I was a young boy during the run-up to the Moon landing. It was a magical time for a young person fascinated by the concept of space exploration. It seemed a certainty we would be living on other planets during my lifetime. The visual images that filled my young mind were those created by the space artists. This was long before the high quality space photography we have now, so it was the artists who helped me imagine what this future would look like. It was this space mania that first got me reading as a kid, seeking out mostly science fiction.

I’ll be honest, the cover art was my entire selection criterion back then. I’ve evolved to prioritize the written word since then, but moving cover art still grabs my eye. The idea that space art is becoming a thing of the past is horrifying to me. I still know a lot of great space art is still out there, but the picture painted by this link is depressing.