Recently, Ashley asked in the comments for podcast Episode 606, Behind the Scenes of Classic Cover Art: Shirley Green and Sharon Spiak:
“whaaaat how did you get that for your wall? Where can I get rad oldschool cover art?”
Ashley has inspired me to collect a few places from which Old Skool Cover Art can be yours!
I’ve been fascinated with romance cover art since the beginning, and have done a lot of research, interviews, and general nosy-nebby writing about it.
In 2013, I interviewed cover artist Joe DiCesare, who painted Jennifer Greene’s Night of the Hunter. This interview was one of the first I did where I realized how much WORK went into painting old cover art:
I always used professional models and a photographer to shoot my reference. I used Michel Legrou, owner of Media Photo Group, and he is one of the best photographers for romance! After shooting the models in the photo studio, I edited all the photos down to a final pose that fit the story.
Using the photographs, I created a black and white pencil sketch with lots of detail to show the layout, design, and pose of the purposed cover. After the sketch was approved by the Art Director, I had the sketch photographed, and the reference slides printed out to full color prints. I transferred my approved sketch to the final canvas, and sometimes did an under-painting in a warm monotone to start my painting.
Finally, I was ready to start painting the final artwork, usually taking about a week to complete the final oil painting. I can remember carrying many wet paintings on the crowded subways of New York as I was delivering the art to the client!
I have NEVER forgotten the image of a cover artist carrying a wet painting onto the subway!
I’ve also interviewed art directors about typeface choices, and went to the Covering Romance gallery exhibit in February 2024 for John Ennis’ collection:
This is clearly a field of pop art I’m endlessly nosy about. So let’s talk where to get some!
I’ll start with John Ennis: all the art at the gallery exhibit was for sale. Most of the larger pieces were in the $400-500 range, with smaller pieces available at $75 and $150.
You can follow Mr. Ennis on Instagram @JohnEnnisRomanceCovers and use the contact form at John-Ennis.com to enquire about specific pieces, like this one:
Steve Ammidown visited us to share his journeys through eBay romance memorabilia, and eBay is indeed a place to find some old cover art.
I typically search for “romance novel cover painting,” with ‘painting’ being a key piece of that search. Otherwise you get covers of books made into other things, or just copies of books with the original ‘cover art.’
This one is listed at $699.99 and is from a book called Sunny Says by Jan Hudson:
This one is by artist George A. Bush and is $775, and I have questions about how the model achieved such incredible flexibility.
Do other people’s backs do that?
That cover is from Shameless Ecstasy by Thea Devine.
But now that we have a memorable artist’s name: searches for George A. Bush reveal a few more covers on eBay! Like this one!
This painting is $724, and is from Passage to Pontefract by Jean Plaidy, aka Victoria Holt.
Some listings on eBay come with a copy of the book, such as this one for Mr. Jeffries and the Jilt, A Regency romance by Joy Reed:
That listing is $149.
Among the prominent artists that painted romance novel covers: John Ennis, who I’ve already mentioned, Sharon Spiak, Pino Daeni, Elaine Duillo, James Griffin, or Victor Gadino. The one I have on my office wall is by Sandro.
Finally, Sharon Spiak, the artist I interviewed alongside photographer Shirley Green in Episode 606, is also offering some of her original paintings for sale as well as prints!
The prints range in price from $30-$34, while the original paintings range from $2000-7000.
This is the original art for The Hawk and the Dove by Virginia Henley:
Is it wrong that:
- I’m disappointed that the cover text disguises how Very Suggestively he is holding onto his own sword?
- I remember that one nipple more than I remember the cover overall?
And this, another original, is going to be the start of a lot of lesbian historical heist fiction, I bet!
This is titled Distant Choices, though I’m not sure who the author might have been, and is $5000. (There is a book by Brenda Jagger called Distant Choices, which features two sisters, only one of whom is legitimate: “Katharine was dark, rebellious and unruly. Oriel was fair, poised and pleasant. But whereas Kate is legitimate, Oriel is not.” While I couldn’t find this art on the cover, it does fit.)
Ah, what a time in art and romance.
I can’t be the only one who loves looking at the original paintings, right? I love this so much. It’s a whole realm of pop art that seems to be disappearing.
Do you have a favorite piece of cover art? Have you bought or found an original? Would you want to have romance cover art hanging on your wall?
Goals!
I don’t have any romance cover paintings, but I long for that “The Hawk and the Dove” painting. I’m mentally making grabby hands at it every time I see it. If I had a spare $5K floating about that was just collecting dust, I would totally buy it and hang it in my reading space at home. It’s like the ultimate romance cover. Her dress is amazing. Her hair is fantastic. The ocean, the drama of the ship, and then – of course – there’s Fabio.
The only painting I would love more is the OG art for “Lord of Scoundrels”, with a black-haired Jessica and the pink and orange flowers. I did ask Loretta Chase once what happened to that painting, and she didn’t know. I know she’s not very fond of the original art, but I adore it. It’s so beautiful. If anyone even knows where one might purchase a print of it, please drop the link here!
I’d even love a painting of the second “Lord of Scoundrels” cover, because the dreamy brunette Jessica with her pastel pink flowers is also lovely. I’m not sure if that one was ever an actual painting or if they’d moved to photos and digital art by then.
Thanks for this! I think this might be one of my favorite SBTB posts ever. 🙂
I loved the cover of Sarah MacLean’s “A Scot in the Dark”, partially because of the lush and vibrant blue of the heroine’s dress, and partially because (if I recall correctly) the cover is meant to be a scandalous portrait of the heroine that kicks off the plot.
At the time we were newly engaged, artist Fabian Perez lived downstairs in our apartment building. DH commissioned him to paint us in a dance pose based on a photo we took on the night we got engaged. 🙂
That will serve as our ‘romance cover’ art!
@chacha1 what a lovely gift! That’s very cool and romantic.
I always loved Jon Paul’s art. https://jonpaulstudios.com/
I was browsing one of my favorite subreddits, Thrift Store Hauls, and someone had posted the items below. Based on the comments, I’m not even sure the person who posted realized they had gotten a fantastic deal on two pieces of cover art.
https://www.reddit.com/r/ThriftStoreHauls/comments/1f2pamv/wild_my_god_only_6_bucks_for_both_paintings_and/