{ "item_title" : "Worlds Beyond Time", "item_author" : [" Adam Rowe "], "item_description" : "Worlds Beyond Time is the definitive visual history of the spaceships, alien landscapes, cryptozoology, and imagined industrial machinery of 1970s paperback sci-fi art and the artists who created these extraordinary images. This collectible volume is a loving tribute to a unique and robust art form whose legacy lives on, both in nostalgic appreciation as well as the retro-chic design of mainstream sci-fi films such as Guardians of the Galaxy, Alien: Covenant, and Thor: Ragnarok. In the 1970s, mass-produced, cheaply printed science-fiction novels were thriving. The paper was rough, the titles outrageous, and the cover art astounding. Over the course of the decade, a stable of talented painters, comic-book artists, and designers produced thousands of the most eye-catching book covers to ever grace bookstore shelves (or spinner racks). The pieces commissioned for these covers often had very little to do with the contents of the books they were selling, but by leaning heavily on psychedelic imagery, far-out landscapes, and trippy surrealism, the art was able to satisfy the same space race-fueled appetite for the big ideas and brave new worlds that sci-fi writers were boldly pushing forward. In Worlds Beyond Time: Sci-Fi Art of the 1970s, Adam Rowe--who has been curating, championing, and resurrecting the best and most obscure art that 1970s sci-fi has to offer on his blog 70s Sci-Fi Art--introduces readers to the biggest names in the genre, including Chris Foss, Peter Elson, Tim White, Jack Gaughan, and Virgil Finlay, as well as their influences. Packed with gorgeously reproduced art, this book also includes deep dives into the subject matter that commonly appeared on these covers--spaceships, alien landscapes, fantasy realms, cryptozoology, and heavy machinery.", "item_img_path" : "https://covers4.booksamillion.com/covers/bam/1/41/974/869/1419748696_b.jpg", "price_data" : { "retail_price" : "40.00", "online_price" : "40.00", "our_price" : "40.00", "club_price" : "40.00", "savings_pct" : "0", "savings_amt" : "0.00", "club_savings_pct" : "0", "club_savings_amt" : "0.00", "discount_pct" : "10", "store_price" : "" } }

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Throughout the 1970s, science fiction paperbacks were graced with attention-grabbing cover art that often possessed shockingly complex detail. Even in the 21st century, these ornate compositions and vivid color palettes still percolate into major franchises such as James Cameron’s Avatar series or the 2016 video game No Man’s Sky. Adam Rowe chronicles the development of this instantly recognizable style in Worlds Beyond Time: Sci-Fi Art of the 1970s. This thorough collection traces a connection between '70s cover art and influences that include 1920s iconography by Frank R. Paul (“underwater explorers, human-eating plants, future ice-age apocalypses, dinosaurs fighting laser rays”), surrealism, psychedelia and even the competing genre of fantasy. Rowe writes, “In my unvarnished opinion, '70s sci-fi is the peak of artistic achievement, though I’ve heard good things about the Renaissance.” It’s a bold statement, but one that is difficult to refute as one traverses the vibrant pages of Worlds Beyond Time, which does a superb job of cataloging the nuances of artists and their unique styles, from Angus McKie’s hazy cities and space stations, to the elegant dreamscapes of Bruce Pennington. In addition to spotlighting an exemplary art style, Worlds Beyond Time demonstrates the stunning vastness of science fiction as a literary genre.