Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration
A large preliminary rendering by Gil Elvgren of a work completed for Brown & Bigelow in 1948 with the title – “Do You Think I “No” Too Much ?” This image also appeared with the title “My Datebook’s Showing Signs Of Age”. This comes from a collection of Elvgren preliminary graphite drawings we acquired which […]
Artist: Gil Elvgren
A deliriously sexy and important surviving pin-up painting by Haddon Sundblom, created in the 1940s for the U.O. Colson Calendar Company of Paris, Illinois. A pretty blonde nude model admires her abundant beauty in an aptly titled vanity mirror, with unique to this artist skin tones and brush strokes in alla prima, that are unequaled in […]
Artist: Haddon Sundblom
A fresh-faced and fresh to market large format pin-up pastel illustration by the father of American pin-up, Rolf Armstrong, titled I’ll Say So. This flirtatious bathing beauty darling is one of the artist’s most iconic and popular enduring images. Created at the zenith of Armstrong’s artistic powers, this sassy brunette has a laser beam of a smile, and a sarong that […]
Artist: Rolf Armstrong
Rolf Armstrong created this Western-themed pin-up cowgirl pastel for the Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company in the early 1950s. The adorable Americana image was published as a calendar with the titles Come And Get It!, and Soups On! This original artwork has tremendous electric cobalt blue coloring as the artist captured the last fleeting minutes of light, imagining a dreamy, well-realized, wide […]
Artist: Rolf Armstrong
A fresh to the market, sexy and spirited Gil Elvgren oil painting created in 1952 for The Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company and published under the title Some Help!(Down,Boy). In this view of the model as artist, a curvy brunette in Parisian inspired attire is interrupted in her quest to create her masterpiece by the antics of […]
Artist: Gil Elvgren
Wouldn’t You Like To Know… is a large sultry original published pin-up calendar painting by the prolific and important American artist Fritz Willis. Willis was the last true star pin-up artist of the old guard, when illustrative pin-up reigned supreme in men’s magazines and calendars. The artist worked during the very tail end of the […]
Artist: Fritz Willis
One of the finest pastel pin-up illustrations ever created by Rolf Armstrong for the Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company, this appeared in 1940 with the title “The B & B Girl”. The model was Margery Crampton, Armstrong’s modernist streamlined muse and frequent sitter throughout the 1930s and early 1940s. Shortly after this pastel was […]
Artist: Rolf Armstrong
A gorgeous and very detailed framed preliminary graphite sketch by the legendary American pin-up artist Gil Elvgren, which was used in the making of the 1955 Brown & Bigelow calendar “Waiting For You”. As part of his process, Elvgren would pose a live model in his home studio and create a series of graphite sketches […]
Artist: Gil Elvgren
A large format, tightly rendered preliminary charcoal and pastel pin-up illustration created for the Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company, the finished pastel was titled That’s A Deal. It is boldly signed and dated 1947, a fine offering by the prolific American pin-up artist Rolf Armstrong. The Stan to whom the piece is inscribed is […]
Artist: Rolf Armstrong
Grapefruit Moon Gallery had the honor and privilege of participating this past weekend in the 15th annual Twin Cities 20th Century Design Show and sale; featuring an eye popping building filled with antique Mission Arts & Crafts furniture, decorative collectibles and art pottery as well as Art Deco and Mid-Century Modern pieces. This was the first year the show […]
