Grapefruit Moon Gallery

Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration

Cream of Wheat

Another fine original artwork from the storied Cream of Wheat advertising archives. An original watercolor on illustration board by B. Cory Kilvert titled Lest We Forget. This large and decidedly quaint image borrows from The American Arts & Crafts aesthetic which was firmly rooted into American culture in 1907, when this image first saw light as a full page magazine ad in hundreds of popular publications such as The Saturday Evening Post. Responding to fussy, over ornamented Victorian tastes, the Arts & Crafts movement artists evoked scenes of Dutch mills and serene pastoral views presented in contrast to modern industrialization. This unique and delightful hearth and home image from this iconic advertising campaign is surely one of the most enduring images from this long running series.

Lest We Forget

Artist: B. Cory Kilvert
Price:  $7,500.00

A bright, crisp, art deco oil on canvas, featuring a stylish flapper mother in cloche hat and her children marveling at Rastus, the iconic Cream of Wheat chef, who is winking at modernism by pointing to the picture within the picture. A very rare surviving work which is attributed to Enoch Bolles, who worked for many years creating similar streetcar advertisements for Vicks Vaporub, Squibb’s Dental Cream and Uneeda Biscuits.

Here We Are!

Artist: Enoch Bolles (attributed)
Price:  $6,500.00

A whimsical and delicately rendered oil on canvas by John Rae embodying the artist’s unique mix of pointillism and impressionism. Rae, a student of Howard Pyle, was commissioned to create this delightful painting in 1925 for a Cream Of Wheat advertisement titled “It’s a Busy World When You’re Five.” The image features a rollicking street scene with an organ grinder and monkey entertaining children and neighborhood pets. Seldom do original artworks come on the market that offer the chance to own a part of history, and we are delighted to be able to offer them.

It’s a Busy World When You’re Five

Artist: John Rae
Price:  $8,500.00

A whimsical oil on canvas by long time Cream of Wheat illustrator Edward Vincent Brewer created for their 1918 advertising. In “Opening The Case” Brewer’s own children are seen cheerfully posed around the chef as he opens a new case of Cream of Wheat. This image is a timeless and rich piece of Americana from the archives of the Cream of Wheat advertising vaults, and has never been publicly offered for sale. By far one of the most idyllic and tender artworks in the collection. Recently cleaned, this new to the market artwork is in pristine archived condition.

Opening The Case

Artist: Edward Brewer
Price:  SOLD

Grapefruit Moon Gallery is delighted to offer The World’s Fare, a rare surviving archived Cream of Wheat original oil painting. This 1923 artwork was reproduced as a full page advertisement in hundreds of American magazines. Featuring the iconic chef “Rastus” feeding a host of ethnically diverse, exotically dressed and cleverly posed children. Along with other selections from the archive, The World’s Fare was loaned out in the late 1980s for a touring gallery exhibition. None of the original paintings commissioned for Cream of Wheat advertising have ever previously been available for sale and we are delighted to offer them.

The World’s Fare

Artist: Edward Brewer
Price:  Sold

A large colorful original oil on canvas by The Saint Paul Minnesota artist and Illustrator Edward Vincent Brewer; titled Passed by the Board. A rare surviving archived Cream of Wheat original oil painting that was included in the multi-city museum touring exhibit organized in the 1980’s showcasing the Cream of Wheat Brand advertising art. This 1923 artwork was reproduced as a full page advertisement in hundreds of American magazines and is featured as a full page colorplate on page 76 in The Cream of Wheat Advertising Art book. Cream of Wheat employed giants in the field of illustration to create their enduring advertisements. Counted among those are N.C. Wyeth, Jessie Willcox Smith, Phillip Goodwin, J.C. Leyendecker, and James Montgomery Flagg. With the help of this stable of talent, the Cream of Wheat advertising campaign would come to define some of the most recognizable visions of American hearth and home.

Passed By the Board

Artist: Edward Brewer
Price:  Sold

An early original commissioned painting by The Saint Paul Minnesota artist Edward V. Brewer for The Cream of Wheat Company. Image appeared in countless magazines in 1916 and was one of 102 works the artist created for the cereal giant. Titled “He Sho’ Thinks He’s Hiding” the work appears as a full page color-plate (page 68) in Dave Stivers collectors book, “The Nabisco Brands Collection of Cream of Wheat Advertising Art.”

He Sure Thinks He’s Hiding

Artist: Edward Brewer
Price:  Sold

A kinetic and delightful winter snow scene by Edward Vincent Brewer created in 1925 for a Cream of Wheat Print ad titled “Little Engines That Burn Up Energy.” This oil on canvas was carefully archived for decades at the now-defunct Cream of Wheat factory in Northeast Minneapolis, MN. Work is beautifully framed and in a pristine state of preservation.

Little Engines That Burn Up Energy

Artist: Edward Brewer
Price:  S O L D

An original illustration treasure from the storied Cream of Wheat vaults, this oil-on-canvas by William V. Cahill was used for the 1913 advertisement titled Breakfast’s Ready Li’l Missy. This is perhaps the finest of the 18 works created by this Howard Pyle student for Cream of Wheat. An interior genre scene (in the same interior) painted in 1912 by Cahill titled “The Dress Fitting” set records in a New York City Sotheby’s Arcade Auction selling for a staggering $327,200.

Breakfast’s Ready Li’l Missy

Artist: William Cahill
Price:  S O L D

A nostalgic oil on canvas by long time Cream of Wheat illustrator Edward Vincent Brewer created for their 1913 advertising campaign. In “Forty Winks” Brewer’s own children are seen mischievously posed around the chef as he takes a brief nap. This image is a timeless and rich piece of Americana from the archives of the Cream of Wheat advertising vaults, and has never been publicly offered for sale. This new to the market artwork is in pristine archived condition.

Forty Winks

Artist: Edward Brewer
Price:  S O L D

 

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