Book covers As Art Galleries

Since I'm uploading art on this blog and will upload to my DeviantArt account later this week, I wanted to talk about how book cover art has influenced and continues to influence me to this day.

I don't wish to get into a long discussion but I will split these blog posts into a mini-series by focusing simply on ONE particular science fiction series.

'The Rowan' Anne McCaffrey (pb)

During my community college days, I 'discovered' this paperback in the college bookstore.

These were the days before college/university bookstores were still owned by their schools.

Done by the artist known simply as Romas, his full name is Romas Brandt Kukalis, he has done mostly front covers mostly in the speculative fiction field. As a very young art major, book covers became my art galleries and I not only devoured the stories but also 'ingested' the covers!

Here, what I can only assume are the hardcovers:

(Hardcover version)

(Hardcover version 2)

Dynamic, huh? Still a fan of these covers. The heroine's/shero's strength of character, her superiority/insecurity complexes, the distinction of her authority, the outfit and fashion of her time period, and her potent psychic abilities seemed to radiate from the paper.
Now, why do I speak on this?

 Well... Most of my reading material have become 'classics' and therefore, in need of updating. While I can't complain that books need re-editions and updating like everything else, I'm a little troubled by a lot of contemporary cover art. Back then, different genres had different 'looks', different aesthetics. And while things weren't perfect, and plenty of speculative fictional books were given a bad rap in poor-looking artwork, book covers that didn't tell a story, there were still gems and once you looked at enough bookshelves, you began to tell, even if the book was stuck on the wrong shelf, this was a romance, this was horror, this was a thriller, this was comedy, this was memoir, fantasy, suspense, etc. Nowadays, it seems book cover art is suffering from sameness.

(Updated cover for 'The Rowan')

Take a look at the updated cover art for The Rowan now:
Nice cover. Nice art. Sigh. But I don't feel anything, and if I didn't recognize my late favorite author's name, this would be the cover to any other genre. As an emerging author who may have books published one day, I feel kind of sad that my cover won't be distinct and unique from others. Because, as a new name, I will already have obstacles to get my titles out there, and as a lifetime reader and lover of books, a bland front cover will prove to be another obstacle.

Andre Norton as an undergrad course - PART 6 [PHOTOS]

My next post in honor of Andre Norton being taught within an undergraduate course at my college campus.

According to the Andre Norton Official Website, the artist for this book cover is by Laslo Gal, another favorite Ms. Norton book illustrator.

front cover 

Here is another book cover and story that has heavily influenced me. As a reader. As a writer. As an artist. Breed to Come was the second story I read after 'Warlock of the Witch World' (more on that title later:)). This story was a milestone in that it not only featured what I would later learn to be anthropomorphic characters, but the level of world-building was astounding. In a nutshell, this is what would be considered a Dystopian sf tale. This is millions of years after earth was ruined and abandoned by the human race, who took to the stars, leaving a wrecked planet, the animals, especially the cats, dogs and rats, have evolved into separate civilizations. The story starts with a feline character and Norton explains his biology as if his remains were examined by scientific forensics. It's an incredible spare kind of writing that just took my breath away with its precision details! As Furtig (cat protagonist) explains, he is about to partake in some sort of ceremony to determine if he will be chosen as a mate. Norton has a knack for dissecting complex cultural and social mores into an interesting journey for the reader.  

back cover

Furtig goes on a quest to figure out what his purpose is. But, this protagonist has another motive and so he decides to follow in the footsteps of a clan ancestor who pursued his quest for knowledge and was never heard from again. The story ebbs and flows. It picks up and slows down, especially by Ms. Norton's expositions on the landscape and what earth now looks like after millions of years of missing us. Of course, there is conflict and invaders touch down on earth to check it out as well. Furtig has to find his place in this new world and we the readers must figure out our place in this magnificent novel as well. 

Andre Norton as an undergrad course - PART 5 [PHOTO]

Another Andre Norton book cover! According to the Andre Norton Official Website, the artist for this cover is Davis Meltzer.

As an artist, there are many things that inspire me, especially when it comes to book covers. Nowadays, some of these front covers are being digitally done and I find the artwork often uninspiring, which is sad to say the least. However, with some of my favorite stories, I have been fortunate to have favorite covers too. Here is another from Norton's Web of the Witch World, which I think is the second book in her long-running 'Witch World' (c) series. 

For some reason, it reminds me of a 1970s comic book cover, and the tale within is filled with powerful women, magic with science, inter-dimensional villains, and a protagonist from our planet who is still adjusting to the culture of this new world. It is a refreshing, exciting, sense of wonder tale. To read it multiple times is to find something new. Pure delight. 

Andre Norton as an undergrad course - Part 4 [PHOTOS]

Now, on to the Book Covers!!!
*Kermit the frog cheer*

As I said in an earlier posting, since finding out from some college students that my favorite, favorite author Andre Norton is being taught in an English course on-campus, I have decided to revisit my love and 'fangirling' of this amazing woman. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In previous posts, I gave URLs on her newest official site and older homepage as hyperlinks in the post, re-posted a classic post on her, and just about ranted on the unfairness that while an undergrad, many folks didn't seem to know about her and now, as an employee on same campus, she is part of a college literature curriculum!

But, I am an artist first, and I judge books by their covers, and, for some reason, perhaps because Ms. Norton was prolific and was still writing and publishing almost to her death, her bibliography is varied, long, and epic in scope as her stories. Yet, it was the various artists that tried to capture her ideas that mesmerized, baffled, or even bewildered me.

Without further ado, on to the book covers! 

The first is Norton's The Zero Stone. The book is from my family's personal library. These are the Viking editions that my father acquired during the 1970s. According to the Andre Norton Official Website, the cover artist is Robin Jacques.

What struck me was the highly-detailed almost digital preciseness of the piece. Also, the illustrator captured a pivotal scene. Do you see the detailing? I used my Chromebook's webcam to take this picture so I apologize if it's not clear enough. 

 Not only is this one of Norton's more zippier-reads (the action is not breakneck but it does breeze by during the action scenes), but my biggest regret is that I removed the dust jacket! It annoyed me and so I took it off the book! What can I say? I was 11-12 at the time. I regret it now. I still regret it. I know better. 

Still, what was on the dust jacket is what's on the actual binding as well as the front and backcover. I've seen other editions where this gorgeous illustration was on dust jacket only, so, I lucked out.

Darrell K. Sweet (1934 - 2011) When you lose your heroes...

Just found out late that one of my favorite, modern-day artists had passed away earlier this month.

Mr. Darrell K. Sweet was one of many genre cover artists, fine artists and (surprises!) photographer, who gave an 'Old Master' touch to modern books. When I started reading Piers Anthony's Xanth series, it was a Darrell K. Sweet cover that drew me into that world.

Thank God I had also discovered Mr. Anthony's writings beforehand so it was a double-whammy!

I feel indebted to such figures who elevate fantasy and science fiction art to a level of museum and art gallery greatness, for genre media does not get nor receive the respect it deserves from popular culture, though pop culture does try to elevate the banal and mundane and mediocre..

Another 'hero artist' I also wish to honor was Mr. Keith Parkinson. More on him in a future post. Until then, I wish my followers both on this blog and on Twitter a Safe, Happy and Prosperous New Year.