John Conrad Berkey (August 13, 1932 – April 29, 2008) was probably the best known and loved space artist who ever lived on this planet. You may have seen the world-famous American illustrator’s work on dozens of book covers and NASA concept art, or admired his early Star Wars and Star Trek paintings.
Berkey was a prolific freelance artist who painted more than thousand pieces throughout his lifetime. He lived in Shorewood, Minnesota, and his bold, dreamy vision of future and space defined the the science fiction genre in the 1970s and ‘80s.
From the John Berkey website:
For someone who lived almost his entire life in a small town in Minnesota and seldom travelled far from his home, Illustrator John Berkey has shown the world a unique vision of a future in time and space way beyond our wildest dreams. He is most well known as a science fiction artist, specifically for his paintings of huge graceful spaceships of multi-faceted shapes adorned with many intricate details, soaring through outer space. […] With his ability to see things from a different perspective, John’s illustrations depicted the full spectrum of life–past, present, and future. This quiet, contemplative genius will not soon be forgotten.
This collection focuses mostly on his amazing aerospace paintings. A few of them will be auctioned on May 16 at Heritage Auctions.
Space Probe Uranus
Source: Heritage Auctions
Satellites U.S. (Hubble Satellite and Others, Popular Mechanics magazine story illustration)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Astronaut in Space, Art for Digital Equipment
Source: Heritage Auctions
Up in Space
Source: Heritage Auctions
To Fear the Light (paperback cover)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Taking Flight
Source: Heritage Auctions
Taxi Dancer (book cover)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Water Rockets (Popular Mechanics magazine story illustration)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Star Trek: The Motion Picture (promotional poster)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Control Tower (book cover)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Jet Ships (Popular Mechanics magazine story illustration)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Star 4 Science Fiction (paperback cover)
Source: Heritage Auctions
When Worlds Collide/The War of the Worlds (promotional poster)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Star Wars (20th Century Records, 1977, soundtrack poster)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Space Settlement (AMP Corporate commission)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Colonies in Space (book cover)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Viking Probe (Uranus)
Source: Heritage Auctions
Of Moon and Stars
Source: Heritage Auctions
Armed Fighters
Source: Heritage Auctions
Spaceships and Planets
Source: Heritage Auctions
Force of Life, Power of Death (Star Wars book cover)
Source: Heritage Auctions
One Giant Leap (Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon)
Source: Nate D. Sanders
Space Shuttle Challenger (preliminary sketch)
Source: johnberkey.com
Stealth Bomber (preliminary sketch)
Source: johnberkey.com
Two Astronauts (preliminary sketch)
Source: johnberkey.com
