Edward Gorey: cover star of book design

The author and illustrator is much revered for his own weird and wonderful books, yet his 200-plus jacket designs are virtually ignored. Steven Heller celebrates his contribution to a unique era of publishingDeliciously and subversively cryptic, Edward St John Gorey’s books, plays, postcards, toys, stage sets and costumes – indeed an entire lifetime of utterly sublime, mockingly apprehensive artistry and authorship – are celebrated and critically acclaimed by everyone from cultural pundits to goth cultists. The rare front-page New York Times obituary, on 17 April 2000, is testament to Gorey’s eclectic narrative range. “In creating a large body of small work, he made an indelible imprint on noir fiction and on the psyche of his admirers,” Mel Gussow wrote.Yet, understandably, less attention is devoted today to the 200-plus illustrated paperback covers and hardcover jackets that Chicago-born, Harvard-educated Gorey (known to his friends as Ted) created while working as a staff artist, art director, editor and freelance illustrator at various American publishing houses for a large portion of his career. In two brief sentences, his obituary tossed aside this impressive output: “After graduation he remained in Boston, illustrating book jackets. Then he went to New York and worked in the art department at Doubleday, staying late in the office to create his own books.” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2015-07-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ AllThingsD | 2012-07-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The New York Times | 2012-07-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-07-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ AllThingsD | 2012-07-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Stuff | 2012-07-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2012-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ ABC News | 2012-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-07-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ BBC World | 2012-07-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ PC World | 2012-07-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Atlantic | 2012-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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