The Garden of Earthly Delights by Bosch High Resolution

Fantastic art is a broad and loosely defined

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

. It is not restricted to a specific school of artists, geographical location or historical period. It can be characterised by subject matter – which portrays non-realistic, mystical,

mythical Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrati ...

or folkloric subjects or events – and style, which is representational and naturalistic, rather than abstract – or in the case of magazine illustrations and similar, in the style of

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

art such as manga. Fantasy has been an integral part of art since its beginnings, but has been particularly important in mannerism, magic realist painting, romantic art, symbolism, surrealism and lowbrow. In French, the genre is called le

fantastique ''Fantastique'' is a French term for a literary and cinematic genre that overlaps with science fiction, horror, and fantasy. The ''fantastique'' is a substantial genre within French literature. Arguably dating back further than English lan ...

, in English it is sometimes referred to as ''visionary art'', ''grotesque art'' or mannerist art. It has had a deep and circular interaction with

fantasy literature Fantasy literature is literature set in an imaginary universe, often but not always without any locations, events, or people from the real world. Magic, the supernatural and magical creatures are common in many of these imaginary worlds. Fa ...

. The subject matter of fantastic art may resemble the product of hallucinations, and Fantastic artist

Richard Dadd Richard Dadd (1 August 1817 – 7 January 1886) was an English painter of the Victorian era, noted for his depictions of fairies and other supernatural subjects, Orientalism, Orientalist scenes, and enigmatic genre works, genre scenes, rendered w ...

spent much of his life in mental institutions.

Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarre images in ...

famously said: "the only difference between me and a madman is that I am not mad". Some recent fantastic art draws on the artist's experience, or purported experience, of hallucinogenic drugs. The term fantasy art is closely related, and is applied primarily to recent art (typically 20th century on wards) inspired by, or illustrating fantasy literature. Fantastic art has traditionally been largely confined to painting and illustration, but since the 1970s has increasingly been found also in photography. Fantastic art explores fantasy, imagination, the dream state, the

grotesque Since at least the 18th century (in French and German as well as English), grotesque has come to be used as a general adjective for the strange, mysterious, magnificent, fantastic, hideous, ugly, incongruous, unpleasant, or disgusting, and thus ...

, visions and the uncanny,Schurian, Walter (2005) Beyond Mere Understanding. In: ''Fantastic Art'', Schurian, W. & Grosenick, U. (Ed.),

Taschen Taschen is a luxury art book publisher founded in 1980 by Benedikt Taschen in Cologne, Germany. As of January 2017, Taschen is co-managed by Benedikt and his eldest daughter, Marlene Taschen. History The company began as Taschen Comics, ...

, p.6-25. (English edition) as well as so-called " Goth" and "Dark" art.

Related genres

Genres which may also be considered as fantastic art include the Symbolism of the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwardia ...

, Pre-Raphaelites, the

Golden Age of Illustration An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, video ...

, and Surrealism. Works based on classical mythology, which have been a staple of European art from the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

period, also arguably meet the definition of fantastic art, as art based on modern mythology such as J.R.R. Tolkien's

Middle Earth Middle or The Middle may refer to: * Centre (geometry), the point equally distant from the outer limits. Places * Middle (sheading), a subdivision of the Isle of Man * Middle Bay (disambiguation) * Middle Brook (disambiguation) * Middle Creek ...

mythos unquestionably does.

Religious art Religious art is artistic imagery using religious inspiration and motifs and is often intended to uplift the mind to the spiritual. Sacred art involves the ritual and cultic practices and practical and operative aspects of the path of the spiritu ...

also depicts supernatural or miraculous subjects in a naturalistic way, but is not generally regarded as fantastic art.

Historic artists and fine artists

Many artists have produced works which fit the definition of fantastic art. Some, such as

Nicholas Roerich Nicholas Roerich (; October 9, 1874 – December 13, 1947), also known as Nikolai Konstantinovich Rerikh (russian: link=no, Никола́й Константи́нович Ре́рих), was a Russian painter, writer, archaeologist, theosophi ...

, worked almost exclusively in the genre, others such as

Hieronymus Bosch Hieronymus Bosch (, ; born Jheronimus van Aken ; – 9 August 1516) was a Dutch/ Netherlandish painter from Brabant. He is one of the most notable representatives of the Early Netherlandish painting school. His work, generally oil on o ...

, who has been described as the first "fantastic" artist in the Western tradition, produced works both with and without fantastic elements, and for artists such as

Francisco de Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and e ...

, fantastic works were only a small part of their output. Others again such as

René Magritte René François Ghislain Magritte (; 21 November 1898 – 15 August 1967) was a Belgian surrealist artist known for his depictions of familiar objects in unfamiliar, unexpected contexts, which often provoked questions about the nature and bound ...

are usually classed as Surrealists but use fantastic elements in their work. It is therefore impossible to give an exhaustive list of fantastic artists, but a selection of major and influential figures is listed below. God kväll, farbror! Hälsade pojken

16–18th centuries *

Giuseppe Arcimboldo Giuseppe Arcimboldo (; also spelled ''Arcimboldi'') (1526 or 1527 – 11 July 1593) was an Italian painter best known for creating imaginative portrait heads made entirely of objects such as fruits, vegetables, flowers, fish and books. These wo ...

William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his life, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual art of the Romantic Age. ...

* Brueghel *

Monsù Desiderio Monsù Desiderio is the name formerly given to an artist believed to have painted architectural scenes in a distinctive style in Naples in the early seventeenth century. The term ''monsù'', a corruption of the French ''monsieur'', was often use ...

Henry Fuseli Henry Fuseli ( ; German: Johann Heinrich Füssli ; 7 February 1741 – 17 April 1825) was a Swiss painter, draughtsman and writer on art who spent much of his life in Britain. Many of his works, such as '' The Nightmare'', deal with supernatu ...

Hans Baldung Grien Hans Baldung (1484 or 1485 – September 1545), called Hans Baldung Grien, (being an early nickname, because of his predilection for the colour green), was a painter, printer, engraver, draftsman, and stained glass artist, who was considered t ...

Matthias Grünewald Matthias Grünewald ( – 31 August 1528) was a German Renaissance painter of religious works who ignored Renaissance classicism to continue the style of late medieval Central European art into the 16th century. His first name is also given ...

Giovanni Battista Piranesi Giovanni Battista (or Giambattista) Piranesi (; also known as simply Piranesi; 4 October 1720 – 9 November 1778) was an Italian Classical archaeologist, architect, and artist, famous for his etchings of Rome and of fictitious and atmospheric ...

19th century 20th century

Twentieth century

The rise of

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

and

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

"pulp" magazines demanded artwork to illustrate stories and (via cover art) to promote sales. This led to a movement of

and

artists prior to and during the Great Depression, as anthologised by Vincent Di Fate, himself a prolific SF and

space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually cons ...

artist. In the United States in the 1930s, a group of Wisconsin artists inspired by the Surrealist movement of Europe created their own brand of fantastic art. They included

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

-based artists Marshall Glasier, Dudley Huppler and

John Wilde John Wilde (December 12, 1919 – March 9, 2006, pronounced "WILL-dee") was a painter, draughtsman and printmaker of fantastic imagery. Born near Milwaukee, Wilde lived most of his life in Wisconsin, save for service in the U.S. Army during Wor ...

; Karl Priebe of

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

and Gertrude Abercrombie of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

. Their art combined macabre humor, mystery and irony which was in direct and pointed contradiction to the American Regionalism then in vogue. In postwar

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, the art movement Chicago Imagism produced many fantastic and grotesque paintings, which were little noted because they did not conform to New York abstract art fashions of the time. Major imagists include Roger Brown,

Gladys Nilsson Gladys M. Nilsson (born May 6, 1940) is an American artist, and one of the original Hairy Who Chicago Imagists, a group of representational artists active during the 1960s and 1970s. She is married to fellow-artist and Hairy Who member Jim N ...

, Jim Nutt,

Ed Paschke Edward Francis Paschke (June 22, 1939 – November 25, 2004) was an American painter of Polish descent. His childhood interest in animation and cartoons, as well as his father's creativity in wood carving and construction, led him toward a caree ...

, and Karl Wirsum.Richard Vine, "Where the Wild Things Were", '' Art in America'', May 1997, pp. 98–111. After 1970, modern western fantasy is influenced by illustrations from '' Conan the Barbarian'' and ''

The Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's b ...

'', as well as popular works of SF and fantasy like the role-playing game ''

Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Several different editions of the '' Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') fantasy role-playing game have been produced since 1974. The current publisher of ''D&D'', Wizards of the Coast, produces new materials only for the most current edition of the ...

'' or the French ''Heavy Metal'' magazine.

Contemporary and mid-century artists

Chris Van Allsburg Chris Van Allsburg (born June 18, 1949) is an American illustrator and writer of children's books. He has won two Caldecott Medals for U.S. picture book illustration, for ''Jumanji'' (1981) and ''The Polar Express'' (1985), both of which he a ...

* Yoshitaka Amano *

Wayne Barlowe Wayne Douglas Barlowe is an American science fiction and fantasy writer, painter, and concept artist. Barlowe's work focuses on esoteric landscapes and creatures such as citizens of hell and alien worlds. He has painted over 300 book and magazi ...

Carlo Bocchio Carlo Bocchio, also known as JackOilRain (born March 25, 1974), is an Italian illustrator and comic book artist ( Heavy Metal). His style was strongly influenced by Simon Bisley, Justin Sweet, and by costume designer Bob Ringwood. His paintings ha ...

* Arik Brauer *

Gerald Brom Gerald Brom (born March 9, 1965), known professionally as Brom, is an American gothic fantasy artist and illustrator, known for his work in role-playing games, novels, and comics. Early life Brom was born March 9, 1965, in Albany, Georgia. As the ...

* Margaret Brundage *

Clyde Caldwell Clyde Caldwell (born February 20, 1948) is an American artist. Self-described as a fantasy illustrator, he is best known for his portrayals of strong, sexy female characters. With his work at TSR in the 1980s, he is considered one of the arti ...

* James C. Christensen * Roger Dean * Vincent Di Fate *

Philippe Druillet Philippe Druillet (; born 28 June 1944) is a French comics artist and creator, and an innovator in visual design. Biography Philippe Druillet was born in Toulouse, Haute-Garonne, France, but spent his youth in Spain, returning to France in 1952 ...

* Bob Eggleton * Larry Elmore *

Ed Emshwiller Edmund Alexander Emshwiller (February 16, 1925 – July 27, 1990) was an American visual artist notable for his science fiction illustrations and his pioneering experimental films. He usually signed his illustrations as Emsh but sometimes used E ...

* Virgil Finlay *

Frank Frazetta Frank Frazetta (born Frank Frazzetta ; February 9, 1928 – May 10, 2010) was an American fantasy and science fiction artist, noted for comic books, paperback book covers, paintings, posters, LP record album covers, and other media. He i ...

Brian Froud Brian Froud (born 1947) is an English fantasy illustrator and conceptual designer. He is most widely known for his 1978 book ''Faeries'' with Alan Lee, and as the conceptual designer of the Jim Henson films '' The Dark Crystal'' (1982) and ' ...

* Wendy Froud * Ernst Fuchs *

Donato Giancola Donato Giancola is an American artist specializing in narrative realism with science fiction and fantasy content. Biography Donato Giancola was born and raised in Colchester, near Burlington, in the state of Vermont. He currently resides in Bro ...

* H. R. Giger * Juan Giménez *

Jean Giraud Jean Henri Gaston Giraud (; 8 May 1938 – 10 March 2012) was a French artist, cartoonist, and writer who worked in the Bandes dessinées, Franco-Belgian ''bandes dessinées'' (BD) tradition. Giraud garnered worldwide acclaim under the pseu ...

* Peter Gric * Rebecca Guay *

James Gurney James Gurney (born June 14, 1958) is an American artist and author known for his illustrated book series '' Dinotopia'', which is presented in the form of a 19th-century explorer's journal from an island utopia cohabited by humans and dinosaurs ...

* John Howe * Judson Huss * Peter Andrew Jones *

Oleg A. Korolev Oleg A. Korolev (born March 2, 1968) is Russian artist whose paintings have been exhibited and represented in the private and corporate art collections of Russia, Europe, North America, and Australia. Education Since 1979 studied in the Stud ...

Mati Klarwein Abdul Mati Klarwein (April 9, 1932 – March 7, 2002) was a French Painting, painter of German origin best known for his works used on the covers of music albums. Personal life Mati Klarwein was born in Hamburg, Weimar Republic, Germany. His ...

Vladimir Kush Vladimir Kush (born 1965) is a Russian born American painter, jewelry designer and sculptor. He studied at the Surikov Moscow Art Institute, and after several years working as an artist in Moscow, his native city, he emigrated to the United Stat ...

* Alan Lee * Rodney Matthews * Kentaro Miura * Ted Nasmith *

Odd Nerdrum Odd Nerdrum (born 8 April 1944) is a Norwegian figurative painter, born in Sweden, and considered to be one of the greatest living classical figurative painters. His work is held by museums worldwide. Themes and style in Nerdrum's work referenc ...

* Octavio Ocampo * John Jude Palencar * Keith Parkinson * Richard M. Powers * Patrick J. Jones * Donald Pass * Bruce Pennington * Luis Royo * Mark Ryden * De Es Schwertberger * Maurice Sendak *

Brian Selznick Brian Selznick (born July 14, 1966) is an American illustrator and author best known as the writer of '' The Invention of Hugo Cabret'' (2007), '' Wonderstruck'' (2011), ''The Marvels'' (2015) and ''Kaleidoscope'' (2021). He won the 2008 Caldeco ...

* Luigi Serafini * Wojciech Siudmak * Boris Vallejo *

Robert Venosa Robert Venosa (January 21, 1936 – August 9, 2011) was an American artist who resided in Boulder, Colorado, USA. He studied with what are termed the New Masters. His artworks reside in collections around the world. Life and works Venosa first stud ...

* Michael Whelan *

Bernie Wrightson Bernard Albert Wrightson (October 27, 1948 – March 18, 2017), sometimes credited as Bernie Wrightson, was an American artist, known for co-creating the Swamp Thing, his adaptation of the novel ''Frankenstein'' illustration work, and for his o ...

* Jacek Yerka

Non-European art

Non-European art may contain fantastic elements, although it is not necessarily easy to separate them from religious elements involving supernatural beings and miraculous events. Sculptor Bunleua Sulilat is a notable contemporary Asian Fantastic artist.

References

Bibliography

* Coleman, A.D. (1977). ''The Grotesque in Photography''. New York: Summit, Ridge Press. * Watney, Simon (1977). ''Fantastic Painters''. London: Thames & Hudson. * Colombo, Attilio (1979). ''Fantastic Photographs''. London: Gordon Fraser. * Johnson, Diana L. (1979). ''Fantastic illustration and design in Britain, 1850–1930''. Rhode Island School of Design. * Krichbaum, Jorg & Zondergeld. R.A. (Eds.) (1985). ''Dictionary of Fantastic Art''. Barron's Educational Series. * Menton, Seymour (1983). ''Magic Realism Rediscovered 1918–1981''. Philadelphia, The Art Alliance Press. * Day, Holliday T. & Sturges, Hollister (1989). ''Art of the Fantastic: Latin America, 1920–1987''. Indianapolis: Indianapolis Museum of Art. * Clair, Jean (1995). ''Lost Paradise: Symbolist Europe''. Montreal: Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. * Palumbo, Donald (Ed.) (1986). ''Eros in the Mind's Eye: Sexuality and the Fantastic in Art and Film'' (Contributions to the Study of Science Fiction and Fantasy). Greenwood Press. * Stathatos, John (2001). ''A Vindication of Tlon: Photography and the Fantastic''. Greece: Thessaloniki Museum of Photography * Schurian, Prof. Dr. Walter (2005). ''Fantastic Art''. Taschen. (English edition) * BeinArt collective (2007). ''Metamorphosis''. beinArt. * "El Canto de Abraxas" (2016) de Álvaro Robles G. (Editorial Salón Arcano) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fantastic Art Visual arts genres