John Berkey Exhibition

My friend Bryn and I journeyed to the small college town of Northfield, MN where an art gallery there was displays the works of one of my all time favorite illustrators, John Berkey. It seems like I've had a life long connection with this man and having the chance to see his work live was a real treat.

My first introduction to Berkey was by way of the 70's paperback edition of Robert E Heinlien's 'Starman Jones' for which Berkey was the cover artist. That was the first 'big book' I ever read as a kid. It took me forever to read so I spent a lot of time looking at the cover. I think I've read that the man on the cover was actually a self portrait although that might be another book cover. As my sci-fi library expanded throughout my teens, I was always able to spot Berkey's covers. Now mind you, I had no idea who was painting them and probably didn't care either. It was all about the space ships at that point and I know what I liked. I think I even bought a couple books simply because of the Berkey covers. Bantam, Del Rey, etc... would probably love to hear that.

Many years later after getting my own art degree and having drawn sketch books full of my own space ships, I was working on the U of Minnesota campus when I saw that the comic shop across the street was going to have a book signing for John Berkey's first book 'Painted Space'. At the signing I think I was the last person there because I got to talk to him for what now seems like hours. He took interest in my art degree and we talked about North Dakota where we were both born. He invited me to come visit his studio in Deephaven. I was thrilled! It was like being asked to come to a batting cage with a major leaguer. Sadly I was not able to do so becuase I was about to move to Japan. A true disappointment of my life.

When I returned from Japan 2 years later, I worked brief at the Fingerhut photo studio. One of the set Stylists I worked with was Berkey's daughter Sharon. This was about 1994. Sharon got me some signed trading cards.


I happened to find out about the exhibition atArtOrg in Northfield while surfing the web but missed the opening by just a week. Damn! At least I didn't miss it completely. Bryn and I had fun dissecting the pieces as only scifi artist could - looking at the materials used, wonder about the coating he gave every illustration, saying that this or that ship just couldn't work, typical stuff. We learned that this was Berkey's first ever public showing which was really amazing to me considering how often I've heard his name mentioned in the scifi world. Recognition is sadly overdue. We also learned that Berkey is very ill.