The Fantastic Art of Rowena

Growing up in the 70s, if you were a genre book reader, there were just certain artists that were on your radar. Frank Frazetta. Boris Vallejo. Chris Foss. Michael Whelan. The Brothers Hildebrandt...and Rowena.

Each one carved out their own niche, and each did it well. Rowena was not one that perhaps consistently grabbed me, possibly because I found her figures, while gorgeously rendered, always felt a bit stiff (compare them to the fluidity of a Frazetta or a Vallejo), but the color palette and the imagination was always top notch.

This is a short, yet illuminating overview of her earlier work. She would produce much greater paintings later, and absolutely earned her spot as one of the top tier fantasy/SF illustrators of her time.

I show more really do miss the paperback covers of the 70s and 80s. They just don't do them like that anymore. show less

This is an early collection of Rowena Morrill's work. She had yet to win the British Fantasy Award for her illustrations. In some ways her depiction of the human form remind me of Boris Vallejo. She really excels in depicting textures. The clothes that she paints look like fabric you want to touch to see if it is as soft and silky as it appears. There is a reason I have kept this book for over 30 years -- I love it.