Art

Michael Whelan is an extraordinary painter and illustrator, a creator of master pieces that are beyond words. His original paintings are in the most important museums and galleries in U.S., and abroad. His illustrations are on the book-covers of the greatest science fiction bestseller books, such as novels of Isaac Asimov, Tad Williams, Arthur C. Clarke among others; as well as on music album covers: Michael Jackson's Victory and the rock singer Meat Loaf album. You can also find his art illustrating magazines like OMNI and National Geographic. Whelan has worked with companies like Tristar Productions, Atari and others. He is also the artist behind the unforgettable poster of the Arthur C. Clarke film “2010”.

He was born in California. Michael began to paint and achieved success in his early years. He received a Bachelor of Arts in painting at San Jose University and then went on to the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles. He has just won the Hugo Award for "Professional Artist" (2002), after having won the award eleven times. He has also received the Howard World Fantasy Award for the "Best Artist" three times.

It is an honor to interview Michael Whelan, and to introduce our readers to his overwhelming world of fantasy to learn more about the artist and his artwork.

Interview by Marisa Darnel

ARTIST INTERVIEWS: Michael, which materials do you work with?

Michael Whelan.: It depends...on what the inspiration for the work is [illustration or my own painting], how large the work is, and what I'm trying to accomplish. For Surfaces, I use the following supports for my artwork, depending on my mood, the subject, which kind of paint I'm using, and other considerations. For watercolor board, I use D'Arches watercolor paper mounted on 100% rag museum mounting board. I get it from New York Central Art Supply, New York City. On Masonite, I prefer the commercial brand known as Gessoboard. On Canvas, I use Fredrix Polyflax or Ultrasmooth for much of my painting on canvas. Some are done on Claessons Linen and other brands. I find I can't buy canvas without actually feeling it and seeing the weave with my own eyes, so I usually buy it when I'm in NYC, at Pearl Paint or some other store.

Most of my work is done with acrylic paints. I use liquid acrylic paints from Liquitex and Golden. They are available through the Daniel Smith or Dick Blick catalogs, which is where I usually get them. I virtually never use the tube paints, since I occasionally run them through an airbrush and I rarely get into developing thick textures for their own sake. I use Golden Satin Painting Medium when I want to execute a wet-in-wet blend (usually only on underpaintings).

Sometimes, though, I like to work in oils (I'd say about 15% of the time). I use Winsor Newton oil paints most of the time, occasionally supplementing them with Griffin alkyds when I'm in a hurry and can't wait for a passage of some slow drying oil color (like Cadmium Yellow, for instance) to dry. I use Liquin as my medium of choice. I thin my paints and clean the brushes with mineral spirits. I use sable as well as hog bristle brushes for oil paintings, depending on the effect I am seeking.

As for brushes: I use various brushes and other implements to apply paint to a work in progress. Probably 85% of the time I use synthetic brushes, my favorite being the white sable ones by Robert Simmons. I buy all sorts of brushes though, all kinds, whatever I think might work for a certain application I have in mind. My advice to painters is to keep an open mind and use whatever does the job for you.

A.I.: What is your inspiration?

M.W.: Well, I know this is a radical idea, but I try to let the book I'm illustrating determine the approach and subject matter! I read the material -- usually twice -- then start sketching. My personal work comes from all sorts of places: dreams, conversations with myself, etc., most of the time, the images just float up to my awareness from somewhere [my subconscious? My muse?] and I see the painting in my mind's eye. Sometimes I'm aware of the meaning and symbolism of the elements in the image when I visualize it, sometimes it is years until I come to understand the meaning behind the painting.

A.I.: How do you do a book cover?

M.W.: It starts with reading the book. Then follows a period of sorting through the various themes, scenes, characters and feelings to come up with visual representations which convey the essentials as much as possible. I do anywhere from one to 22 concept renderings, which I then send to the publisher for selection and feedback. One is decided upon, then I am free to start the actual painting. The painting itself usually takes a couple of weeks or more.

A.I.: Did your father's occupation influence your choice of career?

M.W.: I'm sure it was a major influence, if for no other reason than that we often lived near missile bases. I remember waking up in the middle of the night, going to my bedroom window, and watching a Titan 3-C going up in a fountain of flame which lit up the night. Scenes like that tend to influence a fellow! I grew up taking it for granted that our collective future was in outer space, and that we would go ever onward into the solar system during my lifetime. Who would have thought that we'd leave the moon after a handful of visits, never to return?

A.I.: Which painting seemed to launch your career?

M.W.: The main turning point in my mind came when I painted the cover to Del Rey's edition of "The White Dragon" by Anne McCaffrey. That was my first book cover to make the best seller lists.

A.I.: What messages lie behind the images?

M.W.: That way too complex a question to answer here. I've done hundreds of paintings and the great majority of them have symbolic elements in them of one sort or another. The illustrations of course are primarily concerned with the books they illustrate, so any "messages" contained therein come from the books.

My personal or gallery paintings cover a lot of ground, but most of them fall into one of a number of series with related themes and/or symbols. For example, my "Passage' paintings are concerned with transformation, and the idea of life after death. My "Faded Star" paintings are about my feelings of disillusionment.

A.I.: Any dream projects yet to achieve?

M.W.: My goal is simply to be able to make a sound living from my gallery work alone, if possible. That is not an easy proposition, frankly, but I'm hoping to make it work. I illustrate less and less as time goes on, but there are always fun projects which come along and tempt me from time to time.

If I was to win the lottery I would devote a good length of time to a sculptural project I have in mind. I've always been interested in creating a series of large dioramas along the lines of the ones in the major museums...scenes which transport the audience to other climes and world environments. Instead of giving people the feel of Africa or the Shetland Islands, though, I would transport people to the cloud tops of Jupiter, the surface of Europa, or [even] the earth's moon. The idea is to try to reinvigorate the sense of wonder and exploration which galvanized the pioneers of the early American space program, in my own small way.

A.I.: What are you working on now?

M.W.: This week I had three things going on at the same time. I finished a book cover painting for DAW Books for a new novel by Jude Fisher. I did a painting for our family Christmas card, and I am working on illustrating Stephen King's last Gunslinger book, "The Dark Tower".

A.I.: Which music do you listen to when you paint?

M.W.: I almost always have music playing while I work. It varies considerably, going from ambient electronic sound textures to punk rock to classical music to environmental sound spaces...and everything in between. What I can't listen to are country and western tunes or operatic arias.

I listen to recorded books when I am working on paintings with a lot of detail that can be done "on automatic" so to speak.

A.I.: What's your average day like?

M.W.: Hmm...hard to say, because that is something that is continually evolving, due to changing family circumstances. These days, though, I can say my days usually run this way:

Up and at work by 9 ...a long walk around 12 noon, followed by lunch and some coffee. Then work until about 6PM. Dinner and family time until about 10PM then I often work until about 12 midnight, sometimes later. That's the general outline...but it is changed by special events, home crises, chores and the necessary activities experienced by most families.

A Very Special Thanks to Audrey Price (Mrs. Whelan).
You Can Visit Michael Whelan's Official Site: www.michaelwhelan.com