Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Eugene Grasset comes to Darkover 1980


In 1980 I was already very involved with Darkover and its fan community, and I would also publish my first Darkover book cover that year. I drew sketches and studies for Darkover art in my journal, illustrating the world of the Red Sun. This one was based on the style of Eugene Grasset, a Swiss-French artist of the 19th century, whose art nouveau styling rivaled that of the much better known Alphonse Mucha. I'm linking to a blog which presents large versions of Grasset's "Belle Jardiniere" or gardening ladies throughout the seasons, one for each of the 12 months. I hope the art blog I linked to does not explode or disappear as it features a treasure-trove of lesser known art to look at. I love the Grasset style and not only was it popular and commercially successful in its day, it also formed the basis for the European "clear line" graphic novel style which flourished in the 20th century.

Darkovan garden maiden is ink and watercolor on sketchbook page, 4" x 6 1/2", fall 1980.

1 comment:

MKS said...

I like this piece a lot. I think this style suits your strengths as an artist, too, dreamy but with lots of strong lines. I know it is none of my business, but personally I find this a lot more appealing than the "pin-up" style pieces (yours or anybody's) and I think it could actually be more commercial as well. It has a fairy-tale feel to it, and after all, there is a whole genre of fantasy "fairy tales." As a woman, I'm more likely to pick up a book with a cover like this than one with some airbrushed babe in a cheesecake pose with a gun on the front. I can't help feeling a little excluded by those, like they are not meant for me.