Edward Daniel Cartier[1] (August 1, 1914 – December 25, 2008), known professionally asEdd Cartier, was an Americanpulp magazineillustrator who specialized in science fiction and fantasy art.
Born inNorth Bergen, New Jersey, Cartier studied atPratt Institute.[2] He was taught by Harold Winfield Scott ("H.W. Scott"), also an illustrator forThe Avenger, who Cartier credits as a mentor.[3] While a student he began illustrating forThe Shadow, eventually creating more than 800 drawings for the pulp.[4] Following his 1936 graduation from Pratt, he and fellow graduateEarl Mayan opened an art studio on the Upper West Side.[3] Cartier's first science fiction cover art was for the December 1939 issue ofUnknown.[5] The original oil painting later sold in 1998 for $35,000.[5]
His artwork was published inStreet and Smith publications and theJohn W. Campbell, Jr.-edited magazinesAstounding Science Fiction,Doc Savage Magazine andUnknown.[1] He provided more than 300 illustrations forAstounding and over 200 forUnknown.[6] His work later appeared in other magazines, includingPlanet Stories,Fantastic Adventures and otherpulps.[1]
When drawing forThe Shadow, Cartier employed dramatic thick swaths of black using the blank spaces as shafts of light.[4] His illustrations evoked the world of the night-time vigilante. He used a different style when illustrating science fiction, employing action and crowded panels.[4] He also injected humor into his drawings.[3] Writers of the Future credited Cartier with a style of "not just very expressive people, but expressive creatures like fairies, gnomes, and gods".[2] His art accompanied the writings of science fiction icons such asIsaac Asimov,Robert A. Heinlein, andTheodore Sturgeon.[7]
Cartier served inWorld War II as an infantryman and heavy machine gunner in France and Germany.[6][7] He was severely wounded in theBattle of the Bulge.[8] He earned aPurple Heart andBronze Star for his service.[6] Cartier became an active member in theVeterans of Foreign Wars and served as captain of theColor Guard.[7]
After returning to the United States he again attended Pratt Institute. He used theG.I. Bill to continue his education. Cartier received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1953.[1] In the post-war years, he continued providing illustrations forAstounding. He became the premier artist forGnome Press andFantasy Press.[6]
As comic books emerged, the pulp industry began to decline. This led Cartier into employment as a draftsman for an engineering firm during the 1950s.[4] He worked more than 25 years as an art director with Mosstype, aWaldwick, New Jersey, manufacturer specializing in printing machinery.[9][6]
Cartier was selected as one of the inaugural judges for theWriters and Illustrators of the Future in 1985.[2] He remained a judge until his death in 2008. He received the Ron Hubbard’s Writers of the Future (Special Golden Age) Award in 1989.[5]In 1990 he received theFirst Fandom Hall of Fame Award.[10]He was awarded the 1992World Fantasy Lifetime Achievement Award.[11] Cartier was nominated for Retro Hugo Awards for artwork published in 1943, 1946, and 1951.[12][13][14]
Edd Cartier: The Known and the Unknown is a 2000-copy limited edition hardcover published by Gerry de la Ree in 1977. Cartier's illustrations of L. Ron Hubbard's fiction were reprinted inMaster Storyteller: An Illustrated Tour of the Fiction of L. Ron Hubbard by William J. Widder (Galaxy Press, 2003.).
Cartier was married in 1943 to Georgina.[3]
Cartier suffered from Parkinson's disease later in life.[3] He died at age 94 on December 25, 2008, at his home inRamsey, New Jersey. He is interred atGeorge Washington Memorial Park in Paramus, New Jersey.[4]
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