Twin Visions: The Magical Art of Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell

by Boris Vallejo (Illustrator), Julie Bell

Now in a paperback edition comes Twin Visions, the latest portfolio collection by celebrated husband-and-wife fantasy art team Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell. This unique collection of over 120 fantasy paintings takes us into a magical universe, otherwise visited only in our dreams. In this sumptuous anthology, new fans of Boris and Julie will discover the beauty and sheer wonder of their paintings, while seasoned ones will find much to surprise and delight them. Charged with drama and eroticism, Boris and Julie have created enchanting visions of loveliness and terrifying nightmares side by side, beauty and the beast inhabiting realms of limitless possibility. This edition includes provocative paintings that were originally created for calendars and other commissions, as well as a selection of pictures from earlier in their careers that have never been featured in their books.

Genres: Art, Fantasy

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

About the author

Boris Vallejo is a Peruvian-born American painter. He immigrated to the United States in 1964, and he currently resides in Allentown, Pennsylvania. Vallejo works almost exclusively in the fantasy and erotica genres. His paintings have graced the covers of dozens of science fiction paperbacks and are featured in a series of best-selling glossy calendars. Subjects of his paintings are typically Sword and sorcery gods, monsters, and well-muscled male and female barbarians engaged in battle. His latest works still retain heavy fantasy elements, but lean more towards the erotic rather than pure fantasy themes.

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can never go wrong with a Boris art book. Fantastic paintings that are almost pictures in their perfection. Very recommended

[RatGrrrl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Boris Vallejo is a name and style I was aware of through nerd osmosis, though Julie Bell was not someone I was consciously aware of previously, more's the pity.

Vallejo is...Vallejo, the Fabio romance cover artist 'for the lads'. Undeniable skills with a seeming obsession with one perspective on the 'perfect physical form' and a fantasy icon. I don't have a nostalgic connection to him and I am of the feminine persuasion, so perhaps I feel less kindly towards him than others. His talent and imagination are spoiled for me by the lasciviousness of his male gaze and the his focus on masculine fantasy, both in the bodybuilder demigods he models his men after, and the swimsuit models he bases his women on. His scenery, monsters, and sci-fi elements are wonderful, but these are few and far between.

Julie Bell on the other hand has a little of Vallejo's propensity for swimsuit models, but tempers the male gaze with her own vision. You can see her style and portrayal of women evolve and it is beautiful to see. The depth and range of her work is something else with all manner of striking and affecting scenes that, in the same way fantasy stories have evolved, contain so much more than muscle-bound and scantily-clad power fantasies. I am truly glad to have discovered her.

A number of pages were sadly torn from the library edition, so the only collaborative work I can be sure of was a science fantasy floating pyramid piece that was truly spectacular. It says they only worked together on four pieces. I would very much like to see the test and wish they had done more.

A fascinating book, but honestly I could have just done with a book of Bell's art.

This was my first in-library read/ peruse, which makes it a bit special.

[Kendra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reread

[Gabriel Wallis · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of beautiful art by Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell.

[Morcys · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the paintings in this book are mesmerizing, even hypnotizing.

[Serge Pierro · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is no doubt that this is a fine collection of extremely well rendered paintings of both Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell. However, the slick artwork seems a bit sterile after turning page after page of it. Some of the more interesting pieces were the rough pieces early in Boris's career that show how far he has come in terms of technique and style. Lots of majestic and heroic poses throughout. Boris fans will find this to be a welcome addition to their collection.

[Ned Leffingwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you need a painting for the side of your van then this is the book for you. Seriously though, I really enjoyed this book. The paintings of Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell are beautiful and fantastic. This volume has a great mix of fantasy, science fiction, and realistic themed paintings.