Spectrum 9: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art

The Spectrum series is a collection of contemporary and fantastic art illustrations. I recommend it to anyone looking for discovering interesting work and contemporary artists. The work ranges from cover illustrations, paintings, sculptures to some toys, action figures and graphic novel work. The selection is usually very well done. I think the sculpture section is not as good as the graphic and painting area. It is interesting to notice in the volume 9 the diversity of techniques presented there. There are some pure digital art, but most of it is made of traditional media, or a mix with digital tools and some other technique.

I recently purchased Spectrum 9, 10, and 11. These books are absolutely wonderful, and I would recommend them to any artist or fan of fantasy/sci fi art. They are extremely well put together, of high quality (reproduction wise), have a large number and variety of artists, and contain some of the most beautiful works of art I have seen. Some of the subject matter can be disturbing or somewhat sexual in nature (certainly nothing explicit, but not exactly innocent either), so I wouldn't recomend them for the very young (12 or under?) if you are a parent. These books are worth every penny and highly recommended.

This book is like a kick-ass mobile art gallery. Anyone interested in some cool artists with real talent that you can't find in museums or galleries should have this edition on their coffee tables or on their mantles. A visual cornicopia of excellently presented ideas compiled in a book that will have you closely staring at the pages. Really cool.

Not unlike the other titles in the Spectrum series, Spectrum 9 provides a great overview of contemporary fantastic art, the best emerging artists, new trends, and samples of the forever-loved art. The artwork is much better documented with sources listed for further study of fantastic art. If you've ever admired a cover on a sci-fi book, cool credits in a fantasy movie, or even action figures of your favorite super heroes, this book might be for you. The nice thing about the Spectrum series is that you do not need to reach for a specific volume to look at specific form of art. Each volume offers a pretty even and ,personally I think, good cross section of the current fantastic art and design.

I have been patiently waiting (OK, maybe not so patiently) since November for Spectrum 9 to be released. Even though I had to wait an extra month and a half, it was well worth the wait. Once again, the Spectrum series provides us with the best in contemporary and fantastic art, and it IS fantastic. Entries range from weird, to gory, to funny, to beautiful. I began this series with Spectrum 8, then bought 7. Unfortunately, the other 6 are out of print (and cost a pretty penny), but these 3 will do. If you like sci-fi/fantasy art, this is the book for you. There's something for everyone, and in my opinion, there is not one bad painting in the whole book. Buy this today - you will get more than your money's worth.