Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration
Drying Nets - Mont Saint Pierre is an antique 1930s signed oil on canvas painting by the important American artist and illustrator John Clymer, signed lower right and titled on the back stretcher bar in the artist's hand. The work is a fine American impressionist painting with dazzling impasto work, particularly on the nets being hoisted and […]
Artist: John Clymer
Price: Sold
In this whimsically imaginative drawing from the German expressionist and Jugendstil artist Heinrich Kley, a nude water nymph, whose form and pose evoke Venus, frightens away a sea demon as her consort, a dolphin of sorts, looks on laughing. In this mixed medium detailed work, Kley inverts the viewers expectation of women's sensuality in […]
Artist: Heinrich Kley
Price: Sold
A dazzling and evocative gouache illustration painting for a 1972 edition of Hans Cristian Andersen's classic tale "The Little Mermaid". A shining deftly rendered example in the manner of Arthur Rackham and Edmund Dulac. Work is matted and framed and signed by the artist lower left and titled in the margin lower right.
Artist: Harold Thompson
Price: Sold
This period 1930s signed oil on stretched canvas painting was created by the New York state fine artist and illustrator Robert T. Riley. With a social realist / WPA styled grittiness, Riley captures the hardscrapple life of deck hands hard at work, while eluding to the anxieties of the Great Depression. The stylized rigging suggests the mechanization of the Industrial revolution, and the sailors pulling up the sails find their muscles strained to the point of breaking in an homage to John Henry.
Artist: Robert Riley
Price: Sold
A tense and well rendered set at sea Golden Age of Illustration painting by the noted and prolific American artist Ralph Pallen Coleman, signed and dated 1925 in the lower right corner. Set aboard a ship at sea, the image hints that the vessel is heading into troubled waters at least metaphorically. While the well groomed male calmly prepares to light his pipe, his pretty flapper companion holds her hand over her heart, both attracted to and made nervous by taking this trip with her suitor.
Artist: Ralph Coleman
Price: Sold
Grapefruitmoongallery is proud to offer one of 3 original commissioned large circular oil paintings that adorned the restaurant walls of Larue's a legendary Hollywood, Sunset Blvd. haunt that was owned by gangster character actor Jack LaRue. Henry Clive was a frequent patron and close friend of LaRue, and this painting, titled Spirit of Capri was purchased directly from the restaurant about 45 years ago by the artist's son Henry Clive O'Hara. In addition to being a prolific cover illustrator for Randolph Hearst's American Weekly, Clive painted several large risque and attention garnering commissioned mural works for Hollywood landmarks like The Jade and The Masquers Club as well as LaRue's.
Artist: Henry Clive
Price: Sold
A large and important exhibited American impressionist oil painting by the Boston artist Arthur Prince Spear, 1879-1959. The painting features an outstanding large ethereal and luminous trio of sea nymphs in silhouette - ablaze at sea under a full moon. This is painted in an impressionist style with a textured heavy impasto technique. Housed in its original carved gold leaf wood frame.
Artist: Arthur Prince Spear
Price: S O L D
An original pastel sketch of an aquatically themed pin-up girl in a sailors cap by the prolific American pin-up artist Earl Steffa Moran. This is not a finished calendar pastel it was either a preliminary sketch for his 1941 Brown & Bigelow Calendar "I'll be Seeing You" or was a presentation drawing given as a gift to a fan, friend or family member. This is 100% guaranteed to be an original pastel by Earl Moran; it is signed in the lower left corner and there is a verso note in the artist's hand as seen on the back of the frame. Beautifully matted and framed behind glass and ready to enjoy.
Artist: Earl Moran
Price: S O L D
This radiant, fabulously large original pastel by Rolf Armstrong was created in 1941 for the Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company. Titled "Figured To Win," this original and previously undocumented beautiful illustration incorporates two of the artist's great loves in life; sailing and Jewel Flowers. This pastel was owned for many years by Jewel herself, who was Armstrong's favorite model and dearest friend for nearly two decades.
Artist: Rolf Armstrong
Price: S O L D
A whimsical roaring twenties stylized art deco pen & ink illustration by John Held Jr. for "Dutton's Au Revoir Boxes". Framed with the original box label this was created for, a nautically themed work with a sailor and his flapper girl sweetie. The Park Avenue, New York company manufactured durable boxes that were to be used in cruise ship travel. From the Charles Martignette estate.
Artist: John Held, Jr.
Price: Sold
