Auction: March 26

Our curators picked their favorite items from our upcoming March 26 Pulp, Paperback, Science Fiction & Fantasy Illustration Art Showcase Auction.
| Sarahjane's Picks Sarahjane Blum | Director of Illustration Art
Al Rossi The Always Nude Divorcee, For Men Only magazine interior, January 1964
The chair, the arm, the carefully draped sheet that our damsel-not-in-distress chooses to hold while shooting the intruder—all these details make this one a must-have for me. Al Rossi was a master of men’s adventure magazine illustration, and The Always Nude Divorcee keeps the absurdity and dramatic tension he’s tasked with taking on here in perfect balance.
British Artist Guns of Hate paperback cover
Offering the Digit Books Collection of British Pulp and Paperback Art is a delight for many reasons—one being the rarely seen examples of British-produced takes on American Western novels, often written and illustrated by people whose only experience of the West came from movies and pulp magazines. Guns of Hate is a playful delight, layering trope upon trope in a thoroughly campy take on the genre.
Bill Gregg Lady Chatterley's Lover paperback cover, 1950
Lady Chatterley’s Lover is one of the 20th century’s most infamous banned books. Written in 1928, it was only published in heavily censored forms until 1960. During those intervening years, rumors of its full content drove sales of even the censored editions. In this 1950 paperback publication by Signet, Bill Gregg leans into the scandal—foregrounding the wedding ring of Lady Chatterley against the bare skin of her lover during a tryst.
| Meagen's Picks Meagen McMillan | Senior Consignment Director, Illustration Art
William E. Terry Phantom World, Imagination digest magazine cover, August 1954
Imagination Digest is one of my top three favorite sci-fi publications (Amazing Stories and IF being the others). In this cover, Terry showcases his talent with a classic pulp composition—the daring rescue of a fair space maiden, a rocketship breaking perspective from the fierce duel in the foreground, and a chaotic air battle among the stars along the top of the composition. Truly a knockout for any pulp or sci-fi collection.
British Artist The Devil Is a Skirt paperback cover
Traditionally, I am not drawn to illustrations where the lettering or signage is physically painted onto the work. But the Digit collection has changed my mind. When I glance at The Devil is a Skirt, I can’t help but reply to the painting, “Heck yeah, she is!” It reminds me of contemporary artists The Connor Brothers, who repurpose old pulp covers with their own playful statements and phrasing.
| Ezriel's Picks Ezriel Wilson | Cataloguer, Fine Art
Hal Stone Duncan Maclain: Frankincense and Murder, 1961 | Hal Stone Duncan Maclain: Clear and Present Danger, 1958
Who doesn’t love the mystery and thrill of a private eye? Artist Hal Stone’s Clear and Present Danger and Frankincense and Murder—created for serialized runs of Duncan Maclain—deliver the sharp, exciting appeal of classic mystery. Duncan Maclain, created by author Baynard Kendrick, was a private investigator blinded during World War II who set up an office in New York, solving murder mysteries with the aid of his two German Shepherds and assistants. Stone’s use of light and pose sets each scene, leaving you wondering just what Maclain has uncovered.
Kevin Murphy Technocracy: Progenitors. A Sourcebook for Mage: The Ascension book cover, 1993
Kevin Murphy’s Technocracy: Progenitors, a sourcebook for Mage: The Ascension feels like a portal to another dimension. The sourcebook served as a guide for a role-playing game where players battle the Progenitors—life-shapers of the Technocracy. Murphy’s skill in handling form while simultaneously allowing it to dissolve into abstraction made for the perfect cover image. His use of color and creation of the environment evoke a daunting sense of the future, enticing players to embark on their journey as the Mage.
Browse and bid now on these and other spectacular original art pieces in our March 26 Pulp, Paperback, Science Fiction & Fantasy Illustration Art Showcase Auction. Sincerely,
|  | Sarahjane Blum Director of Illustration Art SarahjaneB@HA.com (214) 409-1549
|  | Meagen McMillan Senior Consignment Director, Illustration Art MeagenM@HA.com (214) 409-1546
|  | Ezriel Wilson Cataloguer, Fine Art EzrielW@HA.com (214) 409-1112