The Spider, Hordes of the Butcher, paperback cover 1975

Robert Maguire made this paperback cover for ‘The Spider, Hordes of the Butcher’. Look at that backdrop of blues melting down the canvas, really setting the stage. I wonder, what was Maguire thinking as he swirled those blues together? It feels impulsive, like he’s trying to capture a mood rather than a scene. The paint isn't overworked; it’s got this fresh, immediate quality, doesn't it? And then you have this wild narrative, a muscular caveman right next to a turtlenecked hero holding two guns! I can feel Maguire balancing the weirdness of the pulp-fiction, but still trying to make it look 'painterly'. Maguire is part of a long line of painters, all of us grabbing something from the past, mixing it up, and spitting out something new. It’s like we’re all in this chaotic conversation, trying to figure out what it means to make something that feels alive.