Did you know that the Internet Speculative Fiction Database (isfdb.org) allows you to browse publications within the speculative fiction genre, including the artwork for every reprint? The site feels like what the internet is supposed to be: a digital log with enough data for a lifetime (or, for me, an afternoon of mindless browsing).
Originally, I was searching for cover art of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus” for tattoo inspiration. While that whim has since passed, there were a few standout artworks that I wanted to share here.
Thanks to del Toro’s film adaptation, Frankenstein had a revival in pop culture (although, has it ever gone away?) My thoughts on the film aside, I think some of the themes that make the novel so precious to me were put aside for other commentary, which is…fine.
I saved these four covers because I think they speak to themes that have made such a lasting impact in my life: acceptance and isolation, ableism and medicine, and motherhood.
In order (left to right):
Francisco José Goya y Lucientes (2003)
Heinrichs & Piloty (1963)
Elena Odriozola (2013)
Margaret Howlett (1967)