Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration
This 1953 deliriously sexy nude pin-up oil painting by Gil Elvgren for the Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company dates to the artist’s best period. This image was used in a deck of playing cards under the title Cee Bee (To Hold) Fascinating Figures and is pictured as figure 251 in Gil Elvgren All His Glamorous American Pin-Ups by Charles G. Martignette and Louis K. Meisel. From the Estate of Charles Martignette.
Artist: Gil Elvgren
A colorful estate fresh pastel sketch by Rolf Armstrong C. 1930 of his lithe modernist pin-up model Margery Crampton, posed on the bow of a well rendered Chris-Craft Runabout art deco boat. This was a preliminary sketch for the August 1930 issue of College Humor Magazine. While unsigned, pastel is guaranteed to be by the hand of Rolf Armstrong, from the collection of Ken Galente former owner of Silver Screen Gallery in New York.
Artist: Rolf Armstrong
Created to accompany the 13th installment of the serialized novel” Silver Knees” in the April 4th 1931 issue of Liberty Magazine, this oil on canvas painting features a romanticized depiction of love during the Mexican-American war. In this lush scene, Gitana, a gypsy dancer, enjoys an afternoon serenade as her star crossed lover, an American war hero, looks on quietly.
Artist: Norman Price
In this original oil on canvas painting by the prolific artist Forrest H. Clough, an aspiring French maid studies up on both her language skill and the art of seduction. From the suggestively placed feather duster to the silk stockings and garter costuming, this fresh to the market vintage calendar artwork presents a provocative, not so subtle take on the American pin up.
Artist: F. H. Clough
This sassy secretary pin up pastel was created by Earl Moran for the Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company in about 1940. The work appeared as a mutoscope card with the title “A Sweet Job”. Office girl pin-up depictions were common during the pre-WWII lean economic years of the Great Depression, and this is an inspired example of that genre. A published mutoscope card of the image is included in the sale.
Artist: Earl Moran
This important and defining oil on canvas portrait features a stylized Mata Hari in the midst of one of her sensual, almost trance-like dances. The highly moody piece is a wonderful example of the 1900-1915 century Spanish modernismo movement by Anselmo Miguel Nieto, one of its brightest talents. This classically inspired yet fully modern painting applies formal chiaroscuro technique (the exaggerated use of light and dark to create a dramatic perspective) to one of the great courtesans of early 20th century Europe to create a sexually and politically subversive yet beautiful work.
Artist: Anselmo Miguel Nieto
A lurid and genre defining erotic paperback book cover for the 1950 Quarter Books Publishing Company title “Illicit Pleasure” written by Peggy Gaddis. The artwork is unsigned with verso information by our colleague Fred Taraba with affirmation that this work was done by Rudy Nappi. This is an inspired subversive image with our cover girl Linda Blaine showing her “body that could make even the most confirmed woman-hater sit up and beg…” enticing an enlisted man to take notice down at the pier.
Artist: Rudy Nappi
A kinetic art deco era flapper girl bathing beauty is captured frolicking in the waves in this original oil on canvas pin-up painting by William Soare. Likely created for a pin-up calendar, the work is signed lower left and also marked on the back canvas in the artists hand. William Fulton Soare was a versatile illustrator who was prolific during the 1920s – 30s creating covers for many pulp magazines titles and Boy’s Adventure Magazines. His first assignments were illustrations for calendar reproduction.
Artist: William Soare
This cheeky and colorful original gouache cover illustration painting by the well listed Wisconsin artist Lester Bentley graced the cover of Rogue For Men Magazine, August 1956. Both Lloyd Rognan and Lester Bentley were encouraged as cover artists for Rogue to have fun with their mascot–a caddish, happy go lucky, wolf of distinction. This cover features the Rogue Wolf seaside preparing a beverage in a streamlined art deco cocktail shaker for his bathing beauty companion; bottoms up indeed! Nicely framed and matted behind glass and ready to hang.
Artist: Lester Bentley
This is the very rare surviving original pastel illustration on board by Emil Flohri of Rudolph Valentino as the title character in Son of The Sheik, the controversial romantic adventure that was unexpectedly the final film starring silent filmdom’s first iconic heartthrob. This signed pastel was commissioned and used as the cover for the September 1926 edition of Motion Picture Magazine, and was published almost simultaneously with the unexpected death of Valentino on August 23rd, 1926. A complete copy of the printed magazine is included in the sale.
Artist: Emil Flohri
