Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration
A festive Christmas-themed Great Depression avoiding original illustration by John Holmgren for the December 1933 edition of Judge Magazine. A Victorian-themed, carriage-driven, jolly portrayal of a more well to do less menacing time in American society. A complete printed issue of the magazine accompanies the painting.
Artist: John Holmgren
A rare and outstanding situational pin-up painting used as calendar art for The Louis F. Dow Calendar Co., circa 1950. Image is playfully titled A Double Catch. This was purchased by a gentleman the day he got back from the Viet Nam War in the early 1970’s. The Dow Calendar Company rented a downtown Saint Paul hotel and sold off their paintings and original calendar art at $50.00 a painting! This is a major find and has never been on the market since it was purchased thirty years ago. Great composition and outdoors man-themed, fly fishing/rainbow trout scene in perfect flawless condition as seen.
Artist: Vaughan Bass
An exceedingly scarce original oil on canvas by noted Illinois early calendar artist F.R. Harper. Harper had a long and successful career in American Illustration. He was particularily adept at portraying exotic-themed Anglo Saxon-ized Indian Maidens and his rare paintings of beautiful women are some of the most poignant in terms of mood and technique from the early art nouveau influenced pre art deco years of glamour art. This is nicely framed and has been oversprayed with some type of varnish or shellac at some point and is priced accordingly.
Artist: F. R. Harper
Rare surviving original illustration art for Rogue for Men Magazine. A lurid genre defining cover by Lloyd Rognan for an April 1956 edition . Rognan had a long and prolific career as an illustrator, he studied with an early WPA art student project, contributed regularily for Stars and Stripes. Later his science fiction pulp artwork appeared as covers for such publications as Fate, Imagination, ImaginativeTales, and other sci fi pulp magazines exploiting the “pre-Apollo” moon mission space travel craze. This is a particularily rich interpretation of a Men’s magazine cover, and finally someone had the nerve to portray things as seen here.
Artist: Lloyd Rognan
We have a collection of three Gag Cartoons done by the well listed illustrator Bob Pettes for reproduction as calendar art by Brown & Bigelow. These feature hapless “Scotch swilling ” hacks — ala Caddyshack and Rodney Dangerfield — but decades earlier in this depiction. Ready to frame with expensive round cut matts. Pettes is best known as an illustrator for puzzle reproduction.
Artist: Robert Pettes
An original Brown & Bigelow published illustration for calendar use by their art director Clair V. Fry. Fry studied at the American Academy of Art in Chicago, the Chicago Art Institute and the Minneapolis Art Institute. He was Art Director of Brown and Bigelow for 35 years, working with Norman Rockwell, Maxfield Parrish and N. C. Wyeth. He taught at St. Paul School of Arts and Sciences and has frequently conducted painting workshops. He retired with his wife to Sun City, Arizona and was a member of the Arizona Watercolor Association.
Artist: Clair Fry
A rare and detailed original gouache illustration of a frenetic hockey scene for either a sports pulp cover or an interior 2 page spread for a slick mainstream publication. Art is signed William Reusswig and dated on verso as seen. A recent sale at the Illustration House in New York City at auction brought $18,000+ for a pulp cover by this well listed artist.
Artist: William Reusswig
A rare surviving fresh estate find, an original pastel cover done for The American Weekly from a series titled, Visions Of An Artist, circa 1937. This particular series seems to artistically “feminize” natural disasters. Aptly titled “Menace”. Beautifully matted and framed in an expensive gallery frame as seen. This was renamed by the magazine and appeared as a cover under the title “Angry Nature” on Feb 28, 1937. This was unearthed in California recently and was in the estate of Patricia Lake, the rumored illigitimate daughter of Hearst and his long time mistress and confident, Marion Davies.
Artist: Henry Clive
A rare surviving fresh estate find; an original pastel cover created for The American Weekly from a series titled, Visions Of An Artist, circa 1937. This particular series seems to artistically “feminize” natural disasters and this piece is aptly titled “Maid of the Mist”. Beautifully matted and framed in a period, vintage gesso, antique frame as seen. This was unearthed in California recently and was in the estate of Patricia Lake, the rumored illigitimate daughter of Hearst and his long time mistress and confident, Marion Davies.
Artist: Henry Clive
A boldly executed rare surviving art deco cover illustration by noted American artist, Frank McIntosh. McIntosh is best known for his Hawaiian-style menu art for Matson Line cruise ships. He was the main cover illustrator for Asia magazine from 1925-1934. Today these issues are in great demand because of their exceptional stylized art deco covers. A rare opportunity to buy an original McIntosh cover illustration painting.
Artist: Frank McIntosh
