Tis the season…
Educated at the Chicago Art Institute, illustrator Howard V. Brown is considered, along with Leo Morey, Frank R. Paul, and H.W. Wesson, to be one of the big four science fiction illustrators of the 1930s. Over the course of his long and prolific career, Brown did covers for such magazines as Scientific American, Astounding Stories, and Thrilling Wonders. His work continues to inspire science fiction illustrators to this day.
In honor of this weekend’s release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, here is some of the best Star Wars fan art that I’ve come across online.
In honor of science fiction month, check out some of these vintage sci-fi covers from Planet Comics. Planet Comics was first published in 1940 and, after 73 issues, it ceased publication in 1953. As can be seen in the covers featured above and below, Planet Comics told stories of manly men rescuing gorgeous women from bug-eyed aliens and fiendish space pirates.
The next three covers are by Lily Renee, one of the few female artists from the Golden Age of pulp fiction.
Instead of featuring one artist for today’s artist profile, I’m instead featuring a magazine. Women in Crime was a pulp magazine that was published in the 1940s and the 1950s. While the covers, with their emphasis on lingerie and cleavage, were obviously designed to appeal to men, I like that they often feature strong women who know what they want and, whether it means using their looks or a gun, aren’t afraid to go after it. Check a few of them out below:
Artist Clement Micarelli was born and raised in Providence, Rhode Island and studied art at both The Pratt Institute and The Art Student’s League. Micarelli started his career as a commercial illustrator in 1955 but in 1971, after several years of lucrative success, Micarelli retired from the commercial field. He and his family left New York for Massachusetts, where Micarelli devoted himself to painting full time. His widely acclaimed portraits hang in collections around the world.
Below are some Micarelli’s commercial work, as well as two of his best known paintings.