100,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock ๐Ÿ‡ณ๐Ÿ‡ฟ

Fast overnight NZ delivery ๐Ÿš€ Don't forget Father's Day is this Sunday ๐Ÿ“…

Masterpieces of Fantasy Art

Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Masterpieces of Fantasy Art traces the vibrant evolution of fantasy art from its 1923 roots in Weird Tales magazine through its resurgence with The Lord of the Rings and Conan the Barbarian in the 1960s, the 1970s boom thanks to Dungeons & Dragons and Star Wars, and a renewed interest sparked by 1990s trading card games. The book explores iconic voices like Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, and HR Giger, showcasing original paintings, preparatory sketches, sculptures, and memorabilia for a comprehensive dive into this imaginative genre. Detailed biographies reveal the fascinating lives behind the art, making this a definitive and lavish tribute to fantasy art history.
Read More
Format: Hardback
$45000

International Supplier

This title is in-stock with overseas suppliers. While it is not available locally, we fly books in weekly from the US and UK to our Auckland warehouse for immediate dispatch.

AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book is perfect for fans of fantasy and speculative art, art enthusiasts interested in imaginative realism, collectors of art history volumes, and readers keen on the cultural impact of myth-inspired visual storytelling.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

This monster tome has it all, with works by over 100 fantasy artists. Julie Bell, Philippe Druillet, Frank Frazetta, H.R. Giger, The Brothers Hildebrandt, Jeffrey Catherine Jones, Moebius, Rowena Morrill, Boris Vallejo, and Michael Whelan are here, along with first sketches and other materials for a deep dive into this dynamic genre.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Fantasy art, that colourful blend of myth, muscle and sexy maidens, took off in 1923 with the launch of Weird Tales magazine. It was reinvigorated in the 1960s with The Lord of the Rings, Conan the Barbarian paperbacks with Frank Frazetta covers, and the late '60s emergence of fantasy psychedelia. It went big in the '70s with the role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons, the brilliant French magazine Mรฉtal Hurlant, and the first Star Wars film.

The number of active artists peaked in that decade, but a new generation of fans discovered the genre through fantasy trading card games in the '90s, leading to a massive interest in the art form today. Frank Frazetta's oil paintingsโ€”when they infrequently come to marketโ€”have sold for more than $5 million in recent years. Fans line up at Comic-Cons to meet Boris Vallejo, Rodney Matthews, Greg Hildebrandt, Michael Whelan, and Philippe Druillet, and memorialise dead icons HR Giger, Jeffrey Catherine Jones, and Frazetta.

Imagine how eagerly they'll welcome TASCHEN's History of Fantasy Art, including all the artists listed above and more.

This monster-sized tome features original paintings, contextualised by preparatory sketches, sculptures, calendars, magazines, and paperback books for an immersive dive into this dynamic, fanciful genre. Insightful bios go beyond Wikipedia to give a more accurate and eye-opening look into the life of each artist. This collection will reign as the most exquisite and informative guide to this popular subject for years to come.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Critics praise this volume as a lavish and canonical collection, with mutualart.com calling it "an overwhelmingly gorgeous tome" and artnet.com highlighting fantasy art as "America's least understood fine-art form." La Libertรฉ describes it as "a book at least as epic as its subject." Editor Dian Hanson reflects on the visceral impact of fantasy art, celebrating its rich colours and imaginative landscapes.

Book Hero reading reviews

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9783836572101

Publisher: Taschen GmbH

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 04 September 2020

Country: Germany

Imprint: Taschen GmbH

Edition: Multilingual edition

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 76.0mm

Width: 290.0mm

Height: 395.0mm

Weight: 6454g

Pages: 532

About the Author

Dian Hanson is a senior editor and writer for TASCHEN, with over 50 books to her credit. In addition to Hal Fosterโ€™s Tarzan, her recent works include ARNOLD, The Art of Pin-up, Masterpieces of Fantasy Art, and The Fantastic Worlds of Frank Frazetta.

Also by Dian Hanson

View all
  • Sexy Record Covers
    An album cover collection exploring 70 years of surprising, shocking and frankly hilarious nude and provocative art. Sexy Record Covers sold in all musical genres, from funk to punk, and the silly German schlager. Comedy albums range from mid-century "stag party" pin-ups to the undeniably raunchy '70s sensation, Blowfly. Steamy, seamy and adults only.
    Hardback
    $19500
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Tom of Finland. The Complete Kake Comics. 45th Ed.
    In 1965, Tom of Finland began flirting with the idea of an ongoing character for his panel stories, the ultimate Tom's Man. He tried out a blond named Vickyโ€”a common male name in Finlandโ€”followed by a Tarzan-inspired Jack. Then in 1968, Tom settled on Kake, a dark-haired, moustached leatherman who often wore a tight white T-shirt bearing the motto "Fucker."...
    Hardback
    $6299
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Big Butt Book
    The Kama Sutra gives detailed instructions on how to spank it. Contemporary Italians touch it for luck before placing a bet. Americans are having it cosmetically enhanced at rates approaching breast enlargement surgery. The female butt, tush, culo, or derriรจre has always inspired awe, fantasy, and slavish devotion. Curiously, its primary purpose is functional rather than aesthetic: butts balance our...
    Hardback
    $15900
    Available
    Ships in 2-3 weeks
  • The Little Big Book of Legs
    Many loved The Big Book of Legs but some found it just too darn big, weighing in at nearly seven pounds. True, it was packed with shapely legs spanning six decades, from the first shy emergence of the ankle in the 1910s, through the rolled stockings and rouged knees of the 1920s, to the Betty Grable '40s, the stockinged and...
    Hardback
    $4599
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Masterpieces of Fantasy Art
    Fantasy art, that colourful blend of myth, muscle, and sexy maidens, took off in 1923 with the launch of Weird Tales magazine. It was reinvigorated in the 1960s with The Lord of the Rings, Conan the Barbarian paperbacks with Frank Frazetta covers, and the late '60s emergence of fantasy psychedelia. It saw significant growth in the '70s with the role-playing...
    Hardback
    $6299
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Little Big Butt Book
    How can we pack so much big booty into such a tiny and inexpensive package? Sorry, but it's a trade secret we can't divulge, except to say that shoehorns and spandex were involved. The original Big Butt Book featured a great cross section of delectable rears from the 1950s to the present day. Here, since life is such an ironic...
    Hardback
    $4599
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The New Erotic Photography
    In 2007 TASCHEN released The New Erotic Photography, followed in 2012 by The New Erotic Photography 2. Each book featured hundreds of fresh and provocative images from the world's most intriguing erotic talents. Now the best of both books is available in The New Erotic Photography, featuring 62 photographers from 10 countries, exploring the global variations of erotic photography, as...
    Hardback
    $5699
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Big Book of Legs
    The female leg is a sexual oddity. Non-genital, and nearly identical in structure to the corresponding male body part, there is no obvious reason why it is eroticised. Yet, through much of history, across many cultures, the female leg was hidden from sight and treated as such a taboo topic that it became an object of intense sexual obsession. In...
    Hardback
    Sold Out

More from Arts & Culture

View all
  • Dylan's Pick
    Bold Types
    A tribute to 32 truly independent bookshops throughout Aotearoa New Zealand, from north of Auckland down to Dunedin, and coast to coast. Jane Ussher's photographs show every bookstore in its unique nature - including behind the counter, smoko rooms, the mess which tells the hardworking story behind the joy of matching books with customers. Jemma Moreira's careful editing has crafted...
    Hardback
    $5999
    Elsewhere:
    $7000
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • New Release
    Home Again
    Join rock-legend, former Shihad frontman and lead singer of The Adults, Jon Toogood in this unflinching and no-holds-barred memoirย Home Again.This is more than a rock story.ย Toogood looks back on a 37-year career that helped define New Zealand rock music, and the personal cost that came with it.ย From a music-obsessed childhood in Wellington to the deafening roar of international stages, this...
    Paperback
    $3199
    Elsewhere:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Disney Moana: The Official Cookbook
    New Release
    Disney Moana: The Official Cookbook
    Embark on a culinary adventure with Moana of Motunui with Pacific recipes inspired by Moana and Moana 2! After a long day of sailing to see how far youโ€™ll go or keeping the demigod Maui out of trouble with Te Fiti, catch a break with the delicious dishes in Moana: The Official Cookbook! Featuring more than 50 recipes spanning the...
    Hardback
    $4499
    Elsewhere:
    $5299
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Buy to Win
    Did I Ever Tell You This?
    In this unexpected memoir, written in a creative burst of just a few months in 2022, Sam Neill tells the story of how he became one of the worldโ€™s most celebrated actors, who has worked with everyone from Meryl Streep to Isabel Adjani, from Jeff Goldblum to Sean Connery, from Steven Spielberg to Jane Campion. By his own account, his...
    Paperback
    $3799
    Elsewhere:
    $4500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • This Angry Pen of Mine
    This Angry Pen of Mine by Layne Staley invites you to dive into the untold creative world of Layne Staley, the legendary voice behind Alice in Chains. This extraordinary collection showcases his handwritten lyrics, deeply personal poetry, stunning original artwork, rare photos, fan tributes, and so much more. Step into the world of Layne Staley like never before. For the...
    Hardback
    $7299
    Elsewhere:
    $8999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Odyssey
    Composed at the rosy-fingered dawn of world literature almost three millennia ago, The Odyssey is a poem about violence and the aftermath of war; about wealth, poverty and power; about marriage and family; about travellers, hospitality, and the yearning for home. This fresh, authoritative translation captures the beauty of this ancient poem as well as the drama of its narrative....
    By Homer
    Paperback
    $2999
    Elsewhere:
    $3599
    Available
    Ships in 3-4 weeks
  • They Bloom Because of You
    Bestselling author and Instagram sensation Jessica Urlichs returns with a new collection of beautifully observed poems about the ever-evolving journey of motherhood - the hard, the magic and the fleeting. โ€˜A raw and honest read that makes you feel seen and understood in a way that will bring you to tears.โ€™ - Hilary Swank โ€˜A book to keep close and...
    Paperback
    $3000
    Elsewhere:
    $3600
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    14% off
    Leaves of Grass
    A collectible new Penguin Classics series offers beautiful, slim, clothbound editions of ten favourite poets. In 1855, Walt Whitman published his first collection of poetry, Leaves of Grass. The volume received great praise from leading Transcendentalist poet Ralph Waldo Emerson. This encouragement led to what would become a lifelong project, as Whitman expanded and rewrote the volume until his death...
    Hardback
    $1900
    Elsewhere:
    $2400
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • On Sale
    37% off
    Great Writers and the Cats who Owned Them
    Throughout history, cats and writers have bonded together in a magical combination of comfort, companionship and inspiration. The famous authors featured here range from Samuel Johnson, whose cat Hodge dined on oysters, and Edward Lear, whose charismatic cat Foss was missing half his tail, to Margaret Mitchell, L. M. Montgomery and Dorothy L. Sayers, who rescued her kitten Blitz from...
    Hardback
    $2500
    Usually:
    $3999
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Buy to Win
    The Odyssey
    The Odyssey by Homer is a monumental epic that has enthralled readers for centuries with its rich tapestry of adventure and human struggle. It chronicles the perilous journey of Odysseus, the cunning King of Ithaca, as he strives to return home after the fall of Troy. During this ten-year odyssey, Odysseus confronts myriad dangers, both natural and supernatural, that test...
    By Homer
    Paperback
    $2499
    Elsewhere:
    $2800
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Beautiful Chaos
    The Instant Sunday Times Bestseller Selected poems from bestselling author and Instagram poet, Jessica Urlichs. 'These words awaken the magic of life by celebrating the ordinary.' - Giovanna Fletcher Motherhood is messy and beautiful, and hard and humbling. We adore our children and sometimes we miss ourselves. Beautiful Chaos is a collection of raw, honest poems about motherhood, capturing everything...
    Paperback
    $2900
    Elsewhere:
    $3500
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • Devotions
    New York Times Bestseller, chosen as Oprah's 'Books That Help Me Through' for Oprah's Book Club Chosen by Poetry Book Society as their special commendation 'No matter where one starts reading, Devotions offers much to love, from Oliver's exuberant dog poems to selections from the Pulitzer Prize-winning American Primitive, and Dream Work, one of her exceptional collections. Perhaps more important,...
    Paperback
    $3200
    Elsewhere:
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships today

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.