SciFi Art Now is a book collecting some of the best in contemporary science fiction art by a wide range of creators. The book, edited by John Freeman, includes an introduction by the legendary Chris Foss and is on sale now in all good bookshops.
Not to be confused with the amazing lighting designer of the same name, Patrick James Woodroffe is an English artist, etcher and drawer, who specialises in fantasy science-fiction artwork, with images that border on the surreal. His achievements include several collaborations with well-known musicians, two bronze sculptures displayed in Switzerland and numerous books.
"I feel at home in my own imagery," he says. "I live in a world of my own, a planet with portraits and landscapes far too pretty to be called 'modern art'.
"My 'Text & Images', which come just from my memories and my imagination, are nearly always limited to optimism. Tragic stories and ugly imagery never make me happy."
His web site is here: www.patrickwoodroffe-world.com. "My website is here for good purposes - to keep in touch with friendly contacts, to meet up with new ones, especially with collaborators and sponsors for my ambitious projects. If this applies to you, then contact me by e-mail."
War of the Worlds
author HG Wells apparently didn't really pay a lot of attention to
thinking the mechanics of the Martian's war machines through, some feel.
He described them as moving like a milking stool being bowled along
the ground, then later talked about them being like spiders.
"I
tried a 3d animation of a Martian tripod walking once and it’s really
hard," says John Guy Collick, who unearthed these illustrations (and by the
way, you should bookmark his blog, it's packed with SF goodness). "It’s
not a natural leg arrangement.
"The third leg is a problem. Even sets of
legs are easy because they work in opposition. A third leg just gets in
the way.
"Here’s an example – the back leg just trails behind..."
Warwick
Goble, an illustrator of children's books, is not as well known as his
contemporaries Arthur Rackham and Dulac, nevertheless he contributed his own
mastery of watercolour to the golden age of illustration.
Born in
November 1862 in Dalston, North London, Goble was educated at the City
of London School and Westminster School of Art. Initially he worked for a
printer who specialized in chromolithography and made numerous
contributions to the illustrated newspapers and magazines of the day
such as the Pall Mall Gazette, Strand Magazine and The Boy's Own Paper.
