Rafael López Espí is a Spanish illustrator who defined the visual identity of the Marvel superhero for an entire generation of Spanish readers. During the 1970s and early 1980s he painted hundreds of covers for Vértice and Bruguera’s Spanish editions of Marvel titles — reinterpreting the work of Kirby, Buscema and Romita into a lush, painted idiom that stood apart from the US originals. His covers are now considered foundational artefacts of Spanish comic publishing history.