James Avati

One of the successful illustrators in the mid-to-late-20th century, an era of declining appreciation for traditional illustration, James Avati survived professionally by turning from magazine art to covers for sensational novels.  Many of these books, descendants of the popular pulp magazines during the war, had scenes of hair-raising violence and sexuality that challenged middle class conservatism.  Of Avati, it was written that his "approach was honest and unblinkingly realistic, in keeping with the gritty fiction that was becoming popular in books and movies, but he painted with an artistry that won readership for the books, and a score of imitators who tried to emulate the 'Avati' look." (Reed 306)

Durin  ...  Displaying 750 of 1849 characters.