Name that art style -

[Lachlan Hunter McIntyre]

The thread where the artistically gifted and knowledgable can help us less fortunate identify various art styles.

I'll start with something I'm curious to know the name of. It was a very popular style in the late 70s well into the late 80s. Very conceptual and ethereal looking, almost airbrushed. Usually in unearthly landscapes with vivid unnatural colours. Usually used for album artwork during that timeframe. These Iron Maiden covers are good examples of it, anyone know what it's called?

 

[Lachlan Hunter McIntyre]

Here's 2 more

 

[Kartoffel]

I'm far from an art expert, but lowbrow seems to fit the best. I don't think that there is a necesserily an art style for every piece of art in the world...
Could even be real airbrushes if not drawn with a computer. Airbrushs are the best thing for fine color gradients, which are really hard/impossible to do in other traditional media.

 

[Lachlan Hunter McIntyre]

The thing with lowbrow is it looks specifically for comics and things of that nature. I've seen this art style used with just landscapes, not always for album art. It is closer than what I've come up with, though.

 

[BurningPewter]

I'd describe it as fantasy art - the classic sci-fi/fantasy illustration cover style. In the 70s and 80s a lot of artists did both fantasy novels and rock/metal record covers - The Hildebrant bros , and there's also Rodney Mathews, Michael Whelan, Frank Frazetta, Boris Vallejo, Julie Bell.

It was pretty easy to find big books of these guys art in 80s and 90s bookstores but you might have to search now.

hildebrant

whelan

rodney matthews

frazetta

Vallejo

Julie Bell

 

[Lachlan Hunter McIntyre]

That is very similar, thank you.

For the record, this thread is for anybody curious to learn about an art style. Someone can ask about a different one of they so choose.

 

[Bogs]

What the hell is this?!

 

[Jewelsmakerguy]

What the hell is this?!

The unreleased Conan novel?

Nah, but seriously, it looks to be in the same vein as the other pictures thus far. Though a little more realistic than stylized.

 

[Trilby]

The unreleased Conan novel?

Nah, but seriously, it looks to be in the same vein as the other pictures thus far. Though a little more realistic than stylized.

It is certainly that fantasy-style artwork, the likes of which Frazetta, Vallejo and others have popularized back then.

 

[AnOminous]

It is certainly that fantasy-style artwork, the likes of which Frazetta, Vallejo and others have popularized back then.

Don't dis Boris Vallejo. Musclefags have poured buckets of jizz all over his art.

 

[Bogs]

The unreleased Conan novel?

Nah, but seriously, it looks to be in the same vein as the other pictures thus far. Though a little more realistic than stylized.

I was referring more to the actual album; I've never seen it before