Illustrations By John Schoenherr For The Illustrated Dune, 1978 By Frank Herbert. 🐛🐛

Interesting illustrations from the Jodorowsky’s Dune screenplay which sold recently on eBay.

Cover art by Matt Griffin for new hardcover Deluxe editions of ‘Dune Messiah’ and 'Children Of Dune’, books 2 and 3 in the 'Dune’ series written by Frank Herbert, as first revealed by io9.

The new Deluxe hardcover editions will be published April 4 2023 by Ace Books.

Still having Chani feelings, man. Because I think it is actually not that common to see a character (but especially a female character) whose main commitment in life is to a political struggle, and to have that be taken seriously by the narrative. Not painted as naive idealism or a trendy lifestyle choice or something the character eventually leaves behind for "real" commitments like marriage, career or children.

We don't see really anything of Chani's home life in the sietch, but it seems reasonable to infer that the fedaykin are what she's built her life around. The very first thing we learn about her, before we even know her name, is that she's a fighter. This is a core part of her identity.

She falls in love with Paul when he's willing to risk his life beside her as an equal, for a cause that she can't escape but he could walk away from if he chose. The question she asks him is not Do you love me? but Will you always be with me? Will you always be beside me in the struggle, fighting for the same things I am?

And as soon as the answer to that question is no, they're over. There is absolutely no possibility of love overriding that political betrayal, because her love for him is inextricable from coming to trust that he is committed to their liberation and not simply trying to use them. He said over and over again that he didn't want power, and as soon as he reaches out to claim it there is no way they can be together. The worst betrayal isn't watching him choose another woman, it's watching him declare himself emperor and send her own people off to slaughter others when he said he was fighting for their freedom.

So she leaves him, and we're never supposed to see it as anything but justified. There is simply no way she will turn her back on the most important thing in her life for him.

concept art by Moebius, for Jodorowsky’s Dune

“Once I put myself in their skin, and get rid of all the onion skins, the levels between the inside and the outside, I feel I can then help create the bridge from the actor to the character. I did psychological studies on each of these characters. Lady Jessica is basically a concubine but a very intelligent one and a highly trained Benne Gesserit. Not only does she have a mystical side but she also has an intelligent, old soul side. I wanted her outfits to be both compellingly nun-like, but also appropriate for a courtesan, which is also what she is. I had to embody all of those somewhat contradictory things in her costumes.

So I went to Goya, who is one of my favorite painters. I’ve always felt there are two painters from the past who would be filmmakers if they lived today. One is Goya and the other is Giotto. I took from both of them — Giotto more for the nun-like Benne Gesserit; and more Goya for Lady Jessica, because there’s a deep, Spanish romanticism in his paintings, especially The Clothed Maja. That’s where I got the idea for the laced dress for her. I didn’t use Spanish lace, but I had a lace made that looked very much like the future, but with a real romantic touch from the past.” - Jacqueline West, Costume Designer on Dune

Rebecca Ferguson as Lady Jessica in Dune (2021) dir. Denis Villeneuve

John Schoenherr, for The Illustrated Dune.

Emmi Rabban and Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen, mother and son

Dune: House Harkonnen by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson | "Mother" by Tori Amos | Frederick Christiansen | Homeric Hymn to Demeter | A Viking Mother by Frank Stick (1929) | A Storm of Swords, George R. R. Martin | The Young King of the Black Isles by Maxfield Parrish (1906) | Dune by Frank Herbert

by  Alex Jay Brady

Brad Dourif in Dune (1984)

“I’m following someone, and it triggers a Holy War.”

Lady Jessica and Paul Atreides in Dune (2021) // The Road; The Shadow; Too Long, Too Narrow, Maria Martins (1946)