Page 113 - Swann Galleries - 20th Century Illustration - Sale 2300 - January 24, 2013

219 ● FRED MARCELLINO. Slow Learner.
Watercolor, colored pencil, airbrush and collage on paper with the lower portion including
the trace-cut bicycle pasted over the posted fountain pen and background. 335x295 mm;
13x111/2 inches. Iconic dust jacket design for Thomas Pynchon’s “Slow Learner,”
published in 1984 by Little, Brown and Company. [6,000/9,000]
Fred Marcellino (1939-2001) was an artist schooled at Cooper Union and Yale. After first
working in advertising and editorial illustration, he gained fame as the premier book jacket
artist of the 70s and 80s. His jackets are readily recognizable, e.g.TomWolfe’s “Bonfire of
theVanities,” AnnTyler’s “The AccidentalTourist,” and Milan Kundera’s “The Unbelievable
Lightness of Being.” In mid-career he changed course and became an acclaimed writer and
illustrator of children’s books.
An exhibition of both aspects of his career is currently on national tour, next to be seen at the
Children’s Museum in Houston.
THIS IS THE FIRST TIME HIS WORK HAS EVER APPEARED AT AUCTION .