(Alex Schomburg’s cover for the 1965 edition of The Well of the Worlds (1953), Henry Kuttner)
Alex Schomburg (1905-1998) produced only a handful of novel covers in the 60s (his classic 50s covers can be found here). But what a beautiful handful! It’s a shame because they evoke genuine excitement and wonder — especially Kuttner’s The Well of the Worlds (above) and one of my favorites, Moore and Kuttner’s Earth’s Last Citadel (below). They are dynamic, vivid, and occasionally Continue reading
(Cover for the 1972 edition of Plunder (1972), Ron Goulart)
The covers of Vincent Di Fate (1945-) often evoke a Terry Gilliam-esque romp — for example, Ron Goulart’s Plunder — a lone facade and a house dot a purple and green plain, mountains emerge in the distance, planets pepper the sky, a head floats ominously, a bizarre reptilian creature in a boatie rides an antique bicycle. I desperately want to know if it’s a scene from the book. If so, I’m tracking down a copy!
Vincent Di Fate’s work graced a few of the great works of the genre Continue reading
I’ve never been a fan of A. E. van Vogt. A while back, having just finished his “masterpiece” The World of Null-A (1948), I headed to the used book store and saw Jerome Podwil’s cover for Vogt’s sequel, The Players of Null-A (1966) and had to pick it up. Simply put, it is a spectacular piece of art. Discovering Podwil’s Calder-esque machine extending its limbs across the plain made me pay more attention to the covers as art and the artists who made them. Hence this series of posts! (Adventures in Science Fiction Art Index)
(Are any of the books worth reading? What’s your favorite of his work (perhaps one I haven’t listed)?)
(Cover for the 1966 edition of The Players of Null-A (1966), A. E. van Vogt)
(Alex Schomburg’s cover for the 1955 edition of Secret of the Martian Moons (1955), Donald A. Wollheim)
Spontaneously conjure with but a meer glance — Excitement! Wonder! Adventure!
The best of the covers of old 50s/60s juveniles (sci-fi for younger readers) always stirs the recumbent inklings of adolescent wonder… Intrepid boy/men (sadly, rarely women) trek across the “expanses” of the space — rarely expansive, more like puddle jumping from planet to planet with the phrase, “and the hyperdrive shook the ship but John wasn’t afraid because he had once ridden a farm cart with one of them spooked horses back home in Smalltown, US of A” — discovering planets, setting up colonies, angering some weird looking Continue reading
Robert Foster produced only a handful of science fiction covers. The most inventive graced a span of Frederik Pohl novels and short story collections released by Ballantine Books in the late 60s. Sadly, I can find no information about the artist himself online (if you do please let me know). Here’s a selection of the most interesting, haunting, and spectacular…
Part II (here)
Mechanical man — a bedraggled simulacra. Nude woman — embodiment of flesh. A lunar landscape greets them…
(ranks among my favorite covers of all time)
(Cover for the 1969 edition of Turn Left at Thursday (1961), Frederik Pohl) Continue reading
This is the second post in a potential series of posts showcasing the science fiction cover art by Richard Powers (1921-1996). My first post discussed a few surrealist cityscape covers from the 1950s. Here I’ve selected a variety of surrealistic, composite, conglomerated, and masked faces from his 1970s covers.
A delightful green human shape — mouthless — replete with translucent hollows? emerging occupants or surfacing memories?
(Cover for the 1973 edition of All Flesh is Grass (1965), Clifford D. Simak)
The Eternal Frontiers utilizes another Continue reading
Richard Powers (1921-1996) is one of my favorite science fiction cover artists. Heavily influenced by the likes of Yves Tanguey and Picasso, his delightful vein of surrealism graced the covers of multiple classics of the genre (for example, Simak’s City, Clarke’s Earthlight and The City and the Stars, Norton’s Sky Gate, Vonnegut’s The Sirens of Titan, Sturgeon’s More Than Human). His covers are unmistakable and extremely easy to identify. I’ve decided to showcase a few of his surrealist cityscapes.
(cover for 1956 edition of Reach for Tomorrow (1956), Arthur C. Clarke)
The cover for Reach for Tomorrow achieves a wonderful Continue reading
While browsing through the spectacular collection of DAW sci-fi/fantasy covers between the 60s-80s on the Internet Speculative Fiction Database I came across Ian Wallace’s The Lucifer Comet (1980). I know nothing about the work itself (or the author) but something about the shoddy cover immediately rung a bell. I had seen a similar small greenish man (but without wings) hoisting an unprotesting much heavier scantily clad reddish Continue reading
I nominate the cover of Michael G. Coney’s The Jaws That Bite, The Claws That Catch (1975) as the worst I’ve ever seen. I’ve submitted it to Good Show Sir so hopefully it gets posted on that hilarious website soon. Kelly Freas is considered one of the best sci-fi artists Continue reading
Science Fiction and Other Suspect Ruminations 