Original cover illustration art for SIGNET publication of Ayn Rand's "Atlas Shrugged"
Robert Heindel (attributed). New York, NY: Signet various. First Edition. Illustration board, overall size 12 x 16 inches. The image is approx 7 1/4 x 7 1/4 inches. This is the ORIGINAL COVER ILLUSTRATION ART (not a print or reproduction) for Ayn Rand's novel "Atlas Shrugged", used by publisher SIGNET for many printings of their edition of Rand's work. Signed by artist Robert Heindel who created at least six paintings for the SIGNET series. Marked "ATLAS SHRUGGED" upper right. Condition is excellent overall, with light wear and some corner bumping of the illustration board. Photograph of a sample SIGNET paperback front cover is just for reference. No paperback is included with this artwork. Near Fine. [27555]
This evocative illustration for "Atlas Shrugged" was created by Robert Heindel (October 1, 1938 - July 3, 2005), an important American illustrator posthumously inducted in 2011 into the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame. Primarily known as a dance illustrator in his later life (some say the best), he started in illustration, and was a core member of The Illustrators Workshop. In the 1980s he did illustrations for “every major print magazine such as ‘Sports Illustrated’, ‘TV Guide’, ‘Ladies Home Journal’, “‘Redbook’, the ‘Saturday Evening Post’, and ‘Time’ magazine.” “Well-known patrons of dance and the performing arts collected Heindel's works and sponsored his exhibitions, including Princess Diana, Princess Margaret, Princess Caroline, Prince and Princess Takamado, and Andrew Lloyd Webber. His works are found in the permanent collections of museums including the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, the National Portrait Gallery, London, the Norman Rockwell Museum, and the Glasgow Museums.” (Society of Illustrators biography, Wikipedia)
On the book this art illustrates: “With adoring fans, rabid critics and very few in between, why does Atlas Shrugged evoke such impassioned responses? Because it grapples with the fundamental problems of human existence — and presents radically new answers. Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand’s last novel, is a dramatization of her unique vision of existence and of man’s highest potential. Twelve years in the writing, it is her masterwork. Is the pursuit of profit a noble enterprise or the root of all evil? Is sexual passion an exalted spiritual virtue or a dirty, animalistic vice? Is reason an absolute or is faith an alternative source of truth? Is self-esteem possible or are we consigned to a life of self-doubt and guilt? In what kind of society can an individual prosper, and in what kind of society is he doomed to the opposite fate? Rand’s worldview emerges in the compelling plot turns of a mystery story, centered on the question “Who is John Galt?”” (aynrand org)
A unique piece of art for the Ayn Rand or Heindel collector. From a private collection.
ITEM SOLD