The curious and strangely "cultish" world of pin-up and glamour art features paintings and pastels designed to titillate and arouse -- or maybe just amuse -- albeit within the confines of a watchful mainstream modern America. The genre emerged after the turn of the 20th Century. Full-figured, demure yet bold for the times, and coyly fresh art nouveau calendar girls illustrated by Charles Dana Gibson, Raphael Kirchner, and Harrison Fisher were in huge demand during the late Victorian years. The following Art Deco, World War II, and post-WWII years showed unflagging popularity for the genre. The wide and varied collection of Pin-Up and Glamour original artworks are all available exclusively through the Grapefruit Moon Gallery website.

A Seaside Flirtation Henry Clive	Mountainside Car Hop Pin Up Girl William Medcalf

This intriguing juxtaposition of classic pin-up art, mid-century futuristic car culture, and Western Americana combine to make this large, never before on the market oil on canvas by Bill Medcalf arguably the most desirable work ever offered by the Brown & Bigelow star illustrator. Commissioned for the Saint Paul Minnesota calendar company's "Kelly-Springfield's Celebrity Tires" account, this is an inspired take on dives and diner's culture as envisioned in a fantasy laden desert mirage, that must have turned eyes when it originally appeared as an advertising calendar in roadside garages and lunch counters along America's highways.

One of two recently unearthed and previously thought lost large original Brown & Bigelow pin-up oil paintings created for the iconic "Kelly-Springfield's Celebrity Tires" advertising campaign. A luminous and ethereal large masterwork by William Medcalf, dating to the late 1940s. For this assignment the artist created an inviting yet unlikely roadside mirage, featuring a classic and beautiful pin-up girl as an able diner carhop server alongside a modernist machine age concept car under a palm tree-laden majestic surround. The blend of familiar and fantasy is at play here and the art seems to hint at the ongoing cultural collision that was being evidenced as progress and industry advanced into ever increasing aspects of culture.

A dazzling original calendar published oil painting by Henry Clive titled "A Seaside Flirtation" created for the Joseph Hoover Calendar Company. Henry Clive joyously captures the essence of the jazz-age and the roaring 20s modernist flapper girl, this is a grand depiction. From the estate of Charles Martignette, the noted author, historian and collector. This rare surviving painting is lavishly framed, silk matted and ready to enjoy.

An important large graphite and watercolor pin-up advertising illustration by the legendary Alberto Vargas for the 1943 M-G-M film starring Lucille Ball "Du Barry Was A Lady". "Du Barry Was a Lady" marked a turning point in the career of the master of American pin-up. His calendar girl beauties were already popular by 1942, but when they were brought to life in the film, the Varga girl became a worldwide sensation. Work is French matted and framed behind glass in a wonderful limed mahogany wood gallery frame and ready to enjoy.

An original pastel, gouache and graphite mixed media pin-up illustration by Frank D'amario. Little has been written about D'amario; we know that he worked for several calendar companies in the 1940s - 50s and was quite prolific producing dozens of published calendar pieces. Over our careers as antique dealers, we have sold prints and calendars of these images but his originals are scarce. He was very adept at these candlelit nudes and now seeing an original work by this artist we are struck by his unique technique and vision.

A rare surviving gouache painting by Brooklyn, New York pin-up artist and Calendar Illustrator Frank D'amario. Grapefruitmoongallery has sold dozens of this artists published pin-up prints and calendars over the years and recently acquired a pair of his original paintings. This sadly has a faint water tide line and rippling to the paper in the bottom portion. It is certainly acceptable as-is but could perhaps benefit from some careful paper conservation, it is bargain priced accordingly and by all accounts a scarce surviving example of The Great American Pin-up.

Grapefruit Moon Gallery is delighted to offer Gil Elvgren's original 1953 oil painting "Aw-Come On," which was commissioned and completed for The Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company. One of the artist's more enduring and popular pin-up images, this artwork features frequent model Myrna Hansen posed as a matador of sorts attempting to use her feminine wiles to persuade her disinterested poodle pup to take a turn in the ring.

A rare and fabulous surviving commissioned calendar art pin-up painting by Al Buell titled on verso A Perfect Pair. From a series of paintings Buell did for Brown & Bigelow, The Playmate Series. This was for the month of October and dates to the late 1940s. Buell worked with Gil Elvgren in the Sundblom studios in Chicago and his accounts included Coca-Cola. His oils are among the best in the genre, they capture the pretty girl next door (albeit generally under-dressed) and have a wholesomeness rare in the pin-up form.

A modernist, erotically charged, unconventional pin-up oil on canvas painting by Fritz Willis one of only several of the genre's later-era stars. The model was the artist's wife Pat, who frequently appeared in Willis' work. The artist was unique in that he often painted in an openly erotic rather than coyly suggestive pin-up style, using props like opera gloves or silk stockings to highlight the allure of his models.

A lovely calendar used pin-up pastel by K.O. Munson from the late 1940s to early 50s. A fresh faced red headed bathing beauty finds herself in ship shape in this nautically themed classic pin-up entanglement. Work is handsomely framed in a unique shadowbox configuration and has press sniping printers crop marks in the matting designating that it was a calendar print used commission, likely for the Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company of Saint Paul Mn.