spanish

We are pleased to have this original pastel by the talented and prolific pin-up artist and illustrator R. Wilson Hammell. This Spanish attired, flapper girl envisioning of Joan Crawford was created either as a calendar art print for The Joseph Hoover Calendar Company or an early talkie movie era Magazine Cover. Crawford was an eager publicity hound in the early 1930’s filling the void created by the elusive Garbo, who refused any publicity during the era of Crawford’s ascendancy to stardom.

A Dashing Joan Crawford

Artist: R. Wilson Hammell

An inventive early offering by the noted industrial designer Paul Ritter MacAlister, who went on to be an interior designer especially noted for his mass-produced “Plan-a-Room” kit with scale furniture and room layouts that could be used to plan and organize home spaces for consumers. This is a very well executed work it is done in the style of Erte essentially and features an art deco nude goddess of the darkness cowering under the bright sunshine radiating from the corner of the canvas – superimposed with a pipe smoking skeleton in a trompe l’oeil “trick of the eye” manner.

Spain, 1929

Artist: Paul MacAlister

A humorous, art deco, Spanish flavored gouache illustration created for the cover of the May 24, 1930 edition of Judge magazine. A quirky scene by frequent Judge cover artist Frank Hanley titled The Serenade. This is nicely framed and matted in a period wood frame and comes with a complete edition of the published magazine.

The Serenade

Artist: Frank Hanley

This interior genre scene features an exotic Edwardian Spanish Senorita in traditional garb posing seductively as she coyly holds a fan. An original oil on canvas by the well listed artist Alonzo Kimball, who studied in Paris during the 1890s at Académie Julian and later at The Art Students League of New York. The artist is best remembered for the covers he painted for The Saturday Evening Post.

Spanish Señorita with Fan

Artist: Alonzo Kimball

Grapefruit Moon Gallery is delighted to offer Gil Elvgren’s original 1953 oil painting “Aw-Come On,” which was commissioned and completed for The Brown & Bigelow Calendar Company. One of the artist’s more enduring and popular pin-up images, this artwork features frequent model Myrna Hansen posed as a matador of sorts attempting to use her feminine wiles to persuade her disinterested poodle pup to take a turn in the ring.

Aw, Come On

Artist: Gil Elvgren

Capturing a festive scene of traditionally garbed Spanish dancers in a spirited plein air fine art painting, this c. 1930 oil on canvas by the listed artist Andrew Dobos embodies the arts & crafts style. Rendered in a flowing and lyrical Southwestern aesthetic, this will accentuate an American bungalow interior. Retains its original handsome American Arts & Crafts aesthetic gold gesso frame.

The Tambourine Dance

Artist: Andrew Dobos

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.

Mata Hari

Artist: Anselmo Miguel Nieto

A moving and evocotive, free flowing oil rendering of a Spanish-themed nude senorita by Edmund Ward. Making his first illustrations for the Saturday Evening Post before he was age 20, Ward had a successful career as an illustrator of works that ranged in style and subject matter from dark tonalist in oils to humorous in wash and watercolor. For many years he illustrated the Alexander Botts and Assistant District Attorney Doowinkle stories for the Post.

A Spanish Nude

Artist: Edmund Ward

A south of the border Latin themed large and colorful original pulp cover painting by Rudolph Belarski for the long running magazine Argosy; June 18, 1938. Illustrates the interior story “Senor Coyote” written by Frederick Schiller Faust under the pen name Max Brand. Rudolph Belarski produced many fantastic covers for the pulps he specialized in Aviation themed depictions, his covers were ablaze with color and adventure.

Senor Coyote

Artist: Rudolph Belarski

An important and rare original cover illustration for Vogue Magazine by Eduardo Benito who did his first cover for Vogue in November 1921 . Along with George LePape , Helen Dryden , and George Plank, Benito was a frequent cover contributor and really came into his own and helped define the late 1920’s Jazz Age sophisticated angular geometric look.

Art Deco Cover for Vogue Magazine

Artist: Eduardo Benito