Ench cover art for Matthew Hughes wins Chesley Award

When I bought Matthew Hughes's novel The Commons for my Robert J. Sawyer Books imprint, the search for cover art was simple. The Commons is a novel that was published in installments in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, and one of those installments, in the March 2007 issue, had one of the best-executed and most-striking paintings I'd seen in a long time.

Fitzhenry & Whiteside (the company that publishes my books) immediately struck a deal with artists Cory & Catska Ench to reuse the art on Matt's book -- and to use it as the cover for the company's catalog that season, as well.

So, it comes as no surprise to us that this wonderful painting has just won the highest honor in SF illustration, the Chesley Award, given by the Association of Science Fiction & Fantasy Artists (ASFA), for Best Magazine Cover.

Congratulations, Cory and Catska! Woohoo!

Locus has the full list of winners here.

The Robert J. Sawyer Web Site