Original Art from the Grand Age of American Illustration
A wonderful and rare surviving original watercolor and graphite illustration by the legendary Art Nouveau artist Raphael Kirchner. The image shows a sexually provocative “Kirchner Girl” in rolled silk stockings, seductively grilling the many hearts she has stolen. This appeared in print in La Vie Parisienne with the German language quip “Können Diese Herzen Warm Genug Sein?”, which translates loosely to “Are […]
Artist: Raphael Kirchner
From the estate of legendary Ziegfeld Follies photographer Alfred Cheney Johnston comes this beautiful portrait of Follies showgirl Barbara Dean. Noted illustrator J. Knowles Hare was commissioned by impresario Flo Ziegfeld to create pastel illustrations of his glorified American girls based upon the the sittings between Johnston and the showgirls.
Artist: J. Knowles Hare
From the estate of legendary Ziegfeld Follies photographer Alfred Cheney Johnston comes this portrait of Follies showgirl Naomi Johnston. Noted illustrator J. Knowles Hare was commissioned by impresario Flo Ziegfeld to create pastel illustrations of Ziegfeld’s glorified American girls as they were captured by photographer A.C. Johnston, for a variety of display and publicity uses. The finished pastel […]
Artist: J. Knowles Hare
In May of 1919, on the advice of Sam Kingston, general manager for Florence Ziegfeld, Alberto Vargas applied to be the in-house artist for the Ziegfeld Follies. The rest, as they say, was history. At only 24 Vargas had already established himself as a freelance illustrator of beautiful women, with a sophisticated style inspired by Raphael […]
Artist: Alberto Vargas
Before her tenure as the reigning queen of Hollywood society, and her long-standing position as mistress of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, Marion Davies was among the most beautiful of Florence Ziegfeld’s glorified American girls. Here, she is a delicate princess captured at the height of her beauty by Alfred Cheney Johnston, who had as much a part of creating the Follies reputation as Ziegfeld himself.
Artist: Alfred Cheney Johnston
This 1920s double weight original large format erotic sepia photograph of Ziegfeld Follies showgirl and flapper Tot Qualters is one of the most well preserved artifacts of the heyday of the jazz age showgirl extravaganza. In its original glassine sleeve, this features Qualters in ornate headdress, captured by Orval Hixon of the Hixon-Newman studios. Photographs from this era of the Ziegfeld Follies are particularly coveted, and views with this exquisite sense of style and costuming are among the most desirable and scarce.
Artist: Orval Hixon
Before her tenure as the reigning queen of Hollywood society, and her long-standing position as mistress of newspaper magnate William Randolph Hearst, Marion Davies was among the most beautiful of Florence Ziegfeld’s glorified American girls. Here, she is shown in lavish showgirl costuming, an ethereal beauty in soft focus view by Campbell studio. This double weight gallery portrait is blindstamped by photographer lower right.
Artist: Campbell Studios
Lavishly jazz age yet decadently romantic, this nude 1928 photograph of Ziegfeld Follies beauty Alice Lorraine is a spectacular showcase of the talents of Alfred Cheney Johnston. This photograph was mounted on beveled presentation board and hand signed by the iconic photographer, idolized for his masterful soft focus alluring and provocative images of showgirls, flappers, and film stars alike.
Artist: Alfred Cheney Johnston
This Raphael Kirchner Ziegfeld Follies pastel is a newly unearthed piece of New York City theater history, and a once in a generation find. Part of a suite of five illustrations which feature the erotic and luminous showgirls who starred in the legendary theater revue Ziegfeld Follies and made the name synonymous with images of the most beautiful, brazen and sensuous women in early 20th century New York. This portrait of Vivienne Segal hung in the lobby of the historic Century Theater until it shut its doors in 1936.
Artist: Raphael Kirchner
This Raphael Kirchner Ziegfeld Follies pastel is a newly unearthed piece of New York City theater history, and a once in a generation find. Part of a suite of five illustrations which feature the erotic and luminous showgirls who starred in the legendary theater revue Ziegfeld Follies and made the name synonymous with images of the most beautiful, brazen and sensuous women in early 20th century New York. This portrait of Justine Johnstone hung in the lobby of the historic Century Theater until it shut its doors in 1936.
Artist: Raphael Kirchner
