Frank Frazetta’s long career, says Uncle Geoff, is marked in science fiction, horror and fantasy, and in many ways, and it would be hard for anyone to say they didn’t have some of his paintings in their collections.

an appraisal by: GF Willmetts

Frank Frazetta’s long career is marked in Science Fiction, horror and fantasy and in many ways and it would be hard for anyone to say they didn’t have some of his paintings in their collections whether on the covers of Warren publications to book covers let alone the multitude of books showing off his work. If you’re into artbooks, then you already have at least some of his books in your collection and if you favoured his work in one genre, you gave equal respect for his work in the others. If you haven’t then if you look around, there are lots to choose from.



His versatility shows him equally recognisable in pen and ink as full paintings. He could display serious and humorous poses alike. He painted the definitive Conan. He painted the definitive Vampirella. Definitive monsters. Frankly, he could scare the pants off you with some paintings by the scale of the monsters or the fixed stare or pose they gave to the viewer.

Frazetta’s flair for colour and design and detail was respected by his peers as well as his fans. His art, as you can gather from this paragraph, was tailored more for horror and fantasy but that didn’t stop him working in Science Fiction as well.



Picking out what made a Frazetta picture is hard to say. He had a wonderful eye for colour and composition that brought any picture to life. One of my favourites is the painting with the polar bears in the role of huskies. In a lesser painter, they wouldn’t be half as aggressive. It’s interesting to note the influence of that painting on one of the production pieces used of the White Witch in ‘The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe’ film.



If you are going to learn art technique, then studying Frazetta is a good place to start. Pros and amateurs alike include him as one of their favourite artists. It’s a well-deserved respect.

On 10th May 2010, the world lost Frank Frazetta at a respectable age. He will be sorely missed but he will be remembered forever because his art will live on forever. You can’t have a better legacy than that. Respect.



(c) Geoff Willmetts 2010
Paintings (c) Frank Frazetta Estate

check out website: www.frankfrazetta.net