As a holiday treat, here’s a small gallery of painterly Christmas-themed covers from the great Galaxy Science Fiction magazine, all from the mid-50s and early 1960s, arguably the golden age of science fiction illustration. These were done by Ed Emschwiller, who later went on to a career in experimental film and video, creating groundbreaking 3D computer animations and founding the animation lab at CalArts.
I don’t know about you guys, but I much prefer imagining Santa Claus riding his sleigh through the cosmos, delivering presents to intergalactic boys and girls. Merry Christmas!