Michael Whelan's avatar

Michael Whelan

@michaelwhelan.bsky.social

5082 followers 93 following 1220 posts

Fine artist of Imaginative Realism. Illustrator of Science Fiction and Fantasy. Winner of 15 Hugo Awards. Inducted into the SF Hall of Fame in 2009.

Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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The B&W was an alternate concept. Sorry, sometimes the accompanying text can be a little misleading.

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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Cover illustration for ARISE by Sepultura (Roadrunner Records)

www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/ar...
3/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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I then had the assemblage photographed, and a sepia-toned print was made of it in the appropriate dimensions. Using the sepia photoprint as my "underpainting," I finished the painting in my regular acrylic paints. It was an enjoyable excursion into strange territory for me. 2/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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ARISE (1990) Mixed media - 20" x 20" I took the opportunity with this commission—an album cover for Sepultura—to experiment and have fun. After completing a small stack of tone renderings of textures and distorted faces, I photocopied them, cut them out, and recombined them. 1/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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The “Faded Star” on the right is a frequent symbol in my work, a representation of life’s unfulfilled ambitions or desires; it is in moving past such hollow corridors that one seeks to discover clarity and peace.

www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/ou...
3/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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All of the Passage works use the dream-object of the lighted bubbles—symbols of spirit or unfettered consciousness—to convey the idea of movement from one state of mind to another, a transition to a more open and lighted place; a release. 2/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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OUT OF THE SHADOWS (2014) Acrylic on Panel - 12" x 24" With this painting I revisit themes developed in my "Passage" series, featured heavily in my first couple of one-man shows at the Tree’s Place gallery. 1/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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But it wasn’t for lack of effort on their part; it had more to do with my having an incomplete vision of the final image in my head, I think.

www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/she/
4/4

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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I was dedicated to trying my best to capture the author’s description of the scene. I used three different models, none of whom really worked for this one image, I’m sorry to say. 3/4

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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This was a labor of love but a tough painting to get done. I had to start over twice. I felt like I just wasn’t nailing the effect I wanted, and on a painting this large, that became exhausting. 2/4

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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SHE (2004) Oil on Linen - 48" x 36" A private commission for the book by H. Rider Haggard. 1/4

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Reposted by Michael Whelan

Wagatwe Wanjuki's avatar Wagatwe Wanjuki @wagatwe.com
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surged 48%. for a mass plagiarism tool that tells you to eat rocks and glue.

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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I realize that it is not the happiest of subjects to dedicate a painting to, but the idea just wouldn’t let me go without painting it. 2/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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HARBINGER (2015) Acrylic on Canvas - 36" x 54" My initial inspiration, I believe, grew out of concern for the destabilizing and immense effects of global climate change, a sense of nature out of control and giving birth to unnatural and cataclysmic phenomena. 1/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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That painting, WORDS OF RADIANCE, was 24" x 36". Those dimensions are typically as large as my illustrations go.

LUMEN 9 (shown in progress here) was 36" x 54". There's a "making of" feature that'll give you a window into that larger studio space:

www.michaelwhelan.com/painting-lum...

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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There's a larger, more open space for oils across the hall. This is primarily where I work on illustration.

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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THE DARK TOWER: CORNERED (2003) Oil on Panel - 28" x 18" Interior illustration from THE DARK TOWER VII by Stephen King. 1/2

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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Yes! I shoot models (including myself 😀) and often utilize found references as well. I've collected books and stuffed file cabinets with references, but I find digital more functional in the studio. My laptop is a fixture at the edge of my drafting table displaying slideshows while I work.

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Reposted by Michael Whelan

Michael Everett's avatar Michael Everett @stateofgrays.bsky.social
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You may notice the stylized eye in the middle of the chaos star. It preceded the eye of the Crimson King by decades, so I asked Michael about it this morning and wanted to share his response. 1/

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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To the man, the maestro, the legend...please join me in wishing Michael the happiest of birthdays!

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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Yeah, I'd be interested to know for better color output in the future. Source file was high-res PNG from Michael's archive. Color profile Adobe RGB.

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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Original image from today's post vs Glaze at low and default intensity. Again about 5 minutes processing time per image.

For visibility, I'm posting here but will eventually move these technical threads over to @stateofgrays.bsky.social for artists interested a larger sample over time. ~ME

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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...and agonized over using airbrush almost exclusively to achieve that diffuse, soft-edged quality. It was worth it—the publisher was thrilled with the result and even the artist was pleased!

www.michaelwhelan.com/galleries/20...
3/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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I knew what she really meant was "mainstream bestseller" look. The book and the movie by Stanley Kubrick are all-time favorites so I felt the pressure even more. I did 10 preliminary roughs or comps (unlike the customary 2-4)... 2/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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2010: ODYSSEY TWO (1982) Acrylic on Illustration Board - 30" x 20" When legendary publisher Judy-Lynn del Rey asked me to do the cover to the sequel to 2001 by Arthur C. Clarke she said, "What we're looking for here is a 'big book look'." 1/3

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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Original image vs Glaze 2.1 at low and default intensity. Color is somewhat muted. Clarity seems consistent with the original. Processing time was ~5 min / image on default render quality on my Mac Studio, which is a massive improvement since I last used Glaze.

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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COUNTERPOINT (2015) Acrylic on Cradled Canvas Panel - 6" x 6" Ginkgo trees endure. They resemble fossils from prehistoric times and there were even six that survived the bombing in Hiroshima. Ammonites did not. They are fossils of marine mollusks that became extinct. 1/2

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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I love the idea of poisoning the well and looked into both months ago, but the processing time didn't fit well with my workflow at the time. I'm thinking a dark alley in Menlo Park and a sock full of nickels would also be more satisfying. ~ME

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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You got it. We've been leaning into federated social media as an off ramp for months now but will be taking a measured approach on how best to move the audience we have there. ~ME

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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It'll take some time but the courts will eventually decide these issues, and in the meantime public opinion does matter. See public reaction to Microsoft's Copilot.

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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That doesn't mean we can't shame them and kill their platform.

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Michael Whelan's avatar Michael Whelan @michaelwhelan.bsky.social
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New privacy policy is in place for Meta today so we've switched our Instagram and Threads accounts over to Private to prevent use of Michael's art in training AI. We're considering next steps which includes deleting existing content there and leaving the platform altogether.

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