Above: Detail

Above: The artist’s signature lower left

Above: Silk lined and matted behind glass in fine gold wood gallery wide profile frame

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 many published examples of his work but his originals are scarce. This original pin up illustration is beautifully framed and matted behind glass in a wide profile antique hand crafted gold painted basswood frame.

Above: Verso view before framing with Brooklyn, New York address

D’Amario was very adept at these candlelit nudes and used a unique technique to accentuate the moody allure of his subjects. In person, the beckoning beauty appears radiant with china doll skin and dramatically lit figure. Since so few of D’Amario’s originals have been offered for sale, this piece presents an unusual opportunity to see his unique talent for capturing boudoir scenes, which made him such a prominent artist during his career.

The assorted examples seen below are just a small selection of the artist’s work. They are included here for reference only and provide a sense of how prolific and popular D’Amario was.