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Michael Whelan
@MichaelWhelan@mastodon.art  ·  activity timestamp 4 days ago

FOUNDATION AND EARTH (1987)
Acrylic on Watercolor Board - 28" X 20"

After 30 years, Isaac Asimov began to weave his two most famous series together in his novel Foundation and Earth. In this scene the author described the discovery of a huge statue, a remnant of a long-lost civilization. 1/7

#sciencefiction#scifi #scifiart #sff #illustration #isaacasimov #foundation #robots

In a cavernous room, a figure in a spacesuit kneels on the shoulder of a huge ancient statue of a humanoid robot. The statue is missing one arm while the other rests on its knee with hand up and fingers curling. The worm’s eye POV gives the statue a air of grandeur. The vaulted ceiling above is similarly weathered, open to expose the night sky and a craggy moon.
In a cavernous room, a figure in a spacesuit kneels on the shoulder of a huge ancient statue of a humanoid robot. The statue is missing one arm while the other rests on its knee with hand up and fingers curling. The worm’s eye POV gives the statue a air of grandeur. The vaulted ceiling above is similarly weathered, open to expose the night sky and a craggy moon.
In a cavernous room, a figure in a spacesuit kneels on the shoulder of a huge ancient statue of a humanoid robot. The statue is missing one arm while the other rests on its knee with hand up and fingers curling. The worm’s eye POV gives the statue a air of grandeur. The vaulted ceiling above is similarly weathered, open to expose the night sky and a craggy moon.
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Michael Whelan
@MichaelWhelan@mastodon.art replied  ·  activity timestamp 4 days ago

To symbolize the convergence of the two series, I used the robot Giskard from my cover art for Robots of Dawn as the model for the statue.

My first challenge in doing a painting for this novel was deciding whether or not to attempt to fit the cover concept into the unifying scheme of the first four Foundation covers. 2/7

Figure sketch of astronaut in space suit with bubble helmet.
Figure sketch of astronaut in space suit with bubble helmet.
Figure sketch of astronaut in space suit with bubble helmet.
Two rough layout sketches with poses of the Giskard statue, one full figure and the other an angled view of the torso with hand up.
Two rough layout sketches with poses of the Giskard statue, one full figure and the other an angled view of the torso with hand up.
Two rough layout sketches with poses of the Giskard statue, one full figure and the other an angled view of the torso with hand up.
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Michael Whelan
@MichaelWhelan@mastodon.art replied  ·  activity timestamp 4 days ago

The planet Trantor would not be an appropriate background for this cover—though it appears on the previous Foundation covers—since it is not a part of this story. Yet I felt some of the already developed symbolism worked well and could be applied to this painting, too. 3/7

B&W alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut standing on the shoulder of a statue that resembles Giskard. Facing off panel right, the near arm is missing while the left arm is held out with an open hand. Behind the statue are two stories of pillared arches and a craggy full moon in the sky.
B&W alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut standing on the shoulder of a statue that resembles Giskard. Facing off panel right, the near arm is missing while the left arm is held out with an open hand. Behind the statue are two stories of pillared arches and a craggy full moon in the sky.
B&W alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut standing on the shoulder of a statue that resembles Giskard. Facing off panel right, the near arm is missing while the left arm is held out with an open hand. Behind the statue are two stories of pillared arches and a craggy full moon in the sky.
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Michael Whelan
@MichaelWhelan@mastodon.art replied  ·  activity timestamp 4 days ago

So what I ended up with was a "yes-and-no" answer to my problem: no backdrop featuring Trantor, but some symbolic links to the other covers. 4/7

B&W alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut standing on the shoulder of a statue of Giskard. Missing its left arm, the statue faces left while the astronaut looks opposite. The vaulted ceilings of the room are held up by massive arches. In the gap between, the night sky is dotted with stars and a gibbous moon hangs low in the sky.
B&W alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut standing on the shoulder of a statue of Giskard. Missing its left arm, the statue faces left while the astronaut looks opposite. The vaulted ceilings of the room are held up by massive arches. In the gap between, the night sky is dotted with stars and a gibbous moon hangs low in the sky.
B&W alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut standing on the shoulder of a statue of Giskard. Missing its left arm, the statue faces left while the astronaut looks opposite. The vaulted ceilings of the room are held up by massive arches. In the gap between, the night sky is dotted with stars and a gibbous moon hangs low in the sky.
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Michael Whelan
@MichaelWhelan@mastodon.art replied  ·  activity timestamp 4 days ago

The most obvious of these links was to be the moon, which is very important to the story and also could be represented in the circular shape used in the previous covers to represent the galaxy and its destiny. 5/7

Tonal alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH on blue toned paper. An astronaut stands on the shoulder of a statue of Giskard, which is missing its near arm. Behind them, a massive craggy moon fills the sky. On the horizon rise futuristic buildings.
Tonal alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH on blue toned paper. An astronaut stands on the shoulder of a statue of Giskard, which is missing its near arm. Behind them, a massive craggy moon fills the sky. On the horizon rise futuristic buildings.
Tonal alternate preliminary concept for FOUNDATION AND EARTH on blue toned paper. An astronaut stands on the shoulder of a statue of Giskard, which is missing its near arm. Behind them, a massive craggy moon fills the sky. On the horizon rise futuristic buildings.
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Michael Whelan
@MichaelWhelan@mastodon.art replied  ·  activity timestamp 4 days ago

All save one of the sketches I submitted to the art director used the moon in the sky as a background element. Of course, that single moonless sketch was the one that was chosen! 6/7

Figure detail from FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut on the shoulder of a huge statue, one knee down and hands out, twisting toward the viewer as if suddenly interrupted. The spacesuit has red trim and a bubble helmet. Behind the head of the Giskard statue, the roof is broken, exposing a starry night sky—cool blue in contrast to the earthy red stone—and a craggy full moon.
Figure detail from FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut on the shoulder of a huge statue, one knee down and hands out, twisting toward the viewer as if suddenly interrupted. The spacesuit has red trim and a bubble helmet. Behind the head of the Giskard statue, the roof is broken, exposing a starry night sky—cool blue in contrast to the earthy red stone—and a craggy full moon.
Figure detail from FOUNDATION AND EARTH featuring an astronaut on the shoulder of a huge statue, one knee down and hands out, twisting toward the viewer as if suddenly interrupted. The spacesuit has red trim and a bubble helmet. Behind the head of the Giskard statue, the roof is broken, exposing a starry night sky—cool blue in contrast to the earthy red stone—and a craggy full moon.
Detail from FOUNDATION AND EARTH. In a cavernous room, a figure in a spacesuit kneels on the shoulder of a huge ancient statue of a humanoid robot. The statue is missing an arm. The vaulted ceiling above is similarly weathered, open to expose the night sky and a craggy moon.
Detail from FOUNDATION AND EARTH. In a cavernous room, a figure in a spacesuit kneels on the shoulder of a huge ancient statue of a humanoid robot. The statue is missing an arm. The vaulted ceiling above is similarly weathered, open to expose the night sky and a craggy moon.
Detail from FOUNDATION AND EARTH. In a cavernous room, a figure in a spacesuit kneels on the shoulder of a huge ancient statue of a humanoid robot. The statue is missing an arm. The vaulted ceiling above is similarly weathered, open to expose the night sky and a craggy moon.
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Michael Whelan
@MichaelWhelan@mastodon.art replied  ·  activity timestamp 4 days ago

Cover illustration for FOUNDATION AND EARTH by Isaac Asimov (Del Rey) 7/7

https://www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/foundation-and-earth/

Book cover for FOUNDATION AND EARTH by Isaac Asimov, published by Del Rey Books.
Book cover for FOUNDATION AND EARTH by Isaac Asimov, published by Del Rey Books.
Book cover for FOUNDATION AND EARTH by Isaac Asimov, published by Del Rey Books.
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