the Steve Holland books
   Steve Holland Paperback Hero
   Steve Holland - Cowboy
   Steve Holland - The World's Greatest Illustration Model
                                             ( 2021/2022 - St. Clair Publishing)

Steve Holland - Paperback Hero (2023) (by Michael Stradford) This scores as the best yet of the Steve Holland art collections out now. 188 pages of art display, 62 with gathered-together multiple images (sometimes with the appropriate modeling photos intermixed) and 126 each featuring some singular cover or original art. The hundreds of paperback covers are divided up among chapters entitled Spycraft, Adventure, Love And Lust, War, Cops-Robbers-&-Dicks, Westerns, Sci-Fi, Tough Guys, The Spider, and Odds & Ends. Many artists are identified throughout, and are featured in the chapter-openings, frequently being quoted in regards to their Steve Holland interactions, not to mention plenty of commentary within the chapters about particular series that arose out of all this thrilling production. I'd comment that a healthy number of painters's names can be attached to the unidentified images with a minimum of interweb sleuthing. The artists getting 'well-presented' here are: Jerry Allison, James Bama (3) ***, Stanley Borack (6), Peter Caras (7), Mel Crair (15), Elaine Duillo, John Duillo (2), Norm Eastman (2), Jack Faragasso (7), Robert Foster (2), Griffith Foxley, Roger Kastel, Bob Larkin (9) **, Ron Lesser (8) **, Robert Maguire (10) **, Tony Masero, Frank McCarthy (2), Barye Phillips, Jerome Podwil, Vic Prezio, Robert E. Schulz, Shannon Stirnweis, Stivers, Greg Theakston, Jack Thurston, Ed Valigursky, Gary Watson, George Wilson (5), and UNKNOWN ARTIST (28).

** Note that the 'well-presented' pieces here by Larkin, Lesser, and Maguire, cannot additionally be found so in their own collections on The List

*** Note that in regards to the 'well-presented' pieces here by Bama, some, but not all, can additionally be found so in his own collection on The List

Steve Holland - Cowboy (2022) (by Michael Stradford) Another great release from this company. Let's start with the glorious 40-page gallery section that is composed completely of full-page reproductions of original paintings, and then another 68 pages of vintage paperback book covers (45 more full-pagers and the rest, four covers to a page). There's a comic book section that has 13 large art covers and also a number of photographic ones where Holland got to play the western hero directly. Add to that a 61-page section that is mostly pictures of the model being put through his paces, but because within it the author matches up particular photographs with their resulting art, *another* 21 full-page covers are displayed. The book ends with a two-page index that attempts to register all the pages, what's appearing on them and who was responsible. As you can see below, about 25% of the covers & paintings can't have their artists identified, but, knowing the vagaries of vintage publications, I'm guessing it could have been significantly worse without the author's diligence. Through his compiling efforts, plenty of artists get featured here in a way they never have anywhere else. Specifically, the painters found 'well-presented' between these covers: James Bama (10)**, Stanley Borack (9), Peter Caras (2), Robert Crofut, Mel Crair (15), John Duillo (3), Norm Eastman, Mort Engle, Jack Faragasso (2), George Gross (8), Carl Hantman, Roger Kastel, Lu Kimmel, Sol Korby (5), Ron Lesser (14), Joe Lombardero (3), Robert Maguire (4)**, Frank McCarthy (2)**, Walter Popp, Vic Prezio (10), Tom Ryan (2), Jack Thurston (2), Murray Tinkelman, George Wilson (3), and UNKNOWN (31).

** Note that the 'well-presented' pieces here by Bama, Maguire, and McCarthy, cannot additionally be found so in their own collections on The List

Steve Holland - The World's Greatest Illustration Model (2021) (by Michael Stradford) You will find this a very interesting book. If you are already a fan of the illustration art of the 1950s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, it's not possible that you haven't encountered the legend of model Steve Holland. Even if you don't count the works where an artist disguised his presence, you are looking at a jaw-dropping number of paintings in which some form of his visage stares back at you. The author/compiler here has done yeoman's work in creating a fun memorial to him. While, there's a huge number of photographs coming from the modeling process, there's still enough of the resulting art on display to get this book up on The List here. The lion's share are the book & magazine covers, but a healthy amount of original art is found here too. I'd like to mention that this book is one of those rare art books printed on 'flat' pages, rather than glossy stock, and while, in my experience, some "work" and some don't, so far, this one does the best job I've seen of making you not really miss the sheen. To my eyes, there's no muddying of the art's details and the colors still 'pop' from the page, drawing your eyes to the displays. Anyway, the book is 201 pages, with us considering 121 of those predominately 'art' pages. After the 54 pages that pull multiple images together, there's another 67 that each feature a singular work. Unfortunately, 14 of those are too-small exhibits on chapter-openings that happen to 'game' our criteria. Then there's another 14 pages that are displaying seven works that have spread over the central-gutter with just under half flunking out in that presentation. Interviews with artists that worked with Holland (or with session-photographs left behind) form a significant part of this volume - they include James Bama, Jack Faragasso, Ron Lesser, Bob Larkin, Peter Caras, Joe DeVito, and Alex Ross, and those discussions pull you into their own lives in the process. I'd guess that you would characterize the captioning as not being all it could be, sometimes leaving large reproductions unidentified in any way, including naming an artist. Steve Holland himself was a published illustrator, but his own work didn't get the un-cluttered display I look to give the highest 'score' to. The 'well-presented' illustrators exhibited here are: Steve Assel, James Bama (9)***, Peter Caras (6), Mel Crair, Joe DeVito (5), Norm Eastman, Jack Faragasso (5), Fruhauf, Roger Kastel, Mort Künstler (2), Bob Larkin (8), Ron Lesser (3), Robert Maguire (2)**, Tom Palmer, Samson Pollen, Vic Prezio, Alex Ross (4), Al Rossi, Jim Steranko, and UNKNOWN (4).

** Note that the 'well-presented' pieces here by Maguire cannot additionally be found so in his own collection on The List

*** Note that in regards to the 'well-presented' pieces here by Bama, some, but not all, can additionally be found so in his own collection on The List

other paperback cover art collections

The Art Of Romance - Mills & Boon And Harlequin Cover Designs