17 Vintage & Modern Frankenstein Cover Designs

Call for entries: HOW Logo Design Awards

The last Friday in October is known to some as Frankenstein Friday—a chance to celebrate Mary Shelley’s creation, as well as Dr. Frankenstein’s. A favorite among horror enthusiasts, Frankenstein was originally published in 1818. In its nearly 200 years of life, the work has seen its fair share of adaptations, from plays to movies and comics to graphic novels. Take a journey through time with these 17 cover designs for the classic novel.

Frankenstein Lives: 17 Cover Designs Throughout History

Jean-Léon Huens; Corgi Books, 1960s

Jean-Leéon Huens (1921–1982) was a Belgian artist who started his career as a children’s book illustrator. He later went on to create the covers for a weekly comics magazine called Tintin. By the mid 1960s, his art had spread worldwide, and he was creating for Reader’s Digest and The Saturday Evening Post.

Uncredited; Airmont Books Classic Series, 1963

Did you notice Frankenstein’s Monster hiding in the dark sky?

Mara McAfee; Pocket Books, 1976

Mara McAfee (1929–1984) wore many hats. She was an actress, a dancer, an illustrator and an American Pop artist. Her works often featured contemporary subjects and was usually satirical in nature (see: “A Banana In The Ear“).

Frank Mactey; Grosset & Dunlap, 1931

Mary Shelley’s story was brought back into the limelight in the ’30s after James Whale’s Frankenstein film debut in 1931. Publisher Grosset & Dunlap took advantage of the film’s success and released Photoplay Editions of the novel that featured scenes from the movies. The first Photoplay edition (pictured here) was bound in red cloth with black lettering.

Nino Cabré; Grosset & Dunlap, 1932

In 1932 and after the success of the Photoplay editions, Nino Cambré (1909–1993) created the Illustrated edition of Frankenstein for Grosset & Dunlap.

Joaquín Pertierra; French Gothic Dolphin Publisher*, circa 1960s

Joaquín Pertierra is truly an enigma. I spent several hours trying to find more information about Pertierra and Le Roman Gothique, but all I could find were a few blogs sharing the artist’s work with little description. Who is Joaquín?

Ladybird Books LTD, 1984

Cover design for Frankenstein First Edition Ladybird Book from the Horror Classic Series.

Bernie Wrightson; Éditions Albin Michel, 1984

Bernie Wrightson is famous for his gruesome stories (see: Swamp Thing). In 1984, he provided nearly 50 drawings for the Albin Michel edition of Frankenstein. The illustrations are so detailed that they almost look like old-fashioned engravings.