World-building by visual artists

[Worldtree]

Here's a few "speculative biology" artists (some of whom may have already been mentioned elsewhere on the forum)

This is a small matter, I think, but one of the biggest differences between regular creature design, where individual creatures can look possible, even if a bit fantastical,
and a more 'hard sci fi' approach is the treatment of organisms as part of a complex ecosystem with a history. It might seem like a minor matter (or very obvious?), but makes a big difference when trying to make a very realistic presentation of a speculative organism. Showing off related species, variations, and other creatures of the surrounding environment, and showing how they interact, really help convince the viewer/reader of the realism. This is might be why Nemo Ramjet and Fuhura succeed so well in making their creatures seem real.

Although we might not have quite the same concrete theories about ecosystems that we do with macro-level physics, i suspect that biology/ecology gets placed less frequently under the umbrella of 'hard science fiction' in quite the same way that space travel does. Just a thought.
(Reccomended: The Color of Distance by Amy Thomson.)

Alex Ries
http://www.alexries.com/
http://exozoo.blogspot.com/
(His deviant art account is in other posts)

Furhura blog (good to check in every now and again)
Good post on gas giant balloon animals, among other things

Analysis of Dune's Sandworm
why aliens will evolve eyes

"All Yesterdays" by Darren Naish (from Tetrapod Zoology), Mehmet Kosemen (from Snaiad), and John Conway (paleoartist)
a book about speculation inherent in Paleo art

Fictional Plants
http://fclittle.deviantart.com/gallery/7327463

The Red Valley by Brynn Methany
http://www.theredvalley.com/

The New Dinosaurs Dougal Dixon
Man after Man by Dougal Dixon
After Man: a zoology of the future By Dougal Dixon

101 Alien Lifeforms: Volume 1 by Mr Fernando Palma

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Two more book recommendations for creating worlds visually...
-"Imaginative Realism: how to paint what doesn't exist" by James Gurney
This is a bible for anyone who wants to do science fiction/ fantasy illustration

-"Exodyssey: visual development of an epic adventure" by Steambot Studios (or almost any other book from Designstudio press)
This independent sci fi worldbuilding project by 4-5 concept artists got them hired to do the design for Disney's Tron: Legacy

Incidentally, I've noticed a curious coincidence;
here's one of James Gurney's magnificent illustrations of Dinotopia;


and here's a 18th century painting of a bridge in my home town

one wonders if he used that image as a reference...

for your interest, Steve, i noticed that the bridge in this painting is based off one of Gurney's sketches from Pulteney bridge in Bath, England (Pg 144 of Imaginative Realism: how to paint what doesn't exist by James Gurney)