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Grapefruit Moon Gallery

Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration

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Illustration & Advertising Art

Four Faces of the Texaco Man

Artist:Harold McCauley
Date:1950s
Medium:Gouache on paper
Dimensions:Framed 30 1/2" x 36" each individual rendering measures 9" x 12 1/2"
Condition:Excellent
Original Use:Presumably advertising designs for Texaco Billboard or print ads
Full framed view

 

Portrait #1
Portrait #2
Portrait #3
Portrait #4

These four comical and deftly rendered gouache illustration paintings show four faces of the 1950s Texaco Man. These explore the overly quizzical and confused faces made by a service station attendant tasked with describing the particulars of car troubles that caused distress for 1950s highway tourists. Together, they hint at the dishonesty associated with roadside service stations during the age of gas-guzzling, giant, Detroit steel sleds, where every problem was both complicated and expensive to fix. McCauley worked under master illustrator Haddon Sundblom in Chicago during the late 1930s and the technical skill and commercial flair associated with the “Sundblom Shop” are on abundant display in these vastly humorously nostalgic Americana Petroliana illustrations.

Four Faces of the Texaco Man

Artist: Harold McCauley

Filed Under: Illustration & Advertising Art, Sorry, It's Sold
Tagged With: 1950s, advertising, Harold McCauley, petroliana, Texaco
Added to Gallery: January 16, 2017

 

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