Home › Art › Jim Shaw: Paperback Covers
  • Jim Shaw: Paperback Covers by Jim Shaw book cover
1 1

Jim Shaw: Paperback Covers

by Jim Shaw

Be the first to review this book

Imaginary paperbacks, rendered as images

$31.12 USD
$51.87 USD $31.12 USD
Save 40%

Paperback New English

Delivery to your door
In stock·Dispatches in 1–2 business days
Standard shipping* from $4.35
Standard shipping transit* 5–8 business days after dispatch

Faster options are available.

Rates and delivery estimates depend on your destination and item quantity. Estimates are informational only; the final shipping method and rate are selected at checkout.
Secure checkout
American Express Apple Pay DiscoverGoogle Pay Mastercard PayPalVisa
30-day eligible returns Returns & refunds policy

AlbakiReads Editorial

Imaginary paperbacks, rendered as images

Jim Shaw’s *Paperback Covers* gathers the inventoried works from his 1996–2013 series, which draws on the graphic language of Anglo-American pulp paperbacks. These textless paintings turn imagined book covers into self-contained scenes, mixing dream-inspired imagery with the lurid visual conventions of pulp fiction. The volume presents the series as a body of work within Shaw’s broader exploration of pop-culture imagery, and includes a text by Charlie Fox. Its 103 pages offer a focused look at how a single image can suggest the premise of an unwritten novel.

Good fit for readers who enjoy

  • Art readers interested in Jim Shaw and his multimedia practice
  • Readers curious about pulp paperback design and illustration
  • Those interested in dream-inspired imagery and pop-culture iconography

Themes

Pulp fiction imageryDreams and imaginationPop culturePaperback design and illustration

Based on publisher information and book metadata.

Book overview

Dream-inspired book covers for imaginary pulp novels by Americana connoisseur-bricoleur Jim Shaw

Since the 1970s, American artist Jim Shaw (born 1952) has used his multimedia artistic practice as a means of exploring and exploiting pop-culture iconography. This publication focuses on one of the key series in Shaw's corpus, in which he draws inspiration from the Anglo-American graphic design and illustrative tradition of cheap paperback books. Inspired by the artist's intense dreaming life, the Paperback Covers series (1996-2013) recreates the lurid imagery associated with pulp novels, with vertical canvases that depict fantastical and irreverent imagery: in one, a werewolf in suspenders is struck by an oncoming 18-wheeler; in another, a line of chorus girls dance in front of a vampire and a woman in red as the couple is in engulfed by flames. Though these "books" bear no text, Shaw's paintings evoke exciting narratives within a single image. All the inventoried Paperback Covers are collected in this softcover volume along with a text by Charlie Fox.

Shipping & returnsShipping options, delivery timing, and our return policy.

In-stock items normally dispatch within 1–2 business days. The ZIP-code estimator on this page is informational only; the final shipping method, price, and availability are confirmed at checkout for your full order.

For the initial delivery estimate we use these transit windows after dispatch: Standard 5–8 business days, Expedited 2–4 business days, and Priority 1–2 business days. Holiday delays are not included.

Eligible items can be returned within 30 days in accordance with our return policy.

Customer reviews

You may also like

View all