General
Chris Moore, Illustrator for Classic Sci-Fi Books, Dies at 77
He conjured fantastical worlds with covers for novels by Philip K. Dick and Arthur C. Clarke. He also left his mark on albums by Fleetwood Mac and Rod Stewart.
Chris Moore, a British artist who conjured fantastical worlds with high-sheen covers for books by science-fiction masters like Philip K. Dick, Arthur C. Clarke and Alfred Bester, and who lent his artistry to albums by Rod Stewart and Fleetwood Mac, died on Feb. 7 at his home in Charmouth, on the southwestern coast of England. He was 77.
His wife, Katie Moore, announced his death on his Facebook page. She did not cite a cause.
Making his name with a crisp, airbrushed style that blended the detail of photo realism with leaps of imagination, Mr. Moore was a renowned figure in the science fiction world. But you would never hear that from him.
“Call him a master, or a titan in his sphere, and he simply won’t have it,” Stephen Gallagher wrote in the introduction to the book “Journeyman: The Art of Chris Moore,” a 2000 collaboration with the artist. “The most you’ll ever get out of him is a grudging admission of some quiet satisfaction when something in a picture comes right.”
Despite his modesty, Mr. Moore provided memorable interstellar images for various editions of notable books by Mr. Dick — including his novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?,” the basis of the 1982 film “Blade Runner” — as well as works by Kurt Vonnegut, Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. Le Guin, H.G. Wells, Alastair Reynolds, J.G. Ballard, Stephen King and many others.
While best known for his visual journeys through the cosmos, Mr. Moore produced a wide range of illustrations. He created the art for several album covers, including Fleetwood Mac’s “Penguin” (1973) and Mr. Stewart’s “The Vintage Years 1969-70” (1976), as well as contributing images to magazines like Omni and Asimov’s Science Fiction. And he designed wallpaper tied to the Star Wars film “The Empire Strikes Back” (1980).