The Spindle's End

While Stewart has done a lot of work for a little game called Magic the Gathering, you might have heard of it, he's also done several wonderful epic and high fantasy covers. In 2010 he won a Chesley Award (the premier award for SFF illustration work), and has been featured in the Spectrum Annual several times. You can peruse his gallery of work here, and even buy prints on his Etsy shop.

If there's a cover artist who can make me really want to pick up a book even when the summary/teaser turns me off, it's Donato Giancola. When I was still working as a page and shelving in the SF section, I had to force myself to put some of his covers back because I was very certain that I didn't want to read the book, but another story that would fit that cover. On the other hand, I have read books he's done the covers for and loved every page. Perhaps my favorite thing about this artist is his balance between modern ideals and classical form. Particularly with some of his more recent work, you can see the influence of Renaissance and Romantic artists, and I love that. You can see more of his work (and his incredibly extensive list of covers) on his website.

First, I apologize for some of the radio silence this month. My home network has been a bit screwy, which severely limited my connectivity. Full service seems to be restored.

So! New eye candy.

Jon Foster is a cover artist and illustrator for traditional publications as well as comic books and Magic The Gathering cards. Some of his most recognizable work has been done for Liz Williams, Cherie Priest, and for the Buffy The Vampire Slayer Comics. He typically works in oil on canvas, but also uses digital effects on some of his work. Again, he has a very distinctive style. There's some Asian influence, as well as a talent for gears and other machinery. You can see more of his work on his website. 

Dos Santos is another artist who if you read any Sci-Fi/Fantasy at all, you've seen his work. It's everywhere, and that's a good thing. As well as doing book covers, he also does some work for DC Comic's and Wizards of the Cost among others. To me, his signature is all about the incredibly vibrant colors and strong women. You can see more of his work, as well as purchase a few prints, at his website. He also contributes to a group blog, Muddy Colors, which is an excellent read for both artists and those of us who just love eye candy.

There aren't many cover artists currently working in watercolors or pen and ink, and I always think this is a shame whenever I spot one of Law's covers. I find them to be unique, beautiful, and extremely eye catching. She's also one of the few cover artists and illustrators who sell their work to the general public. Love on of the covers below? Check out her website, and chances are either the original is for sale, or she'll sell you a print. Her tarot deck is just amazing, and someday I plan to buy the accompanying art books because a tarot sized card is just too small a format to truly appreciate the details Law puts into her work. She's also active on DeviantArt and Etsy.

Scott Fisher has been a professional artist for about twenty years, working on both children's book covers and illustrations as well as adult and young adult covers. He's also done some work for games like Magic the Gathering and Dungeons and Dragons. His client list is impressive, and so are his colorful covers. I love his eye catching, unique styles. I also love the fact that he doesn't have just one specific recognizable style, like several other artists. While all of the covers below have similarities, they don't all scream their artists identity. There's subtle style variations between his covers which I appreciate. You can see more of his work on his website.

 

If you read any speculative fiction at all, chances are you've read a book with a cover by Michael Whelan. He's been at it for over thirty years at this point, and his author list reads like a who's who of science fiction and fantasy, including the original covers for Anne McCaffrey's Pern Chronicles. He's won every major award for artists in his field that I've ever heard of, including this past year's Chesley Award from the Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists (ASFA) for his cover of Brandon Sanderson's The Way of Kings, fifteen Hugos, and three World Fantasy Awards. And the list goes on from there. There literally may not be a more influential artist in his field...living or dead. Check out his website, and/or his art books and galleries for some more incredible eye candy.

If you're a big DAW fan, as I am, you'll certainly recognize Jody Lee's work. She primarily does covers for DAW's epic fantasy, and they are strikingly original. Perhaps more than any other artist doing SFF cover work, I can recognize her work from a mile away. She's been doing covers for nearly thirty years now, and is still working in acrylics and oils on canvas and/or illustration board. Lee hasn't done a lot of covers lately, but I'm sure you'll recognize some of the following.

You can check out more of McGrath's work on his website.