O - M - G

Iron Man 3! 

I am SO there. Have you seen the clip of falling out of the airplane?! Sequels are supposed to get worse, by tradition — Marvel movies just get better and better. The effects are superlative! Robert Downey Jr! I don't know if he's my favorite actor, but he's my favorite media personality! Go see this movie! 

Pepper Potts! Yay!!!

'Nuff said!

Robert Downey Jr. — Iron Man 3

Just About Right

Sometimes the work of Annie French seems too fussy, too detailed for my taste. This image seems just about right for her style.

Annie French — early xxth century

The Look

No matter whether in the movies, photographs or illustrations—Carole Lombard had The Look. In this case of course, Zoe Mozert helped add to the charm.

Zoe Mozert — Romantic Movie Stories — 1936

O-O-O-Ophelia

Another contemporary of Mucha (among hundreds of others, of course) was Joseph Kirkpatrick. While he is one of those not particularly associated with the Art Nouveau, his work was romantic and lyrical as was the case of so many other artists of the time. Perhaps because that was what the art academies and exhibitions were fond of, artists gravitated to similar subjects and manners — Hamlet's Ophelia being a favorite fantasy.

  

Joseph Kirkpatrick — Ophelia — 1896

Exquisite Flow

A contemporary of Mucha was John White Alexander who also infused an exquisite flow into his paintings though he was not truly an artist of the Art Nouveau, but rather was distinguished as a portrait painter, illustrator and Symbolist painter. The image below is seen here and there, but this is the warmest reproduction I've seen, which I think gives strength to the mysterious light source.

John White Alexander — Isabella & the Pot of Basil — 1897

New Year

I love finding Mucha artwork that I haven't seen before, let alone a thousand times as we've seen most of his work. This is a mezzotint print from the old days.

Alphonse Mucha — New Year — circa 1898

Remember, if we treat it right, every day is the start of a new year!

Never Came to Be

Tim Hildebrandt created some fascinating concept art for a Wizard of Oz theme park in Kansas that never came to be. 

Bring in some cliffs and maybe, um, real tornadoes?

 Tim Hildebrandt — Wizard of Oz 

Theme Park Concept Painting— 1992

 Tim Hildebrandt — Wizard of Oz 

Theme Park Concept Painting — 1992

Our friend Larry left an excellent comment that pretty as these paintings are, most people would need more action and excitement than is shown here. Good point! So consider this:

Amongst a dozen other experiences, MAYbe Dorothy's house in that first pic would really come twisting and turning through the air to land on one of them wicked witches. MAYbe the other wicked witch would pop up here and there in green smoke and threaten visitors and then chuck firebombs at them. MAYbe the tin man would always be dancing his little heart out (chuckle). MAYbe the apple trees would be their mean nasty selfs and whop you with fruit. MAYbe you could lay down in a field of opiate poppies and have amazing personal adventures. MAYbe you could experience palace intrigue at the emerald city (that appears to be frozen white). MAYbe them flying monkey buggers would make everyone pee in their pants while hot air balloon rides let you escape to the parking lot!

How Ime Feeling 2day

F X Leyendecker

Mythic

I love this mythic illustration by the Russian illustrator, Losin.

V. Losin

Blessed State

This appears to be some form or another of a blessed state of being, though an odd potpourri of elements to my way of thinking, what with them dragons and creepy-looking elders. The dames can stay, though. Chocolates, bring in chocolates!

Otto Eckmann — 1899

In 1899

In 1899, there was no sensitivity to 'politically correct' issues. People just kept bumping into each other without thought — regarding race, creed, color, religion, belief, human rights, animal rights, on and on. And why not — the world still ran under Newtonian physics, resources were inexhaustible, imperialism was a way of life, two world wars were decades away, women still didn't vote, and the thought of animal extinction was relegated to just the Dodo Bird.

So, to put an illustration on the cover of Jugend magazine of a woman wearing a polar bear stole would not offend anyone and may or not have been a fashion statement to the editors. But when one goes further back in the magazine and sees a 'man stole', well then, perhaps we can consider the whole thing as a joke.

Or, I dunno, maybe that's an arctic wolf. Still . . .

 Above and below, Jugend magazine — 1899

Mystery and Wonder

Ah, the mystery and wonder of the Orient, as portrayed by Hollywood photography of the 1930s. Adventure awaits the theater patron.

Otto Dyar — Anna May Wong — Shanghai Express — 1932

The Poisoned Chalice

This is a clipping from a book that had already been trashed, heading for the recycle bin. Fritz Lang is always an interesting subject, but this anecdote especially caught my fancy. 

A few hours to consider, uh huh.

Fritz Lang's Dr. Mabuse

Free and Unfettered

This tribute to George Herriman's style of cartooning communication is one of the finest pieces of 'actual' cartooning that I've ever had the pleasure to lay my eyeballs on.

Jim,  I gotta say, you do some really fine stuff, yet I'm dine to see more of THIS kinda stuff! THIS is a glorious page!

© 1994 Jim Engel — Bungalow Bill

Sweet Gentle Life

Ah, the sweet gentle life of a Marquise . . .

Alexander Benois — The Marquise Bathing — 1906

Chilling Embrace

We've enjoyed some Spring weather here and there. Here, today, we are in the chilling embrace of the Snow Queen once again. Brrr.

Mary Engelbreit has such lovely charm in her graphics.

 All images this post © copyright Mary Engelbreit

Taking the Tube

I don't know if this is a real poster, or one that somebody cobbled together digitally. But what better place for dark humor than underground? (I love taking the tube!)

Bwaa-haw-haw-hawwww

Satisfying

There is something so satisfying about this image for me, every time I see it. The style, the coloration, the composition, the cast shadows, the subtle drama, the bird cage (!). I normally don't like depictions of the time period shown here, but I just love looking at this one.

Thomas Maitland Cleland — 1934

Sensual Design

Back in the late '60s / early '70s, the Warren line of 'creepy' and 'eerie' magazines stood out on the newsstands as something different for 'mature' readers. A degree of violence and nudity had found their way into comics far beyond what the Comics Code Authority would ever have allowed. But being magazines (and the times), young people like me found comics interesting again (at least for a while), and early on thrilled to find Frazetta covers on many of them. 

The one interior artist that stood out, for me, with his graceful lines and dynamic compositions was Estaban Maroto, ultimately the only reason I would buy any particular issue, having found the stories themselves usually banal, trite, predictable and boring.

Maroto's art brought sensual design to otherwise lackluster horror.

Estaban Maroto