Born in Beaumont, Texas, Julie Bell was a nationally ranked competitive bodybuilder before pursuing a career in the science-fiction/ fantasy genre.
She was the first woman ever to
paint Conan for Marvel Comics, which paved the way for many other commissions
from Marvel, DC, and Image Comics to illustrate superheroes in fully rendered
paintings. Her first published cover for Heavy Metal magazine
broke ground for other illustrators with the introduction of her now legendary
Metal Flesh. Her hyper-realistic style is known for its sexy, powerful
images of warriors and amazons and a sensitive, exquisite use of color and
texture.