Fantasy art, that colorful blend of myth, muscle and sexy maidens, took off in 1923 with the launch of
Weird Talesmagazine, was reinvigorated in the 1960s with
The Lord of the Rings,
Conan the Barbarian paperbacks with
Frank Frazetta covers, and the late ’60s emergence of fantasy psychedelia. It went big in the ’70s with the role-playing game
Dungeons & Dragons, the brilliant French magazine
Métal Hurlant, and the first
Star Wars film. The number of active artists peaked in that decade, but a new generation of fans discovered the genre through fantasy trading card games in the ’90s, leading to a massive interest in the art form today. Frank Frazetta’s oil paintings—when they infrequently come to market—have sold for more than $ 5 million in recent years. Fans line up at Comic-Cons to meet
Boris Vallejo,
Rodney Matthews,
Greg Hildebrandt,
Michael Whelan, and
Philippe Druillet, and memorialize dead icons
HR Giger,
Jeffrey Catherine Jones, and
Frazetta. Imagine how eagerly they’ll welcome TASCHEN’s
History of Fantasy Art, including all the artists listed above and more.
This monster-sized tome features
original paintings, contextualized by
preparatory sketches,
sculptures,
calendars,
magazines, and
paperback books for an immersive dive into this dynamic, fanciful genre. Insightful bios go beyond Wikipedia to give a more accurate and eye-opening look into the life of each artist. Complete with
fold-outs and tipped-in chapter openers, this collection will reign as the
most exquisite and informative guide to this popular subject for years to come.
