Liv Tyler and Proper

Matt Groening

I Want My Life to Have Meaning . . .

Matt Groening is one of the wisest billionaire cartoonists in the business, even though his business these days probably precludes any cartooning time (sadly, he did retire recently from Life in Hell).

His wisdom and humanity shines through every Life in Hell page, bless his heart, and he still hasn't invited my little family over for dinner. But, Matt, I'm inviting you to either brunch, lunch or tea, my treat. I'd love to render a portrait of you and talk about life in hell.

Really, email me.

© 1989 Matt Groening — Life in Hell — 10-13-89

Lovely Lalique

A lovely modern ad graphic for vintage art captured in glass.

 René Lalique – Bacchantes – 1927

Blushing Vegetables

Another reason for the boys to come home in WWII—

the beaches were lonely.

Blushing Vegetables — crate label — 1943

Grim Determination

When this ad came out in 1943, it was still a hard fight to the end of the war, but grim determination won out. The same sentiment could be used now for the service men and women still in harm's way — "Let's Get It Over With Quick!"

Nash-Kelvinator ad — December 1943

Fair Game

At this here blog thingie we don't discriminate between "fine art" and "popular art", between "good taste" and "tasting good". All images are fair game, some more than others.

Al Feldstein, venerable artist/editor at the old EC madhouse, recreated, as an oil, his cover from Weird Fantasy #15, as many graphic artists have done to make a buck in the collector's market, and why not? 

Now THAT'S entertainment!!!

© 1991 Al Feldstein — recreation of Weird Fantasy #15

White Peacocks

About a year and a half ago I posted a few lovely paintings by Jessie Arms Botke of exotic birds in exotic settings. Well, here's another.

Jessie Hazel Arms Botke — White Peacocks & Hollyhocks — 1935

Warm 'n' Cozy

It's really cold outside my cozy little studio right now.

Hope where you're at, YOU are dry, safe, warm 'n' cozy!

Carl Barks — Blizzard Tonight — © Walt Disney Company

For Damned Intellectuals

Over 30 years ago, Joost Swarte had the courage to expose the TRUE behind-the-scenes business of how comix are produced, not unlike the movie industry, with the studio teamwork of many specialized technicians. Even some of the same Hollywoodish hanky-panky, as we spy going on in the water closet.

© 1980 Joost Swarte — Comix Factory — Raw #2

Long Ago Volume

This image is from one of those long ago volumes that a Victorian gentleman would keep on the highest shelf in his library, or perhaps in a cabinet under lock and key. This volume was a survey of sexual customs from around the world. Now that I've posted this I will replace the volume back to its high shelf.

A Terrible Day in 1872

From a sketch by E.Y. Breck

'On Christmas Eve, 1872, a dreadful derailment took place at Prospect Station, Pennsylvania. Twenty-five passengers were killed when coaches fell from the bridge into a frozen creek bed, where they were set afire from overturned stoves. The derailment was caused by a broken wheel.'

Beasts and Demons

Now and then I receive email enquiries regarding background information on this image or that. 

This image is one that particularly caught my attention because I greatly admire the artwork of WT Benda. Peter was wondering if I knew the date or where this work might be. I do not. This reproduction is from an old Architectural Digest magazine with only the caption: A Mural Decoration by W.T. Benda.

Knowing Benda's fascination with masks, collecting and creating them, this retinue of beasts and demons makes a bit of sense, but still is a mysterious crowd. Some of you out there are fans of Benda, and knowledgeable besides. Do you know the date or whereabouts of this mural? Is this a reproduction of a study or of the actual mural? Are these dimensional masks placed on a painting, or is this a conceptual preliminary meant to drive the execution of full-sized masks? Enquiring minds want to know.

WT Benda — A Mural Decoration

IT

This girl was "it" in her day and, for some, still today.

Clara Bow in Hoopla — 1933

Shocking

There's a post over on the cool Enoch Bolles site that brings up the topic of early 20th century images portraying women smoking cigarettes, a rare and shocking event at that time. Enoch Bolles used smoking as a prop for a magazine cover of 1914. But Raphael Kirchner, in the same year, showed a young Ziegfeld beauty actually savoring her nicotine. The shocking thing these days is that ANYone is smoking, knowing the damage that it inflicts.

Raphael Kirchner —Ziegfeld Midnight Frolic — 1914

An Old and New Topic

Our lives are constant blends of old with new. That's almost one definition of 'time' — old days / new days. We all own some old things and some new things.  New things become old things. We can acquire some old things and thereby make them new things, for us. We moved from our old house to our new house, bringing some old things and buying some new things. The old year became the new year, looking quite the same, except our old view is now a new view. The old computer became a new computer, looking much like the old one, but behaving in a new way. I've finished some old projects and begun some new.

Old and New are simultaneous. 

Where does one begin and the other end?

Milton Glaser — Old/New

House-Warming Party

The weather was pretty nice, and this is a pretty fair representation of what our house-warming party looked like in the back yard. 

Wish you could've been there.

Hendrik van Balen the elder — Feast of the Gods 
 date: I dunno, a long time ago

Hordes from Hades

Thank you to everyone who sent over their good wishes for a smooth move for the home, studio and new computer. Everything DID go smoothly, exCEPT for when I went to the new basement to put some things away, hordes from Hades came pouring out from the unfinished section—which really shook me up until they explained that they were from the Neighborhood Welcoming Committee, inviting us to worship with them (and you should see the basket of goodies they left!).

Virgil Finlay — Hordes from Hades (my title)

The Art of Living

Lao-Tzu

Moving

Moving into a new house, a new studio, a new computer. 

See ya in a couple of days.

Bloggy Blog Blog

This image is totally out of season, totally unrelated to anything—who cares? Right? Bloggy blog blog. Images, images, we're all hungry for images.

Sorry, I'm a little hyper. We're moving home and studio over the next couple of days, and then I pick up my new super-duper, top of the line, dee-luxe, 800 hundred horsepower, slick-trick magic machine. Yes, it's a Mac and I'm proud to say it.

Good golly, why am I so hyper. I moved a truck-load of furniture today and I'm dead tired. But change is exciting and I'm almost done with my 3 years in the making deadlines for 3 separate clients! And then what . . . I dunno.

Okay, this image is slightly related to something relevant. This is, of course, from a Mid-Summer Night's Dream, and we saw a terrific performance of same while we were in London! You just can't go to London and not do something Shakespeare related.

From an old print, don't know the artist, date or anything else. 
But look close at the elegant engraving lines— 
somewhat like paper currency.