Raymond Kursar

ray kursar — Raymond Kursar
(courtesy of Wikipedia/Mediamgr)

An Artist of Distinctive Talent

Early Life

Raymond Kursar was born in 1944. He is an American artist, illustrator, and graphic designer. Kursar attended the School of Advertising Arts in Portland, Oregon, and has been producing quality artwork since the mid-1960s.

Art Career

He is known for his Broadway play posters, limited edition prints, book illustrations, and his stunning work for the Knowles China Plate Company’s Gone with the Wind fine china plates.

His illustrations have appeared in various popular magazines: Ladies Home Journal, Good Housekeeping Magazine, Readers Digest, and National Lampoon Magazine, among others.

He has also created posters for “Shakespeare in the Park” and numerous Broadway Plays including “Grease,” “Hello Dolly,” “City of Angles”, “The Good Doctor”, “That Championship Season,” and “Legend.”

Ray Kursar: Romance Cover Artist

From the 1970s to 1985, Kursar illustrated hundreds of books, especially romance novel covers. He produced covers for publishers such as Bantam Books, Ace Books, Random House, Pocket Books, Avon, Fawcett, Ballantine, Doubleday, Charles Scribner & Sons, and nost notably Zebra.

His artwork was just the perfect fit for Walter Zacharius’ Zebra romances, as they were bright and eye-catching. One of my all-time favorite covers is Constance O’Banyon’s Savage Summer, which has butterflies fluttering around the passionately embracing couple. It’s great kitsch.