Tribute - Cycles of Fire

The last in this series of tribute paintings to the 1980's science fiction artwork classic, "Cycles of Fire," this painting is my interpretation of that book's cover painting. The original piece, create by William K. Hartmann, depicted a barred spiral galaxy in the background with a binary pair of a red giant and white dwarf looming close in the foreground. My version has the same basic composition, but I moved the foreground stars off into the distance since I chose to focus more on the sheer scale of the scene vs. the stars themselves. As with an earlier painting, the technique of flicking water-diluted paint with a toothbrush was used to create the sparkling stars; finally, like most nocturns, this painting was very difficult to photograph, but I think it turned out well.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"

Tribute - Comet Storm

Another tribute painting based on a classic piece in the late 1980's "Cycles of Fire" science fiction artbook. One of the paintings that I found most striking among so many great ones was one painted by Ron Miller; the scene was that of a young, alien world of fiery colors with numerous comets filling the sunset sky. When I first ventured into landscape painting, I tried to recreate that image, but never succeeded; 25+ years later, I decided to give it a whirl again, and this is my version of that scene. Along the wet sands of a large lake, above the rocky spires and far-away hills, comets hang in the blazing sky.

Acrylic painting: 14" x 17"