More Fantasy Art Masters by Dick Jude (book review).
More Fantasy Art Masters, edited by Dick Jude, introduces 10 artists from the turn of the century, mostly not using digital art. I recognised four names from the contents page, which shows how much time influences our memory of artists and how much the media has changed in 22 years. All the artists in this book share a bit about their history, their preferred medium, and showcase a lot of their art.
Keith Parkinson prefers to use oils and even makes his own paints, describing the process of creating 10 different reds.
In contrast, Anne Sudworth prefers pastels. She notes that art colleges don’t necessarily produce commercial artists, which likely still holds true today. Formal training shows you’ve had some education, but in the book cover world, it’s about showing talent with a strong portfolio and being in the right place at the right time.
Judith Clute, wife of writer John Clute, is more of an abstract illustrator—a novelty in the realm of fantasy art at a time when working in different mediums didn’t yet have the term “mixed media.”
John Harris is a name many will recognise, and we see some of his work in conte pencil, a type of pastel for those unfamiliar. His paintings might look a bit vague up close, but at a distance, they come into perspective, which works well when shrunk to paperback size. This is always a challenge for any artist, especially when going digital. If your detail is going to shrink down to a few pixels, how much time do you spend on it? Even I’m grappling with this.
Seeing the art of Phil Hale and Ian Miller, I had to remind myself that their work leans more toward fantasy than science fiction, which aligns with the book’s title. Both artists focus heavily on people-oriented art. Hale is also the first to mention using digital tools like Photoshop, but only for corrections, noting that its ability to undo makes things too easy.
J.K. Potter is rather unique, combining photographs into his art to create sepia-toned montages. However, he can also paint, though his work has a somewhat disturbing quality.
Greg Spalenka is an artist I’ve heard of. Seeing his work from over 20 years ago probably means you’re seeing pieces that might be missing from his book, The Art of Greg Spalenka. His work is quite bizarre, but fantasy covers a wide range.
Dave Seeley is another artist whose work I’m familiar with, and this book showcases more of his earlier paintings, which are definitely more science fiction-oriented.
Lastly, Darrel Anderson delves into digital art with a slightly more surreal bent, giving a sense of scale.
The range of artists featured is quite extensive, offering something for everyone, which is exactly what you want if you come across this book.
GF Willmetts
August 2024
(pub: Watson-Guptill Publications/Harper-Collins, 2002, 144 page illustrated square softcover. Price and conditions vary. ISBN: 0-8230-3127-6)
