by Michael Whelan | Jun 18, 2026 | ART GALLERY, NOW ON VIEW
The concept Tad Williams pitched for Otherland was different. Approaching science fiction like epic fantasy, he set out to tackle an ambitious story to follow his groundbreaking Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy.
Starting in 1996 with City of Golden Shadows, Williams spun out a complex tapestry with Virtual Reality as the backdrop. Remarkably, he threaded the needle and delivered four hefty tomes in five years.
Set in the late 21st century, the worldbuilding plays on stratification of wealth and technology to create a dystopic vision of the future that has resonated well in the decades after publication.
by Michael Everett | Mar 31, 2026 | ART GALLERY
It’s hard to believe, but this year marks the tenth installment of my Leftovers and Palette Gremlins annual gallery. While the project didn’t go public until 2016, the little inspirations found in random patterns around the studio have been part of my process since my art school days, and so has practice of putting to use paint leftover from other projects.
I plan to follow the same routine as in the past adding new oddities and inspirations here throughout the year. If you’d like to follow along with the project on social media, I’ll be posting images on Blue Sky, Cara, Mastodon, and Substack.
by Michael Everett | Jan 26, 2025 | ART GALLERY
This year marks the ninth installment of the “Leftovers and Palette Gremlins” gallery project. I’m starting earlier than usual this year…retirement from illustration has its perks! I hope to follow the same routine as the past few years adding new oddities and inspirations here throughout the year.
by Michael Whelan | Sep 3, 2024 | ART GALLERY
This year marks the eight installment of the “Leftovers and Palette Gremlins” gallery project.
While I started posting these small works back in 2016, the truth is I’ve been channeling this type of accidental inspiration for years. No matter what larger projects I happen to be working on, I can’t seem to turn off my brain. I’ll be moving through the studio when a shape seen from the corner of my eye suddenly pops into my head and demands expression.
Frequently what I “see” is an alien or a face and that gives rise to spaceships, landscapes, and other flights of imagination. When this creative spark leads to a new and unplanned work, it feels like a gift.
by Michael Whelan | Dec 29, 2023 | ART GALLERY, PAST SHOWS
The most frequent questions I receive from the public at large are directed toward the process of making a painting: Where do you get such ideas? How long does it take? What steps are involved? It is to answer the majority of such inquiries that this short essay is dedicated. But first a caveat.
Please be aware that I approach each painting as an independent oeuvre with its own peculiar evolution. The steps described below apply in part to most of my paintings, though not all; yet I doubt I’ve done any single painting which involved all the steps delineated below.
Much of my art is illustration—artwork used as accompaniment to film, literature, or music. The majority of my paintings originate, therefore, with a manuscript. The manuscript is usually preceded by a phone call from an editor or art director during which terms, deadlines, and general concepts are discussed.
by Michael Everett | Jul 30, 2023 | ART GALLERY, PAST SHOWS
A remarque is a small original sketch done by the artist on a limited edition print or book.
“Often when I’m asked to do a remarque, I grumble all the way to the studio because it will interfere with whatever painting I’m working on. But once I get started, I realize how little time I devote to just plain drawing and I end up enjoying myself.”
by Michael Whelan | Feb 28, 2023 | ART GALLERY, PAST SHOWS
This year marks the seventh installment of the “Leftovers and Palette Gremlins” gallery project. While I started posting these small works back in 2016, the truth is I’ve been channeling this type of accidental inspiration for years.
No matter what larger projects I happen to be working on, I can’t seem to turn off my brain. I’ll be moving through the studio when a shape seen from the corner of my eye suddenly pops into my head and demands expression. Frequently what I “see” is an alien or a face and that gives rise to spaceships, landscapes, and other flights of imagination. When this creative spark leads to a new and unplanned work, it feels like a gift.
by Michael Whelan | Feb 14, 2022 | ART GALLERY, PAST SHOWS
This year marks the sixth installment of the “Leftovers and Palette Gremlins” gallery project. While I started posting these small works back in 2016, the truth is I’ve been channeling accidental inspiration into art for years.
No matter what larger projects I happen to be working on, I can’t seem to turn off my brain. I’ll be moving through the studio when a shape seen from the corner of my eye suddenly pops into my head and demands expression. Frequently what I “see” is an alien or a face and that gives rise to spaceships, landscapes, and other flights of imagination. When this creative spark leads to a new and unplanned work, it feels like a gift.
by Michael Everett | Nov 25, 2021 | ART GALLERY, PAST SHOWS
Each book released in The Stormlight Archive has become a bigger and bigger sensation. It goes beyond the New York Times Bestseller list and approaches Harry Potter territory. Rhythm of War, the latest volume in the epic fantasy series by Brandon Sanderson, was no exception even in the midst of a global pandemic.
With the cover reveal on TOR.com in August 2020, fan anticipation built to a fever pitch as theories spun around every detail of art. That frenzy of excitement among readers would carry right through the virtual book release in November.
by Michael Whelan | May 5, 2021 | ART GALLERY, PAST SHOWS
Well, it’s now months into 2021 and I thought we should get to another installment of “Leftovers and Palette Gremlins” before any more time slips by.
No matter what larger projects I happen to be working on, I can’t seem to turn off my brain. I’ll be moving through the studio when a shape seen from the corner of my eye suddenly pops into my head and demands expression. Frequently what I “see” is an alien or a face and that gives rise to spaceships, landscapes, and other flights of imagination.
When this creative spark leads to a new and unplanned work, it feels like a gift.
