David A. Hardy (born 10 April 1936) is a British

space art "Space art" (also "astronomical art") is the term for a genre of modern artistic expression that strives to show the wonders of the Universe. Like other genres, space art has many facets and encompasses realism, impressionism, hardware art, scu ...

ist.

Early life

David Hardy was born 10. April 1936 in Bournville, UK. He studied at the Margaret Street College of Art in Birmingham, and was soon painting for the

British Interplanetary Society The British Interplanetary Society (BIS), founded in Liverpool in 1933 by Philip E. Cleator, is the oldest existing space advocacy organisation in the world. Its aim is exclusively to support and promote astronautics and space exploration. Str ...

Career

He started his career as an employee in the Design Office of

Cadbury's Cadbury, formerly Cadbury's and Cadbury Schweppes, is a British multinational confectionery company fully owned by Mondelez International (originally Kraft Foods) since 2010. It is the second largest confectionery brand in the world after M ...

, where he created packaging and advertising art for the company's confectionery; but was already illustrating books for e.g.

Patrick Moore Sir Patrick Alfred Caldwell-Moore (; 4 March 1923 – 9 December 2012) was an English amateur astronomer who attained prominence in that field as a writer, researcher, radio commentator and television presenter. Moore was president of the Brit ...

. His first

science fiction art This is a list of science fiction and fantasy artists, notable and well-known 20th- and 21st-century artists who have created book covers or interior illustrations for books, or who have had their own books or comic books of fantastic art with sci ...

was published in 1970, but he has gone on to illustrate hundreds of covers for books, and for magazines such as ''

The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy and science fiction magazine first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence Spivak's Mercury Press. Editors Anthony Boucher ...

'' and ''

Analog Science Fiction and Science Fact ''Analog Science Fiction and Fact'' is an American science fiction magazine published under various titles since 1930. Originally titled ''Astounding Stories of Super-Science'', the first issue was dated January 1930, published by William C ...

''. His work also appears regularly in magazines such as ''

Astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies astronomical object, celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and chronology of the Universe, evolution. Objects of interest ...

'', ''

Sky & Telescope ''Sky & Telescope'' (''S&T'') is a monthly American magazine covering all aspects of amateur astronomy, including the following: *current events in astronomy and space exploration; *events in the amateur astronomy community; *reviews of astronomic ...

'', ''

Astronomy Now ''Astronomy Now'' is a monthly British magazine on astronomy and space. According to the Royal Astronomical Society, ''Astronomy Now'' is the "principal amateur astronomy magazine in Britain" with a reputed circulation of 24,000. The magazine f ...

'' and ''

Popular Astronomy Amateur astronomy is a hobby where participants enjoy observing or imaging celestial objects in the sky using the unaided eye, binoculars, or telescopes. Even though scientific research may not be their primary goal, some amateur astronomers ...

'', for which he also writes articles. Jon Gustafson and Peter Nicholls write that he is "known as much for his astronomical paintings in the accurate tradition of

Chesley Bonestell Chesley Knight Bonestell Jr. (January 1, 1888 – June 11, 1986) was an American painter, designer and illustrator. His paintings inspired the American space program, and they have been (and remain) influential in science fiction art and illustr ...

as for his sf work... Some of his best early work was to illustrate a nonfiction book by

, ''Suns, Myths, and Men'' (1954)." Gustafson and Nicholls remark that ''The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction'' was "the magazine for which he developed his famous "Space

Gumby ''Gumby'' is an American clay animation franchise, centered on the titular green clay humanoid character created and modeled by Art Clokey. Gumby stars in two television series, the feature-length '' Gumby: The Movie'', and other media. He im ...

'Bhen'," a green alien which lent humour to his vivid astronomical scenes. He was an important artist for ''Vision of Tomorrow'' and worked also for ''

Science Fiction Monthly ''Science Fiction Monthly'' was a British science fiction magazine published from 1974 to 1976 by New English Library. Launched in response to demand from readers for posters of the cover art of New English Library's science fiction paperbacks ...

'', '' If'' and ''Galaxy''." He is European Vice President of the

International Association of Astronomical Artists The International Association of Astronomical Artists (IAAA), is a non-profit organization whose members implement and participate in astronomical and space art projects, promote education about space art and foster international cooperation in art ...

, and a former Vice President of the

Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists The Association of Science Fiction and Fantasy Artists, ASFA, is a non-profit, educational association, whose membership is made up of amateur and professional artists, art directors, art show managers, publishers and collectors involved in the vis ...

. He has been Artist Guest of Honour at a number of

science fiction convention Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of the speculative fiction genre, science fiction. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expres ...

s, including Stucon,

Albacon Albacon is the Albany science fiction convention, held each year in the Albany, New York area, also called the Capital District. Albacon is the largest "Con" in upstate New York, United States. It is hosted by LASTSFA, or Latham-Albany-Schene ...

, Armadacon,

Novacon Novacon is an annual science fiction convention, usually held each November in the English Midlands. Launched in 1971, it has been hosted by the Birmingham Science Fiction Group since 1972. History The first Novacon was organised by the University ...

, the 2007

Eurocon Eurocon is an annual science fiction convention held in Europe. The organising committee of each Eurocon is selected by vote of the participants of the previous event. The procedure is coordinated by the European Science Fiction Society. The first ...

, and Illustrious, the 2011

Eastercon Eastercon is the common name for the annual British national science fiction convention. The convention is organised by voluntary self-organising committees, rather than a permanent entity. Organisation Groups of fans (typically 5–8 in n ...

. He was also a guest speaker at the 2012

Microcon Microcon was an annual science fiction and fantasy convention, held annually at the University of Exeter in Exeter, Devon, England since 1982, usually over the first weekend in March. It is organised by the Exeter University Science Fiction and ...

at Exeter University.

Major books

* ''Challenge of the Stars'' (with

) (1972), revised as ''New Challenge of the Stars'' 1978 * ''Galactic Tours'' (with

Bob Shaw Robert Shaw (31 December 1931 – 11 February 1996) was a science fiction writer and fan from Northern Ireland, noted for his originality and wit. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980. His short story "Light of Other Days" ...

) (1981) * ''Atlas of the Solar System'' (1982/1986) * ''Visions of Space'' (Dragon's World, 1989) * ''Hardyware: The Art of David A. Hardy'' (text by Chris Morgan]; Paper Tiger UK/Sterling US 2001) * ''Aurora: A Child of Two Worlds'' (novel; Cosmos Books, 2003), (Updated and revised edition, August 2012; Wildside Press) * ''Futures: 50 Years in Space'' (text by Sir Patrick Moore, AAPPL/HarperCollins 2004), (Paperback ''50 Years in Space'' AAPPL 2006)

Awards and honours

* 1979 Nominated for the

Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist The Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist is given each year for artists of works related to science fiction or fantasy released in the previous calendar year. The award has been given annually under several names since 1955, with the except ...

. * 1987 Won 'Best European SF Artist' award. * 2001 Won the

Lucien Rudaux Lucien Rudaux (1874–1947) was a French artist and astronomer, who created famous paintings of space themes in the 1920s and 1930s. The Rudaux crater on Mars and the Lucien Rudaux Memorial Award are named in his honor. The asteroid 35 ...

Memorial Award. * 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007 Best cover art, readers award,

. * 2005 ''FUTURES'' was nominated for the

Hugo Award for Best Related Book The Hugo Award for Best Related Work is one of the Hugo Awards given each year for primarily non-fiction works related to science fiction or fantasy, published or translated into English during the previous calendar year. The Hugo Awards have bee ...

. * 2005 ''FUTURES'' received the

Sir Arthur Clarke Award The Sir Arthur Clarke Award is a British award given annually since 2005 in recognition of notable contributions to space exploration, particularly British achievements. Nominations for the awards are made by members of the public, with shortlis ...

for 'Best Written Presentation' • 2015 received the Ordway Award for 'Sustained Excellence in Spaceflight History'. * 2019 was elected an Honorary Fellow of the British Interplanetary Society. * Asteroid 13329 Davidhardy, discovered 1998 by

Spacewatch The Spacewatch Project is an astronomical survey that specializes in the study of minor planets, including various types of asteroids and comets at University of Arizona telescopes on Kitt Peak near Tucson, Arizona, in the United States. The Sp ...

Kitt Peak Kitt Peak ( ood, Ioligam) is a mountain in the U.S. state of Arizona, and at is the highest point in the Quinlan Mountains. It is the location of the Kitt Peak National Observatory. The radio telescope at the observatory is one of ten dishes co ...

has been named after him.

References

External links

David A. Hardy/AstroArt website : Books, prints, originals, and a Music/Art DVD.

(Review by Ron Miller) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, David A. 1936 births Living people Analog Science Fiction and Fact people English illustrators Science fiction artists British speculative fiction artists People from Birmingham, West Midlands Space artists Alumni of the Birmingham School of Art