GALACTIC ENCOUNTERS: DANGEROUS FRONTIERS - THE FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL ON DISANT WORLDS

Intercontinental Book Productions, hardback, 1980. Cover painting by Bob Layzell.

"The ships of the Galactic Federation's Survey and Preliminary Study Service ceaselessly range among the alien stars and unexplored planets which lie beyond the distant Perimeter. Contact with the bustling, central worlds of the Federation is difficult and infrequent as they face the dangers of the vast unknown. 

But the prosperity and growth of this great association of worlds would be impossible without new sources of supply and new avenues for expansion. Scarcely more than one in every hundred planets explored proves to be of sufficient interest to justify the implementation of a settlement programme. 

All the planets described in Dangerous Frontiers have won a place in the Federation at great cost in lives and efforts, and their existence owes much to the courage and determination of the creatures who first struggled for a foot-hold in their lonely and alien landscapes. 

Dangerous Frontiers is a study of those worlds as they are today. Some are vital to the network of trade, others have faded in importance and a few are only just emerging from obscurity. Whatever their current status in the Federation, it is to those who struggled alone in the emptiness beyond the frontiers that the honour belongs."

Painting by Angus McKie.

"One of the first sights to meet the eyes of a visitor to Monk's Field, are the impressive orbital terminals built in the mid twenty-second century."

Painting by Colin Hay.

"One of the scores of gigantic ore extraction plants constructed on Alpha Indi II to process the sea water. This plant is still operational."

Painting by Angus McKie.

"A view of Nihalan and its nearby lunar companion, Phox, showing one of the areas of intense volcanic activity which are scattered over the planet."

Painting by Chris Moore.

"The Beta Phoenicis system provides a base for the largest single industrial centre in the Federation. Transport between the twenty-seven planets and countless asteroids orbiting the sun is assisted by the vast transit stations where passengers can embark for any destination in known space."

Painting by Peter Elson.

"Passenger liners such as this Starfleet Major now ferry in pleasure seekers from all over the Federation to sample the delights of Ethsymon."

Painting by Cesare Reggiani.

"Until quite recently, the dolmens of 15 Lyncis Bee marked the sites of zyrillium treasure troves."

Painting by Roy Virgo.

"The research team's surface skimmers proved invaluable in their surveys of Eptel III."

ROBERT SHECKLEY: FUTUROPOLIS

Cover by Alan Daniels.

Futuropolis: 

"Is a memorable illustration-packed journey to the extraordinary cities of the future as envisioned by some of the most notable artists, writers, philosophers, architects and film makers, past and present, ever assembled in one volume. Here are the fantastic visions of Piero della Francesca and Buckminster Fuller, of Plato, George Orwell and Isaac Asimov, of Fritz Lang, of Breughel and Druillet, and many more. Impossible cities? Nothing but science fiction and fantasy? Many of these astounding visions already exist."

Robert Sheckley: 

"A well-known science fiction writer whose works include Mindswap, Dimension Of Miracles, Citizen In Space and The Tenth Victim, which was made into a movie starring Ursula Andress and Marcello Mastroianni. A Brooklyn-born graduate of New York University, he lives with his family in London."

Painting by Colin Hay for The Lathe Of Heaven by Ursula Le Guin.

Painting by Bob Layzell.

"Fire Time" by Colin Hay.

Amazing Science Fiction Stories, February 1959. Illustration by Phil Berry.

"The City Crumbles" by Bob Layzell.

"Torquedara Varenkor" by Philippe Druillet.

Painting by George Underwood.

Céméroon by Philippe Druillet.

THE BEST OF OMNI SCIENCE FICTION NO.2

The Best Of Omni Science Fiction No. 2, 1981. Cover painting by Fred-Jurgen Rogner.

This is a re-post of an Omni mag I originally scanned in May 2011. I was skimming through a few issues a few days ago and noticed I'd apparently missed at least half a dozen pieces of artwork from this particular magazine. This issue also featured pictorials on Chris Foss' book 21st Century Foss and John Schoenherr's Dune illustrations (from The Illustrated Dune) but you can find the real thing(s) here and here, respectively.

"This very worthy successor to a much-acclaimed first volume is intended for science-fiction devotees and neophytes alike. It has an introduction by Robert Sheckley and 16 memorable stories by such masters of the genre as Theodore Sturgeon, George R. R. Martin, and Orson Scott Card. In a special sf appearance TV personality Hugh Downs describes a reincarnation deep in the future and Robert Silverberg contributes a never-before-published novella about a distant moon in a distant time. Arthur C. Clarke annotates an illustrated presentation of cosmic spaceships. Five other breathtakingly colourful pictorials include works of John Schoenherr, Christopher Foss, and David Jackson."

Painting by Bob Layzell, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Bob Layzell, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Peter Knifton, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Peter Knifton, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Alan Daniels, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Bob Layzell, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Colin Hay, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Alan Daniels, from the pictorial Spaceships.

Painting by Paul Lehr, from the pictorial Star Seekers.

Painting by John Schoenherr, from the pictorial Star Seekers.

Taken Hostage, painting by Michael Whelan, from the pictorial Star Seekers.

The One Who Stayed Behind, painting by Darrell Sweet, from the
pictorial Star Seekers.

Painting by Angus McKie, from the pictorial 7 Wonders Of The Universe.

"The doors of Launch stand four kilometers from the ground. The hangar itself measures 4,600 square kilometers and was built when subatomic fuel was still cheap and muon-guzzling space limousines were gigantic."

Painting by John Harris, from the pictorial Time Travellers.

MECHANISMO

Pierrot softcover 1978. Cover painting Sentry Biot by Jim Burns.

 "In MECHANISMO the future has come. In MECHANISMO intergalactic space travel has arrived, biotic robots are a thing of the present, space ports to service the stars and planets are real, space cities are inhabited, fantastic machines, time machines, battle robots and massive computers exist here and now. 

In MECHANISMO you can see a gaussi fighter in full colour and then as an engineer's technical drawing with the armaments, drive power and all specifications given in great detail. Here you will discover the most startling machines illustrated specially for the book: troop carriers, personnel craft, giant time machines, a computer that would fill an entire city and cities built in the image of man, visited by alien races. You will see too the technical drawings for an actual planned NASA space colony, twenty five miles long and two miles in diameter. 

In MECHANISMO you become part of the future and can live through the illustrations in worlds that may one day exist."

Painting by Bob Layzell.

Painting by Bob Layzell.

Painting by Colin Hay.

Painting by Alan Daniels.

Painting by Tony Roberts.

ALIEN LANDSCAPES

Mayflower paperback, first American edition 1979. © Young Artists. Cover painting by Les Edwards

"Alien worlds have always been a central excitement in science fiction. Imaginary landscapes, some surreal, others realistic, are highly important to the novels in which they are contained. Many of these worlds are carefully constructed, realistically detailed and vividly imagined. 

ALIEN LANDSCAPES explores ten of the best-known worlds with a detailed text explaining their history & politics, climate, geography, flora & fauna and their location in the galaxy. All are brilliantly visualized in 30 original paintings, specially commissioned from ten of the best sf and fantasy illustrators. 

See in full colour the spectacular worlds of Arthur C Clarke's Rama; Anne McCaffrey's Pern; the Okie Cities of James Blish; Hal Clement's Mesklin; Harry Harrison's Eros; the Arrakis of Frank Herbert's Dune; Larry Niven's Ringworld; Trantor from Asimov's Foundation Trilogy; Brian Aldiss's Hothouse and the End of the World of H G Wells. These illustrations give an inspired reality to the life and times 'out there' from the full planetary view right down to the details of landscapes and society."

First Contact by Jim Burns.

 "After Lieutenant Pak and the Dragonfly crashed near the south pole he became the first explorer to encounter a Biot. This was one of the most abundant forms, the scavenger, which played an important part in recycling waste material on Rama. Here it is slicing up the remnants of the Dragonfly with its scissor-like claws and placing the pieces in a storage cavity on its back with the help of appendages closely resembling human hands."

Okie City, Trading Contact by John Harris.

 "In orbit around a colonized world, the Okie City of New York, with its familiar Manhattan skyline, makes contact with a space vessel sent up by the colonists to make first trade-contact. Such stops frequently include the transfer of some personnel, some city dwellers deciding to apply for immigration permission, some colonists requesting permission to come aboard the flying city and make a life for the stars."

Storm Debris On Mesklin by Tony Roberts.

 "A hurricane has raged across the equatorial area of Mesklin wreaking immense damage to life and land, and reaching deep into the sea itself. This huge deep-ocean creature has been cast onto a sandy beach, dead and rotting. An earthman, wearing the heavy, life-supporting suit that enables him to walk despite the 6 times normal gravity, tries to dig a sample of the creature for analysis, but he has no instrument strong enough to tear into the 'teak-wood' like tissue of the monster. The tiny Mesklinites, a group of traders, gather round to watch, and solve the problem themselves' their forward pincers are able to cut tungsten steel, and they snip off pieces of the creature with ease, eating more than they give to the earthman."

The Valley by Colin Hay.

 "From a vantage point high above the valley the pronounced curvature of the small world can clearly be seen. A river runs the length of the valley, providing a natural barrier between the two primitive communities. The valley's 'sun' is actually a ball of plasma in a controlled fusion reaction; it runs across the 'sky' (whose illusion of reality is complete even at close proximity) on tracks. Here, having finished its daily traverse of the sky, the sun is about to enter the interior of the asteroid, where it will cross under the valley in time to emerge above the distant mountains for tomorrow's dawn. Night is about to fall: in the valley the villagers hurry to the safety of their villages as Coatlicue emerges to stalk the fields and marshes."

Sandworm And A Rider by Terry Oakes.

 "At the fringe of the deep desert the Fremen have summoned a Sandworm by means of a 'Thumper'. Now the Hookman mounts the worm, holding open the fore edge of the ring segments with his Maker hooks. Other Fremen wait to follow once the Hookman has control. This is a medium-sized worm, perhaps 250 metres long; in the deep desert worms may grow to almost double its size."

Ringworld Surface At Night by Stuart Hughes.

"Only at night can the true awesomeness of the ringworld be appreciated on its surface. In daylight the landscape dwindles away into a hazy, horizonless infinity; at night the arch of the Ringworld becomes visible, soaring overhead - a mere line of brightness at its apex - and descending again at the other side (behind the vantage point of this picture). At night it is possible to appreciate the sheer immensity of the ringworld. The mountain in the right foreground is the thousand-mile-high first-of-god, formed by the impact of a meteorite striking the underside of the ringworld and causing even the fantastically strong foundation material to bulge inwards."

ENCYCLOPEDIA OF SCIENCE FICTION

Octopus Books hardback. Jacket illustration by Tony Roberts.

 "This exceptional encyclopedia unfolds new exciting material on the major areas of science fiction. The collected thoughts and experiences of eleven outstanding contributors are blended into twelve superb, concise, critical but constructive sections each supplemented by magnificent and illuminating illustrations. 

It is a remarkable volume which delves into every conceivable crevice of the sf world. The work and ideas from authors such as Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, Aldous Huxley, Olaf Stapledon, Philip K. Dick, Brian Aldiss, Robert Silverberg and J. G. Ballard, are among the many looked at in this volume. The origins of sf are examined in detail and an in-depth study is made of aliens, hardware, locations, alternative worlds, biology, space technology, sociology, ecology and the many complementary and adjacent fields. 

A compact catalogue section which includes collectors items, cults, magazines, film titles and awards concludes this impressive addition to science fiction reference books."

Painting by Jim Burns for Harry Harrison's The Streets Of Ashkelon.

Painting by Colin Hay.

Painting by Josh Kirby for Brian Aldiss' The Interpreter.

Illustration by David Pelham, for the second Jerry Cornelius novel
A Cure For Cancer by Michael Moorcock.