John Conrad Berkey is probably the best-known science fiction artist on the planet. Even if you don’t know his name, and you probably don’t, you know his work. His artwork appears on the covers of books, calendars and movie posters. His bold vision defined science fiction art.
Berkey was born in Edgeley, North Dakota on this date in 1932. His family moved around, and as a child he lived in South Dakota, Montana, and Minnesota. He studied at the Minneapolis School of Art.
He spent the rest of his life as an artist. He worked for a St. Paul advertising agency where he produced as many as seventy calendar illustrations a year. In contrast with his later success as a science fiction artist, his work featured historical scenes of pioneers, the early railroad, and Great Plains agriculture. After eight years with the agency, he struck out on his own and found success as a freelance artist, producing work for a variety of magazines including Popular Mechanics, TV Guide, and National Geographic.
Berkey came to the attention of science fiction fans with his cover art for a Ballantine Books series. He designed covers for books by some of the biggest science fiction names including Isaac Asimov, Philip K. Dick, and Robert Heinlein. In the 1960s, NASA commissioned Berkey to produce artwork depicting the Apollo space program, Skylab, and the space shuttle Challenger disaster.
His science fiction work brought him to the attention of the movie world. He created the artwork for The Towering Inferno in 1974. That was followed by artwork for blockbuster movies including King Kong, Superman III, and Dune.
His most famous movie work was for Star Wars. The artwork influenced the design of many of the movie’s elements, including the Death Star and the Empire’s star destroyers. His creation of the iconic Star Wars poster was the first look the public got at the new movie, increasing anticipation of the film’s release.
During his busy career, Berkey also found time to design fifteen postage stamps.
In 1999, he received the Spectrum Award for Grand Master recognizing his impressive body of work. He was inducted to the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame in 2004. In 2007, Excelsior, Minnesota honored him with John Berkey Day. Berkey died in April 2008 at his home in Excelsior.
Dakota Datebook by Dr. Carole Butcher
Sources:
- John Berkey Artwork LTD. “Biography.” https://www.johnberkey.com/about/ Accessed 6/26/2024.
- Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. “Berkey, John.” https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/berkey_john Accessed 6/26/2024.
