This is one of the latest ones I did in the Gregg Press collector's item edition of Darkover books. The tale it illustrates is a familiar one: human re-colonizers arrive to re-settle Darkover for themselves, despite the resistance of native sentient species. This one spends a lot of time on the chieri, the seven-foot-tall hermaphroditic natives who can interbreed with humans and produce psychically gifted children. The, uh, climax of the book involves a mass orgy of humans and chieri, thus re-vitalizing the genetic heritage of both species. You can see the ecstatic chieri at the top of the pile.
The author Marion liked this picture so much that she reserved it for herself in the art show and took it home. I wonder what happened to all that art that MZB either bought for herself or received as gifts. I think they gave some pieces back to me and they are stashed in a closet with all the fan zines I illustrated.
Ink and photostat, 7" x 10", April 1979. Click for chieri view.
1 comment:
Wow, I love this picture and yet I think it is the least sexual "orgy" scene I have ever seen!
Sorry I have not been commenting on your blog. Lots of things on my mind. Hope I am alive after tomorrow, will try and comment more often if I am (may be a week or so before I am able).
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