Stewart Cowley collections - Terran Trade Authority
The Space Warriors
Starliners
Spacebase 2000
Spacewreck
Spacecraft 2000 To 2100AD
Star Quest
Worlds At War
Space Patrol
The Fantastic Planet
Great Space Battles
Settlers In Space / Dangerous Frontiers
Aliens In Space
Spacecraft 2100 To 2200AD
(1978 - 2006) 
The Terran Trade Authority are a handful of well-regarded books (SPACECRAFT 2000 TO 2100AD, GREAT SPACE BATTLES, SPACEWRECK and STARLINERS) which, according to interviews I read, initially grew out of Cowley's desire to gather & showcase the vibrant Sci-Fi art exploding onto bookshelves thru the 1960s & 70s. Modeling the first one after the many volumes of the British comprehensive war reference compilations, JANE'S FIGHTING SHIPS, Cowley always intended to engage a writer to formulate a detailed militaristic future-history around chosen art-pieces, but deadline pressure lead him to do it himself. The conceit caught on and Cowley had himself a new career and produced three more volumes. He was hired by a different publisher to do more of the same and he created the Galactic Encounters series (STAR QUEST, WORLDS AT WAR, SPACE PATROL, THE FANTASTIC PLANET, SETTLERS IN SPACE, ALIENS IN SPACE) which is considered by many to be loosely related to the 'universe' created in his first series. The last book of that period, THE SPACE WARRIORS, was released with a more straight-forward narrative weaving together the art. Finally, more than 20 years later, a different publisher 'revived' the phenomenon, by revamping the original book, advancing its then anachronistic timeline and re-titling it SPACECRAFT 2100 TO 2200AD. They are arranged below with the most formatically-aesthetical successful ones (by our lights) on the top and the least so on the bottom.
The Space Warriors (1980 - Dean & Son Ltd)(by Stewart Cowley) This has been characterized as a 'spin-off ' from the Terran Trade Authority milieu. The text seems more juvenile than the other books, but the art still predominates. Out of the book's 122, 88 pages feature a large piece, with almost half of those being impressive full-bleeds. Another six pages contain two images each. Unfortunately this particular project mars somewhat 15 of the reproductions with spikey, brightly colored 'word-ballons' that, I guess, were meant to add excitement to the on-going narrative. You'll find 16 paintings here that are allowed to bleed significantly across the central gutter, and while most are still 'o.k.', the execution could be termed less than stellar. The 'well-presented' artists gathered here are: David Hardy, Eddie Jones (53), Nico Keulers (5), Eric Ladd, Paul Lehr (3), Carl Lundgren (2), and Blair Wilkins (8). Note that Eddie Jones is featured here with more than twice the number of all the other painters combined - because of the consistency of subjects found in his art here, I suspect that many of the pieces may have been commissioned for this project.
Starliners (1980 - Exeter Books / Hamlyn Publishing Group)(by Stewart Cowley) The last released TTA book and you can see that the French edition sported a different cover (as did the German edition split into two volumes (one of which is a new piece of art not featured in the original)). Most of the images are those of fantastical spaceships either plying the ether or hovering over planetscapes, but there are a few aliens & robots as well. A bit larger at 9-by-12-inches, it has 89 pages with 62 given to large reproductions of the art, including 23 that expand across the gutter to be larger than a single page (while never my first choice, all 23 are handled pretty well and the usual distortion is minimal). Impressively, most of the art-pages are full-bleeds. Two painters are given more than half the book, but a sense of diversity is still maintained. In all, the artists are Peter Elson (16)***, Nick Fox, Fred Gambino (3), David Jackson, Chris Moore (10)***, Prieto Muriana, Jeffrey Ridge (2), Tony Roberts (2), and Trevor Webb (5).
*** - Note that regarding Moore and Elson's pieces here, some, but not all, of them can also be found 'well-presented' in their own collections on "The List"
Spacebase 2000 (1984 - St. Martin's Press / Hamlyn Publishing Group)(by Stewart Cowley) This book is simply the combining of two others, SPACECRAFT 2000-2100AD and GREAT SPACE BATTLES. Because this thicker resulting volume is actually closer to our optimal size than either of its thinner constiuent books, it scores slightly better than them. Also, the cover is a new selected art piece by Roy Virgo. So, just for the record, this combo-book registers these 'well-presented' artists: Jim Burns (8)***, Alan Daniels (2), Peter Elson (14)***, Fred Gambino (2), Peter Goodfellow, Colin Hay (14), Robin Hiddon, Bob Layzell (7), Angus McKie (23), Tony Roberts (14), and Roy Virgo.
*** - Note that regarding Burns & Elson, some, but not all, of each of their pieces here can also be found 'well-presented' in their own collections on "The List"
Spacewreck (1979 - Exeter Books / Hamlyn Publishing Group)(by Stewart Cowley) The book is subtitled GHOSTSHIPS AND DERELICTS OF SPACE and was the third book in the TTA series released. Note that like the other TTA books, the Germans split this one into two volumes in their original release - one sported the same cover and the companion is pictured above. The theme here is all the odd or unknown ways these spacecraft, and their crews, came to grief. 98 pages in all, with 65 of those given to large art reproductions (half being full-bleeds). Unfortunately 18 of those pages are taken as foldouts to display six long images - another 30 are used to present 15 images as spreading over the center gutter (most of those remain 'o.k.' in that mode, but it's never as good as keeping the image to one page . . . ). The 'well-presented' artists here are: Alan Daniels, Peter Elson (2)**, Fred Gambino (8), Colin Hay, Robin Hiddon (2), Bob Layzell (5), Angus McKie (2), and Tony Roberts (11).
** - Note that Elson's pieces cannot be found 'well-presented' in his own collection on "The List"
Spacecraft 2000-2100AD (1978 - Chartwell Books / Hamlyn Publishing Group)(by Stewart Cowley) The first released TTA book and you can see that the Japanese edition sported a different cover (as did the German edition, split into two volumes). 96 pages with 63 of them featuring large art reproductions (nearly half of those are full-bleeds). 32 of those pages are used to present 16 large images spreading across the central gutter and the opposite page - impressively almost every one is handled deftly enough to minimize the distortion to acceptability. Again, the focus here was just space-faring ships, popularly catalogued like the modern military-equipment compendiums of our era. The essays accompanying each illustration wove in a far-flung & consistent future-history, a science-fiction genre aspect that wasn't yet that commonplace. This first stable of collected artists is compact with all having at least one 'well-presented' piece. They are: Jim Burns (3)*, Alan Daniels, Peter Goodfellow, Colin Hay (11), Bob Layzell (6), Angus McKie (13), and Tony Roberts (8). (Note that this book was combined with GREAT SPACE BATTLES to make-up the larger SPACEBASE 2000 edition).
* - Note that one of Burns' pieces is also 'well-presented' in his own collections further up on The List.
Star Quest (1979 - Crescent Books)(by Steven Caldwell (pseudonym for Stewart Cowley)) This was one of the GALACTIC ENCOUNTERS series that many considered a same-universe tangent of the TERRAN TRADE AUTHORITY. They are slim volumes of only 64 pages. 48 of those pages are devoted to the art, with 35 as full-bleed reproductions. Those also include 26 pages that are used to showcase 13 images that cross the book's central gutter, but they are all handled in such a way as to still pass muster. You'll see Robin Hiddon's artwork on the dustcover, but that artist's not represented within and the piece was already in another of the books here. The 'well-presented' pieces inside are by Jim Burns (3)***, Peter Elson (12)***, Bob Fowke, Fred Gambino (2), Colin Hay (4), David Jackson (2), Bob Layzell, Chris Moore (3)***, Cesare Reggiani, and Tony Roberts (2). The artists are all identified & credited on the contents page.
*** - Note that regarding Burns, Moore & Elson, some, but not all, of each of their pieces here can also be found 'well-presented' in their own collections on "The List"
Worlds At War (1980 - Crescent Books)(by Steven Caldwell (pseudonym for Stewart Cowley)) Another of the GALACTIC ENCOUNTERS series. This 64-page volume has 52 art pages, three-fourths of those presented as full-bleeds. Unfortunately, 39 of those art pages are used to showcase 21 images that flow across the split in the center, though most of them could be said to still be acceptable with the central distortion. The 'well-presented' artists found here are: Jim Burns*, Les Edwards, Peter Elson (6)***, Melvyn Grant, Colin Hay (2), Bob Layzell (3), Angus McKie, Chris Moore (4)****, Cesare Reggiani (4), and Tony Roberts (4).
* - Note that the Burns piece can also be found 'well-presented' in his own collections up on The List.
*** - Note that in regards to Moore and Elson's pieces here, some, but not all, can be found 'well-presented' in their own collections on "The List"
Space Patrol (1980 - Crescent Books)(by Steven Caldwell (pseudonym for Stewart Cowley)) This was one of the GALACTIC ENCOUNTERS series that many considered a same-universe tangent of the TERRAN TRADE AUTHORITY. They are slim volumes of only 64 pages. 54 of those pages are devoted to the art, with 34 as full-bleed reproductions. Those also include 44 pages that are used to showcase 22 images that cross the book's central gutter, but one-third are mis-aligned or otherwise can't beat the gutter distortion. You'll see Roy Virgo's artwork on the dustcover, but that artist is not represented within. The 'well-presented' pieces inside are by Peter Elson (2)**, Fred Gambino, Melvyn Grant, Colin Hay, Bob Layzell (4), Chris Moore (3), Cesare Reggiani (6), Jeffrey Ridge, Derek Riggs, Tony Roberts, Vicente Segrelles (3)**, and George Smith. The artists are all identified & credited on the contents page.
** - Note that the 'well-presented' pieces here by Segrelles and Elson cannot additionally be found so in their own collections on "The List"
*** - Note that in regards to Moore's 'well-presented' pieces here, some, but not all, can additionally be found so in his own collections on "The List"
The Fantastic Planet (1980 - Crescent Books)(by Steven Caldwell (pseudonym for Stewart Cowley)) This was one of the GALACTIC ENCOUNTERS series that many considered a same-universe tangent of the TERRAN TRADE AUTHORITY. They are slim volumes of only 64 pages. 49 of those pages are devoted to the art, with more than two-thirds of them as full-bleed reproductions. Those also include 32 pages that are used to showcase 16 images that cross the book's central gutter - in this case, almost all of those are still 'o.k' with the central distortion, but as always, it's just not ideal. You'll see Robin Hiddon's artwork on the dustcover, but that piece is not seen within. The 'well-presented' works inside are by Les Edwards (2), Peter Elson (7)***, Nick Fox (3), Fred Gambino, Melvyn Grant (7), Colin Hay (3), Robin Hiddon (3), Angus McKie, Terry Oakes, Dave Pether. The artists are all identified & credited on the contents page. If seeking this volume, be sure and don't be confused by the similarly-titled FANTASTIC PLANETS.
*** - Note that in regards to Elson's pieces here, some, but not all, can be found 'well-presented' in his own collection on "The List"
Great Space Battles (1979 - Chartwell Books / Hamlyn Publishing Group)(by Stewart Cowley & Charles Herridge) You can see that the German edition, which was split into two volumes, pulled different art pieces from the book to be on the covers. Our English book is 96 pages with 58 of them featuring full-page art reproductions (two-thirds are full-bleeds). 26 of those pages are used to present 13 large images spreading across the central gutter and the opposite page - impressively almost every one is handled deftly enough to minimize the distortion to acceptability. The book's title tells you everything you need to know about what's being depicted. The artists are: Jim Burns (5)***, Alan Daniels, Peter Elson (14)***, Fred Gambino (2), Colin Hay (3), Robin Hiddon, Bob Layzell, Angus McKie (10), and Tony Roberts (6). (Note that this book was combined with SPACECRAFT 2000 TO 2100AD to make-up the larger SPACEBASE 2000 edition.)
*** - Note that regarding Burns & Elson, some, but not all, of each of their pieces here can also be found 'well-presented' in their own collections on "The List"
Settlers In Space / Dangerous Frontiers (1980 - Crescent Books)(by Steven Caldwell (pseudonym for Stewart Cowley)) This was one of the GALACTIC ENCOUNTERS series that many considered a same-universe tangent of the TERRAN TRADE AUTHORITY. They are slim volumes of only 64 pages. For this one (which had two different titles between the U.S. and Europe), 52 of those pages are devoted to the art, four-fifths as full-bleed reproductions. Those also include 21 images that cross the book's central gutter, almost half of which suffer from mis-alignment. The collected 'well-presented' pieces are by Jim Burns (2)*, Peter Elson (4), Bob Fowke (2), Colin Hay, Bob Layzell (2), Angus McKie (3), Chris Moore (4), Terry Oakes (3), Cesare Reggiani (3), Tony Roberts, and Roy Virgo.
* - Note that one of Burns' pieces has appeared 'well-presented' in his own collections up on The List.
Aliens In Space (1979 - Crescent Books)(by Steven Caldwell (pseudonym for Stewart Cowley)) Another of the GALACTIC ENCOUNTERS series. The 64 pages have 44 art ones, three-fourths of them presented as full-bleed. Unfortunately, 28 of those pages are utilized to present 14 images spreading substantially over the central split and only slightly more than half are still acceptable that way, taking in the gutter distortion. The artist names are all credited & indexed together in a block on the contents page and the 'well-presented' ones are: Jim Burns**, Les Edwards (3), Peter Elson (5)***, Nick Fox, Peter Goodfellow (2), Bob Layzell (2), Mike Masters, Chris Moore**, Alan Morgan, Terry Oakes (3), Joe Petagno, and Tony Roberts (4).
** - Note that Burns and Moore's pieces here do not appear 'well-presented' in their own collections up on The List.
*** - Note that in regards to Elson's pieces here, some, but not all can be found 'well-presented' in his own collection on "The List"
Spacecraft 2100 To 2200AD (2006 - Morrigan Press)(by Steve Agnew, Jeff Lilly & Stewart Cowley) So, decades after the original phenomenon played out, this new book was produced, but let's be clear - it is *not* a new book in the Terran Trade Authority series. It 'revamps' the first book, SPACECRAFT 2000 TO 2100AD, with some major changes. First, since now the year 2000 had already passed without any sign of space-freighters starting to plow the ether, it was time to re-envision the future as starting 100 years later (and the 'new' title reflects that). As the original art-pieces would not be re-presented, Adrian Mann was engaged to recreate many of those pieces as digital works and add five or six new ships to the mix. Much of the text descriptions were kept, but the new authors put their own stamp on this new history and ship catalogue. A number of entries from the original book were excised and those pages not given to the new ships were re-purposed for more writing (that new ratio then scored this book below all the others). I don't think the new artwork should be judged too harshly for its apostasy. The vibrant colors are still the mainstay of the new works, though a couple are darker than they really need to be. The book is designed to have far fewer works spread over the central gutter, which is a good thing, but unfortunately one of the two remaining does not pass muster. So, out of the 96 pages, you get 40 pages dedicated to the art (more than a third less than the original).
other 'found art' narrative story-books
Tour Of The Universe [BELOW THE LINE]
other Crescent releases
Maxfield Parrish (Cutler & Goffman)
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