For brief hiatus from the art-related Hugo Award nominations posts, allow me to direct your attention to that wonderful repository of all things science fiction and fantasy, SF Signal, for my Short Fiction Friday post.
Today’s offering features the novellas, novelettes and short stories that I are poised to get my nominations for the 2014 Hugo Awards.
Check out how I’m leaning, and feel free to let me know if I’ve missed any.
“Creating a moment that communicates emotionally with the viewer is the essence of Gregory Manchess’ artwork.”
That quote, from the biography on the website of artist Gregory Manchess, is the perfect beginning to a cursory understanding of what makes the artist, and his work, so special.
I have had the pleasure of meeting Gregory Manchess on two occasions, at the first and second Spectrum Fantastic Art Live events. He is an incredibly generous and approachable man whose art defies easy description. Unless of course you go with the obvious route and point the viewer to the works and let the works speak for themselves.
Continue reading My Best Professional Artist Hugo Nominations: Gregory Manchess
There was never any worry that my nominations list for Best Professional Artist this year would be 100% male-centric, despite the many male artists who consistently produce work that leaves me in awe. Not with artist Julie Dillon and the number of stunning works she produced in 2013.
I am not exaggerating in stating that it felt like every time I spent any significant time on the internet in 2013 I was coming across a Julie Dillon piece that a) I had never seen before, and b) raised her another notch in my already high esteem.
Continue reading My Best Professional Artist Hugo Nominations: Julie Dillon
Back in January the website io9 re-posted my Favorite Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Covers of 2013. The discussion that ensued included a question from Tor Books’ creative director, Irene Gallo, asking if now was the time to consider long-time science fiction artist John Harris for the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist.
I responded with an emphatic “Yes!!!”.
I have long been a fan of the work of John Harris, and consider him one of my all-time favorite genre illustrators. His work fueled my imagination well before I ever read a book graced by one of his covers. His style is iconic, and yet I don’t want to give the impression that I think John Harris deserves a Best Professional Artist nomination for the work he has amassed over a long career.
To the contrary, his published output in 2013 speaks loudly and boldly proclaims the worthiness of his presence on the nominee list.
Continue reading My Best Professional Artist Hugo Nominations: John Harris
I, Hugo set down my feelings about my upcoming first experience in nominating for the Hugo Awards. In the brief time I have left before the nomination period ends, I would like to discuss the candidates that I believe have earned a nomination, starting with the Best Professional Artist category. This is the first of five posts that will spotlight my nominees.
It might have been easy to overlook John Picacio for the Best Artist category this year. Notice that I wrote might have been and not would have been. I suppose some might look at the fact that John Picacio is the most recent back-to-back Hugo winner and feel that the spotlight should turn elsewhere.
But then John Picacio did what one would expect a two-time Hugo Award winner to do: he upped his game. So no, it would not have been easy to overlook John’s contributions to the realm of fantastical art in 2013. He made sure of that.
Continue reading My Best Professional Artist Hugo Nominations: John Picacio