column: Goodness and Badness in Science Fiction and Fantasy Cover Art

[Nessa]

see it here: http://www.timewastersguide.com/view.php?id=1504

Check it out! It's a great article and I think the things he has to say are very interesting.

[42]

I have a lot to say about this article and I'm just wondering when I'll have time to write a full commentary.

I really want to take an  ethnographic assessment of the covers chosen by CtrlZed.

I'm also curious about what sort of biases CtrlZed is basing his comments on. Some are apparent in the article, but there are some others I'm wondering about such as opinions about formalism, functionalism, expressionism, or abstraction.

[Chimera]

I enjoyed reading this article very much--I liked CtrlZed's sense of humor, and it was interesting to hear his opinion. I second him on Garth Nix's books--I think the covers are beautiful. I'm not an artist, but an appreciator of art. I don't usually have a reason why I like something--if it speaks to me, I like it. If it doesn't, I don't.

I do want to point out that the link from the article to the forum, at the end of the article, wasn't working when I tried to use it just now.

[CtrlZed]

42,

It's true that I didn't go into the actual style of the artwork on the covers at all.  The post was getting long enough as it was!  It's interesting to me how the actual art style  on science fiction and fantasy covers has changed over time.  When I started reading these books, the artwork was always very realistic, the paintings rendered with precise brushstrokes and airbrushed backgrounds--think Larry Elmore and Michael Whelan.

The industry has changed for the better, I think--with no disprespect to Elmore or Whelan.  We're seeing more impressionistic covers.  An example of this is the Ender's Game cover and the Old Man's War cover.  These are painted by the same artist, some twenty years apart.  The Ender's Game artwork is very crisp and realistic, while the Old Man's War cover is more  impressionistic.  I see the same thing happening in fantasy--Giancola and Foster are much more loose in their painting styles than Elmore and Whelan ever were.

As for the ethnographic-ness of the covers, I'm not sure what you mean.  Do you mean the ethnicities that are portrayed on the covers?  Could you clarify?  I just chose covers that jump out to me, either good or bad, and of course my tastes will be biased because of experience and preference--but I wouldn't call this a conscious bias.   I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts.

[Nessa]

I do want to point out that the link from the article to the forum, at the end of the article, wasn't working when I tried to use it just now.

Fixed it.

[stacer]

The reason why the covers of the Abhorsen trilogies are so good is because they're illustrated by Caldecott medal-winning artists Leo and Diane Dillon.

[Parker]

That always helps, I'm sure.  ;-)  Great article, Zed--I really enjoyed reading it.

[CtrlZed]

The art is the strong point of the YA covers for the  Garth Nix books.  The more I look at the "adult" covers for that same series, the more I want to pull them from the good category and put them in the mediocre.

[stacer]

Actually, I also love the adult covers. They're good for a different reason. The graphic of the mark is so strong. I just think that the Dillons' art is stronger for that particular book. But a lot of people, like you said, view art on the cover as less grown up, so there's a nice alternative in the graphic-oriented cover.

Incidentally, I'm curious what you might say about the Hallowmere cover: http://slwhitman.livejournal.com/16778.html. The final cover is just a little tweaked--her eye is a little spookier, because the left pupil of the main character is larger than that of her right eye.

[CtrlZed]

Like you said, the adult covers have a really nice graphic style going for them.   And I love the symbols.  It might be that the Garth Nix logo is a little distracting--even if it is really cool.   When I buy these, I think I'll be getting the YA covers.

Hallowmere.  What a cool name!  I think the design is lovely, and I'm not just saying that.  Although the name of the author is a little small.  But I'm assuming that Hallowemere is the name of the world, so the smaller author's name is somewhat standard in shared-world projects (from what I've seen).

My hope for this cover is that the lettering is embossed and UVed, while the rest of the book is covered with the matte UV.  That would make for one slick book (pun unintended).  Certainly nails creepy YA for me.  And I love creepy.  I might even pick this one up.

[stacer]

While it will be shared-world, the author on the cover is the creator of the series, too. This is her first book, and covers tend to emphasize the world name before author on first books.

While this is going to be a shared world, it's a little different than your average. Tiffany is the creator of the world, and she's doing the foundation trilogy, then books 7 and 10 of a ten-book series. Each of the other books in the series will be from a different girl's point of view, so we thought it would be a great opportunity to introduce new voices.

And you *should* pick it up! (When it's available in Sept., though if you drop by LTUE, you might be able to win one of the ARCs I'm bringing with me.) It's GOOD. And I'm not just saying that because I'm the editor. Or, well, I am. Because I wouldn't have chosen her if it wasn't.

[The Jade Knight]

None of the images are loading for me.   

[Now they are.  Site must've been down]

[dawncawley]

I love the cover for Hallowmere. I love the color contrast between the face and the rest of the cover. I don't know how else to put it, sorry, I am not always great with words. That could be why I don't write That and a decided lack of imagination, lol.

CtrlZed, I really appreciated, and frankly mostly agreed with, your article about the cover art. Thank you.

[Fellfrosch]

Excellent article.

I'm not thrilled with the Hallowmere cover, actually, because every time I see it I think it's an Eberron supplement. Did they have the same designer?

[stacer]

No, different designer.  (Trish Yochum, to be exact--Lisa somebody did the Eberron Player's Guide I have here at my desk.) You might want to hold it up next to a YA title and see what you think--you're coming from a different perspective which few of our intended audience (teen girls) will be familiar with.