Hey, Publishers!

by Arnie Fenner

I love art books. I always have; I always will. And it doesn't matter how many might already be sitting on our increasingly-bowed shelves, there's always room for more. As hot as e-books and e-readers are, they still haven't been able to compete with the visual and tactile satisfaction a traditional art book offers. They undoubtedly will...eventually. But until that day comes...

I want more art books.

And I would dearly love to see fat, gorgeous collections devoted to...

Leo & Diane Dillon

Yes, there was a very nice collection of their art that was produced in, oh, 1981 (30 years ago!); it's way past time for something more comprehensive, something more complete, that fully celebrates both their originality and their many, many accomplishments.

Rose O'Neil

Best known as the creator of the Kewpie (art, comic strip, doll, et al), O'Neil was not only one of the first prominent women illustrators, but, for a time, was also the highest paid illustrator in the U.S. Collectors of her originals are enthusiastic and more than a tad secretive.

Bob Peak

Really. Who wouldn't want a Bob Peak art book?

Brad Holland

It's unfathomable that there hasn't already been a color retrospective of Holland's influential work. His art for Playboy's "Ribald Classics" bowled me over when I was a kid, and my regard for him has only increased in the decades since.

Gregory Manchess

Some artists are adept at SF. Others at fantasy. Some find their niche painting Westerns or wildlife or history or the figure. Manchess paints it all. Exceptionally. The challenge is to find the far-ranging places where his work appears. Hey! You publishers out there: a book that gathers Greg's art in one spot. Please! Oh, wait: is Manchess reading this? A-hem, uhh...as I was saying, somebody should take this guy's paints away and...