We’re just over one week away from the Spectrum Book Signing Event at Sketchpad Gallery in San Francisco, California!
We will be having a Spectrum book signing event held at Sketchpad Gallery in San Francisco, CA on Saturday, March 18th from 4:00 to 7:00p.m. So far we have a dozen confirmed artists who will be appearing to sign your book including Steven Russell Black, Te Hu, Kellan Jett, Randy Gallegos, Michael Manomivibul, Paolo Rivera, Dug Stanat, Josh Viers, Chris Koehler, Jonathan Wayshak, Tiffany Turrill and Alyssa Winans.
We hope you can come join us to celebrate Spectrum’s 23rd year of releasing the premier showcase for imaginative fantastic arts in the book, comic, film, horror, illustration, sculpture, conceptual art, fine art and videogame genres. Meet the exceptional and talented artists whose works are featured in the books.
The official Spectrum 24 Artist List has been posted!
The complete list of artist names selected for inclusion into the twenty-fourth volume of Spectrum: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art is now available!
The five member jury selected nearly 500 works by 297 artists that will make up Spectrum 24. These creators that work in every style and medium–both traditional and digital–represent the finest in the fantasy, horror, science fiction and the surreal genres from around the world. You will find top industry names who serve as the current definition of excellence and discover the rising stars who are being published for the first time.
Please click here to view the list, then click on the “Artist” tab:
Individual emails to those artists accepted will begin to go out this week. Full details regarding the next steps will be provided.
From everyone here at the Spectrum and Flesk offices, we would like to thank all of the artists who submitted to Spectrum 24. We couldn’t do what we do without your support. This includes putting out the Spectrum annual each year, organizing and running the Spectrum Fantastic Art Live event, putting on the Spectrum Awards Ceremony where we hand out the Spectrum awards, and making the artist feature videos that we post online.
The jury for Spectrum 24: The Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art has nominated the top five artworks in eight categories for consideration for either a silver and gold award. Judges Christian Alzmann, Laurie Lee Brom, Mark Newman, Victo Ngai and John Picacio debated the merits of hundreds of pieces of art before finalizing this list on Saturday, February 25, 2017 at the Flesk Publications offices in Santa Cruz, California.
Established in 1993 by Cathy and Arnie Fenner, the first Spectrum annual appeared in 1994 from Underwood Books; for nearly a quarter of a century it has attracted participants from around the world and has set the standards for excellence in fantasy and science fiction art. John Fleskes became the Director and Publisher of Spectrum in 2014 with volume 21.
The recipients will be announced at the Spectrum 24 Awards Ceremony that will be held at the historic Folly Theater in Kansas City, MO on Saturday, April 22 as part of the art-focused convention, Spectrum Fantastic Art Live. The 2017 Spectrum Grand Master Award honoree will also be announced during the ceremony.
I’ll be posting the artist list and the awards nominees on the Spectrum Fantastic Art website this Monday, March 6th. Here’s a more official news item that has been posted on the spectrumfantasticart.com website.
This picture shows Mark Newman during the print voting process. Not too many people submit prints these days, but the beans and cups has been a tradition for 24 years now.
The Spectrum 24 Judging Event is a Wrap! Artist List and Awards Nominees Will Post on Monday, March 6th!
The Spectrum 24 judging event was held on February 25, 2017 at the Flesk Publications offices in Santa Cruz, CA. We were joined by the exceptional industry talents consisting of Christian Andrea Alzmann, Laurie Lee Brom, Mark Newman, Victo Ngai and John Picacio who spent the full day reviewing the Spectrum Call for Entries submissions. Lifelong friends were made as the group engaged with one another in a fun and enjoyable atmosphere. “The day couldn’t have gone better,” shares Spectrum director John Fleskes. “This group was an absolute joy to host for the day. The vibe was great during the course of the long day and the jury worked exceptionally well together as they made their anonymous picks for the book, then as they worked as a team to finalize the nominations and eventual award recipients for each category. The day was a blast!”
The Spectrum team is currently compiling the artist’s names and works that were selected for inclusion into Spectrum 24. The list will be posted on the Spectrum Fantastic Art website this Monday, March 6th. In addition, the award nominees will also be posted on this same day. Thank you to everyone who submitted to Spectrum 24! And thank you to Christian Alzmann, Laurie Lee Brom, Mark Newman, Victo Ngai and John Picacio for being so giving of their time to maintain the high standards of excellence that makes Spectrum the premier art annual in the fantastic arts!
Preparations for the Spectrum 24 judging event this weekend continues! The Flesk office is now officially ready.
The judges will be arriving throughout the day tomorrow as we spend some quality time together prior to the day of judging on Saturday. I’ll be posting updates all throughout the day. This is going to be fun!
Here’s a selection of banners that we will using as background props during the filming and photography.
The camera gear is ready and waiting for the Spectrum 24 jury to arrive. We’ll be capturing the day to share with you all.
The Spectrum 24 judging event will be held at the Flesk offices in Santa Cruz, CA on February 25, 2017. We will be the hosts to industry luminaries Christian Alzmann, Laurie Lee Brom, Mark Newman, Victo Ngai and John Picacio who will be reviewing the Spectrum Call for Entries submissions.
The first phase of the day consists of the judges voting anonymously on the works they feel have achieved a standard of excellence for inclusion into the book. Discussion among the jury regarding individual entries is discouraged during this time. A majority consisting of three of more votes from the five member panel guarantees the art for inclusion into Spectrum 24.
Phase two of the day brings the jury together for a group discussion to determine the silver and gold awards for each of the eight categories.
It is instrumental that if we are working for the community that we bring members of the community together when such important decisions are made. Nothing compares to or can beat what a jury group can accomplish when unified and working together in person. This is why year after year those who serve on the Spectrum panel end up becoming life-long friends after sharing the experience.
This is just one example of how Spectrum’s mission to serve others is maintained. Because this is what Spectrum is all about. It’s about all of you, bringing us together, building upon the community and sharing our accomplishments with the widest audience possible. We look forward to sharing videos, pictures and stories from the judging event. Thanks again to all of those who submitted to Spectrum 24. Good luck!
The Spectrum 23 launch party and book signing event was at Gallery Nucleus in Alhambra, CA on December 3rd, 2017.Thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate Spectrum’s 23rd year of releasing the premier showcase for imaginative fantastic arts in the book, comic, film, horror, illustration, sculpture, conceptual art, fine art and videogame genres.
The artist’s in attendance included Chris Ayers, Julia Blattman, Tuna Bora, J.A.W. Cooper, Alina Chau, Waiji Choo, Craig Elliott, Geirrod Van Dyke, Chuck Grieb, Brian Haberlin, Fred Jordan, Erik Ly, Victor Maury, Iain McCaig, Bruce Mitchell, Brynn Metheny, Richard and Wendy Pini, Esben Rasmussen, Tooba Rezaei, Joseph Sanabria, William Stout, Shane Stover and Vin Teng.
We hope you enjoy these five videos that captured the evening.
Spectrum Book Signing Event at Sketchpad Gallery in San Francisco, California!
We will be having a Spectrum book signing event held at Sketchpad Gallery in San Francisco, CA on Saturday, March 18th from 4:00 to 7:00p.m. So far we have a dozen confirmed artists who will be appearing to sign your book!
We hope you can come join us to celebrate Spectrum’s 23rd year of releasing the premier showcase for imaginative fantastic arts in the book, comic, film, horror, illustration, sculpture, conceptual art, fine art and videogame genres. Meet the exceptional and talented artists whose works are featured in the books.
Refreshments will be provided.
Confirmed artists to date include Steven Russell Black, Te Hu, Kellan Jett, Randy Gallegos, Michael Manomivibul, Paolo Rivera, Dug Stanat, Josh Viers, Chris Koehler, Jonathan Wayshak, Tiffany Turrill and Alyssa Winans.
If you are an artist who has been featured in past volumes of Spectrum and are willing to attend, please let us know! We would enjoy seeing you as part of the event.
Thank you to everyone who submitted to Spectrum 24! We are eternally grateful to the artists, art directors, artist representatives and all of those in this amazing community who support us. We never take what we do for granted and understand that without your trust and support none of this would be possible. Thank you!
Kathy and I are currently reviewing all of the submissions, and labeling and sorting them in preparation for the Spectrum judging event which will be held on February 25, 2017 in Santa Cruz, California at our Flesk Publications offices. Everyone who submitted will receive an email confirmation once we have verified your art and database entry. It will take us at least one full week to go over everything. Additionally, we will be in touch if we have any questions. We want you to have the best opportunity to be seen by the jury and we look forward to working on your behalf.
I’ll keep you updated during this process as I share news and stories along the way.
We wish everyone the best of luck and thank you again for your support!
The purpose of Spectrum has always been to showcase the brightest creators working today while embracing diversity. As a result Spectrum has the highest profile and circulation of any art annual or sourcebook currently being published, either in the United States or abroad: more eyes means not only a greater appreciation and respect for our field, but also more opportunities for everyone. It is the active participation of the art community that makes Spectrum possible without you it can’t succeed. We need you. As the deadline for entries nears please help us spread the word to your fellow artists via your websites, blogs, and social media pages; share the link to the entry form and help us meet the challenge of keeping Spectrum fresh, vibrant, and truly representative of the fantastic art field. The harder the jury has to work while casting their votes this year, the more significant having work selected for inclusion is. Life is a competition and the arts are no different; Spectrum is a symbol of individual accomplishment, but it’s also celebrating the accomplishments of our entire community. Click here to submit.
Read the press release with quotes by the jury by clicking here.
Hi, everyone,
