Grapefruit Moon Gallery

Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration

Thomas D. Murphy Calendar Company

A large and beautiful original pastel by Rolf Armstrong that first appeared as a pin-up calendar for The Thos. D. Murphy Calendar Company under the title “Orchids To You”. Armstrong only created eight artworks for the Iowa based company, and as he was already America’s premiere glamour illustrator when he began working with them, he was permitted to retain ownership of his original pastels. He often reworked these slightly for use as covers for College Humor magazine, during the tail end of his ten year association with the periodical. Staying just outside copyright infringement by removing the orchids from the model’s left hand, and placing a “New York” and “C” for copyright under his distinctive signature, this altered version appeared on the cover of College Humor in March of 1936, the last time an Armstrong girl would grace this title. This pastel appears in a mid 1930s “Armstrong Art Service’s” brochure with the title of “Flower of the North” which is included in sale.

Flower of the South

Artist: Rolf Armstrong
Price:  S O L D

A large and radiant calendar girl pin-up pastel by Billy Devorss created for The Thomas D. Murphy Calendar Company of Red Oak Iowa. Devorss had a studio in New York City in the Beaux Arts Building and worked for many Calendar Companies of the day creating large format pastel illustrations of modernist fashionable attired heart-breakers in an inventive art deco manner.

A Bathing Beauty in Yellow

Artist: Billy DeVorss
Price:  S O L D

“Racing the Sun” is a rare surviving oil on stretched canvas painting by Ruehl Frederick Heckman, created for the Thomas D. Murphy Calendar Company. During the 1930s Heckman executed a series of five paintings for this storied calendar company, all featuring bold aviation progress and industrial themes. These works ponder the collision of the industrial revolution’s streamlined machine age aesthetic with previous generations traditional and more pastoral ways.

Racing The Sun

Artist: Ruehl Frederick Heckman
Price:  S O L D

A Grecian inspired, fantasy themed, mixed media illustration that was used by the Thos. D. Murphy Calendar company for a 1930 calendar titled The Glory That Was Ancient Greece. This whimsical yet erotic Grecian maiden themed work consists of a heavily tinted photograph of the two Grecian adorned beauties by L.G. Woolenden and an elaborate garden landscape painting by Rudolph Ingerle that envelopes the photographic element. This team of enterprising calendar art talents created numerous works under the pseudonym L. Goddard Surviving original L Goddard artworks are quite rare and spectacular, and among our favorite examples of fantastical and escapist art deco/Great Depression calendar illustration. A large printed calendar from the Thomas D. Murphy calendar company archives is included in the sale.

The Glory That Was Ancient Greece

Artist: L. Goddard
Price:  S O L D

A large, luminous pastel created as pin up calendar art for the Thomas D. Murphy Calendar Company of Red Oak Iowa. This colorful and bright mid-century bathing beauty scene by the artist Paul Kafka was marketed under the title “Sunny.” Nicely framed and properly lined under glass. A multi-image color separation proof series and finished calendar print is included in sale as well as a complete Calendar line Salesman Sample Brochure for the year 1952 titled “The Murphy Record Prize Edition; What Lines!”. Featuring this calendar girl as the cover by The Thos. D. Murphy Calendar Company.

Sunny

Artist: Paul Kafka
Price:  S O L D

A monumental and important original large pastel illustration on stretched canvas by James Ross Bryson, executed in 1914 for The Thos. D. Murphy Calendar Company of Red Oak Iowa under the title “Reverie in Green”. Bryson was an influential and supremely gifted and handsomely paid American Illustrator who earned a hefty $200.00 per commission for images of his risque for the day, modern enchantress themed Art Nouveau Maiden depictions. This work is housed in it’s original wide solid mahogany gold gilt lined antique frame and is properly lined behind glass.

Reverie in Green

Artist: J. Ross Bryson
Price:  Sold

A large, colorful, situationally challenged pin-up girl finds herself in a revealing moment deftly rendered by the infamous Edward D’ancona. This painting, entitled Handle With Care was commissioned by The Thos. D. Murphy Calendar Company; Red Oak Iowa and a large original archived published calendar of this image is included in the sale. A scarce surviving original work by this prolific American cheesecake maestro.

Handle With Care

Artist: Edward D'Ancona
Price:  S O L D

 

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