Not Far-Far Away

Concourse Gallery

This exhibition features original paintings and drawings by John Berkey (1932-2008), a prolific illustrator known for his posters and pre-production designs for the original Star Wars movies and many other Hollywood films, hundreds of science fiction book covers, and over a dozen U.S. postage stamps.

Though largely self-taught, Berkey attended the Minneapolis School of Art (now MCAD) from 1950 to 1951 and also took night school courses in 1953. In the 1960s, Berkey was hired by NASA to illustrate the astronauts associated with the space program and over the next four decades his book cover and movie poster designs helped define the look of modern, high-tech space craft. He was inducted into the Society of Illustrators Hall of Fame in 2004. 

Curated by Damon Stanek and presented in collaboration with ArtOrg, this exhibition is part of the 2017 Mechademia conference on Asian popular culture. This year's theme is Science Fiction, with Keynote Speakers Takayuki Tatsumi and Mari Kotani. The conference will be held at MCAD from September 22 to 24.