Thanks again to Mike Vosburg for all these terrific Rowland B. Wilson scans we've been enjoying this week!
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Still More Rowland B. Wilson
Thanks again to Mike Vosburg for all these terrific Rowland B. Wilson scans we've been enjoying this week!
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Monday, May 09, 2011
The Magnificent Art of Rowland B. Wilson
If, as a kid, you ever snuck a peek at your dad's Playboy magazines, you probably remember seeing the magnificent art of Rowland B. Wilson.
Now, tear your eyes away from the nekkid ladies for a minute...
... and take a closer look at all the wonderful stuff going on in the other parts of the picture!
This guy could paint!
Here are a few more Rowland B. Wilson Playboy cartoons, all courtesy of Mike Vosburg. Thanks Mike!
What a wonderful sense of design and composition Wilson had...
... not to mention his dazzling use of colour!
* I'm away this week, but I'll still try to get a few more of Mike Vosburg's Rowland B. Wilson scans posted each day. Enjoy!
Now, tear your eyes away from the nekkid ladies for a minute...
... and take a closer look at all the wonderful stuff going on in the other parts of the picture!
This guy could paint!
Here are a few more Rowland B. Wilson Playboy cartoons, all courtesy of Mike Vosburg. Thanks Mike!
What a wonderful sense of design and composition Wilson had...
... not to mention his dazzling use of colour!
* I'm away this week, but I'll still try to get a few more of Mike Vosburg's Rowland B. Wilson scans posted each day. Enjoy!
Friday, May 06, 2011
Happy Mother's Day! ... from Whitman's (and David Attie)
This 1951 Mother's Day ad for Whitman's was illustrated by David Attie.
I knew I'd heard that name before... but there doesn't seem to be much by Attie on the Internet - and even less about him.
I managed to locate this 1953 piece in my collection of Art Director & Studio News magazines. So at least we now know that Attie was an east coast illustrator in the early '50s, represented by the prestigious Fredman-Chaite studios.
Mitchell Hooks, Frank McCarthy and the young Bob Peak were all at FC during this same period. Perhaps they all knew each other...
Attie gets a brief mention in the one issue of the Fredman-Chaite Portfolio promotional magazine I own...
... unfortunately the promo contains no biographical info on Attie.
Finally, here's a 1956 paperback cover by Dave Attie from my friend Uilke's Flickr archives.
And for now, that's all we know about David Attie. Perhaps (hopefully) TI readers can add more!
I knew I'd heard that name before... but there doesn't seem to be much by Attie on the Internet - and even less about him.
I managed to locate this 1953 piece in my collection of Art Director & Studio News magazines. So at least we now know that Attie was an east coast illustrator in the early '50s, represented by the prestigious Fredman-Chaite studios.
Mitchell Hooks, Frank McCarthy and the young Bob Peak were all at FC during this same period. Perhaps they all knew each other...
Attie gets a brief mention in the one issue of the Fredman-Chaite Portfolio promotional magazine I own...
... unfortunately the promo contains no biographical info on Attie.
Finally, here's a 1956 paperback cover by Dave Attie from my friend Uilke's Flickr archives.
And for now, that's all we know about David Attie. Perhaps (hopefully) TI readers can add more!
Wednesday, May 04, 2011
John Fernie (1919 - 2001)
Not long ago Bruce Fernie contacted me to let me know he had created a website to celebrate the career of his father, the illustrator John Fernie. I've come across Fernie's work on several occasions and really liked it. Below are three examples I found in various mid-1950s issues of Cosmopolitan magazine.
Now there's a place where you can read about John Fernie's life and see some great examples of his work!
Visit the John Fernie website for more.
Now there's a place where you can read about John Fernie's life and see some great examples of his work!
Visit the John Fernie website for more.
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
ART AT WORK: Commercial Art from the Collection of Ken Nutt
By guest author Ken Nutt
I thought your readers might like to see some samples from an exhibition currently at the Gallery Stratford in Stratford, Ontario. The title of the show is 'ART AT WORK: Commercial Art from the Collection of Ken Nutt.' It features original artwork for illustrations, mainly from the nineteen-fifties, that I have collected over the years.
The above piece is by an illustrator named J. (Jack) Smith.
One of the reasons I started collecting originals was to learn how effects that I admired in print were achieved -- so I could recreate them in my own work. In the above painting for a two-colour illustration, the stripes on the gent's shirt are brushed in opaque gouache while the woman's red dress has been stenciled in with transparent ink.
Here's a pencil drawing done for the British America Bank Note Company, a Canadian company which specialized in the production of steel engravings for use in the printing of money, stamps and, in the case of the drawing below, stock certificates.
The BABNC, as it was known, was founded in the year before Confederation, but judging by the resemblance of the goddess above to Grace Kelly, I think this design is of a much later date.
Below, another anonymous illustration, this one for a men's magazine. This is part of the section of the show dedicated to magazine illustration. As I laid out samples of the 'glossies' -- The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's, McCall's -- it came as a shock to think that the young illustrators in the neighbouring gallery might never have seen these big-format magazines, which were the pinnacle of the trade for mid-century commercial artists.
Below, three of four post-war gouaches for the covers to British paperbacks.
The amazing thing here is that all the white lettering is painted directly on top of the illustration, gouache on gouache.
I would have hated to have been the lettering artist.
Below, This seven-foot-long mural is one of three painted for an American bank by illustrator Harold Ashodian.
Many illustrators, most famously Norman Rockwell, Maxfield Parrish and Dean Cornwell, painted murals. My guess is that illustrators were better equipped than easel painters to tell a story in paint, which is what a mural commission usually involves.
There are thirty-three pieces of vintage illustration in the show, great contemporary posters and editorial illustrations by Jack Dylan and Pete Ryan in the adjoining gallery, as well as a third space devoted to the conceptual photography of artist Suzy Lake. So, if you would like to spend a pleasant afternoon looking at some cool illustration -- and perhaps even take in a play -- come visit. ~ Ken Nutt
The Gallery Stratford, 54 Romeo St., Stratford Ontario, is open Tuesday to Sunday, 11AM-3PM
Starting May 17: Tuesday to Sunday: 10AM-5PM
The exhibitions run till June 5, 2011
I thought your readers might like to see some samples from an exhibition currently at the Gallery Stratford in Stratford, Ontario. The title of the show is 'ART AT WORK: Commercial Art from the Collection of Ken Nutt.' It features original artwork for illustrations, mainly from the nineteen-fifties, that I have collected over the years.
The above piece is by an illustrator named J. (Jack) Smith.
One of the reasons I started collecting originals was to learn how effects that I admired in print were achieved -- so I could recreate them in my own work. In the above painting for a two-colour illustration, the stripes on the gent's shirt are brushed in opaque gouache while the woman's red dress has been stenciled in with transparent ink.
Here's a pencil drawing done for the British America Bank Note Company, a Canadian company which specialized in the production of steel engravings for use in the printing of money, stamps and, in the case of the drawing below, stock certificates.
The BABNC, as it was known, was founded in the year before Confederation, but judging by the resemblance of the goddess above to Grace Kelly, I think this design is of a much later date.
Below, another anonymous illustration, this one for a men's magazine. This is part of the section of the show dedicated to magazine illustration. As I laid out samples of the 'glossies' -- The Saturday Evening Post, Collier's, McCall's -- it came as a shock to think that the young illustrators in the neighbouring gallery might never have seen these big-format magazines, which were the pinnacle of the trade for mid-century commercial artists.
Below, three of four post-war gouaches for the covers to British paperbacks.
The amazing thing here is that all the white lettering is painted directly on top of the illustration, gouache on gouache.
I would have hated to have been the lettering artist.
Below, This seven-foot-long mural is one of three painted for an American bank by illustrator Harold Ashodian.
Many illustrators, most famously Norman Rockwell, Maxfield Parrish and Dean Cornwell, painted murals. My guess is that illustrators were better equipped than easel painters to tell a story in paint, which is what a mural commission usually involves.
There are thirty-three pieces of vintage illustration in the show, great contemporary posters and editorial illustrations by Jack Dylan and Pete Ryan in the adjoining gallery, as well as a third space devoted to the conceptual photography of artist Suzy Lake. So, if you would like to spend a pleasant afternoon looking at some cool illustration -- and perhaps even take in a play -- come visit. ~ Ken Nutt
The Gallery Stratford, 54 Romeo St., Stratford Ontario, is open Tuesday to Sunday, 11AM-3PM
Starting May 17: Tuesday to Sunday: 10AM-5PM
The exhibitions run till June 5, 2011
Monday, May 02, 2011
Al Parker: 3 Decades of TV Guide Covers
That's pretty amazing actually: with the way tastes change, how many other illustrators could claim to have done work for a single magazine client for three decades (and to get to do the covers at that)? Another example of how tremendously versatile and adaptable Al Parker was.
The '50s
The '60s
The '70s
* Many thanks to TI list member Tom Johnsonn who, out of the blue, sent all of today's scans one day last week. I always like to include a link to a contributor's website as a way of saying thanks. Since Tom doesn't have a website, he suggested I include one to his son Ted's site Pilates Any Time. "Ted's doing really well with this site," writes Tom. "Maybe there are some sedentary artists who might be interested in getting fit?"
* My Al Parker Flickr set.
The '50s
The '60s
The '70s
* Many thanks to TI list member Tom Johnsonn who, out of the blue, sent all of today's scans one day last week. I always like to include a link to a contributor's website as a way of saying thanks. Since Tom doesn't have a website, he suggested I include one to his son Ted's site Pilates Any Time. "Ted's doing really well with this site," writes Tom. "Maybe there are some sedentary artists who might be interested in getting fit?"
* My Al Parker Flickr set.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Brian Sanders: "... five decades in the illustrative arts"
Today, guest author Bryn Havord concludes his article on English illustrator Brian Sanders.
The early colour supplements produced in Britain gave illustrators excellent shop windows for their work.
This series, in the prestigious Sunday Times Magazine featured the best shots made by ten great tennis players. The art director was Michael Rand.
Michael Rand also commissioned Brian to paint a series of cars used in fiction. The Aston Martin used in Ian Fleming's James Bond book was an MK3, rather than the DB4 used in the film. Brian used his own Aston Martin DB3 for the illustration.
Artist/Illustrator Roger Coleman, an old friend of Brian’s – they shared a studio at Artist Partners – kindly portrayed Goldfinger for this illustration below.
The series led to Brian being commissioned to paint the illustration for the book cover shown below. I especially liked the way Brian used the windscreen to show Lord Montagu's house, Beaulieu Abbey, as a reflection.
Below, this painting of Cleopatra, together with a painting of Ophelia, were commissioned as Shakespeare for Schools posters, published by The Sunday Times,.
During World War Two Brian, together with thousands of other children living in London, was evacuated to the countryside to protect them from Hitler’s bombing campaign, and Brian was sent to Saffron Walden, a charming market town in north Essex, where he and Lizzie now live nearby in an Elizabethan house.
His most recently published book is: Evacuee: A Wartime Childhood, the first in a biographic trilogy. It quotes him as saying; “I always wanted to be an artist and I’m still trying”.
It is a brilliantly written and illustrated book, evoking the atmosphere of wartime Britain. I was also a child at the time, living in a different part of Essex from Brian, and his book brought back so many memories of a strange and threatening time, but also a time of great joy and fascination. The adult view at the time was that the American GIs were “Overpaid, oversexed and over here”, and indeed many of them were a source of interest to many of the young British females. They were definitely of interest to many of us young boys with their stories of life in America and in the US forces; their chewing gum and chocolate were pretty good as well!
* Evacuee: A Wartime Childhood is available from www.smallfort.co.uk price £7.99, plus postage. Payment by PayPal.
* Many thanks to Brian and Bryn for an interesting and inspiring week! Bryn has promised to follow up in the next couple of months with a further look at Brian's work post-1970 ~ Leif
The early colour supplements produced in Britain gave illustrators excellent shop windows for their work.
This series, in the prestigious Sunday Times Magazine featured the best shots made by ten great tennis players. The art director was Michael Rand.
Michael Rand also commissioned Brian to paint a series of cars used in fiction. The Aston Martin used in Ian Fleming's James Bond book was an MK3, rather than the DB4 used in the film. Brian used his own Aston Martin DB3 for the illustration.
Artist/Illustrator Roger Coleman, an old friend of Brian’s – they shared a studio at Artist Partners – kindly portrayed Goldfinger for this illustration below.
The series led to Brian being commissioned to paint the illustration for the book cover shown below. I especially liked the way Brian used the windscreen to show Lord Montagu's house, Beaulieu Abbey, as a reflection.
Below, this painting of Cleopatra, together with a painting of Ophelia, were commissioned as Shakespeare for Schools posters, published by The Sunday Times,.
During World War Two Brian, together with thousands of other children living in London, was evacuated to the countryside to protect them from Hitler’s bombing campaign, and Brian was sent to Saffron Walden, a charming market town in north Essex, where he and Lizzie now live nearby in an Elizabethan house.
His most recently published book is: Evacuee: A Wartime Childhood, the first in a biographic trilogy. It quotes him as saying; “I always wanted to be an artist and I’m still trying”.
It is a brilliantly written and illustrated book, evoking the atmosphere of wartime Britain. I was also a child at the time, living in a different part of Essex from Brian, and his book brought back so many memories of a strange and threatening time, but also a time of great joy and fascination. The adult view at the time was that the American GIs were “Overpaid, oversexed and over here”, and indeed many of them were a source of interest to many of the young British females. They were definitely of interest to many of us young boys with their stories of life in America and in the US forces; their chewing gum and chocolate were pretty good as well!
* Evacuee: A Wartime Childhood is available from www.smallfort.co.uk price £7.99, plus postage. Payment by PayPal.
* Many thanks to Brian and Bryn for an interesting and inspiring week! Bryn has promised to follow up in the next couple of months with a further look at Brian's work post-1970 ~ Leif
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