I bet you found it. This image might be contemporary, but to me it looks more like it came off a vintage tattoo flash sheet.
And here's the source, a classic Film Fun cover from 1936. If you were were forced to pick a Bolles to swipe from the 580 covers (my current count) he painted, you'd be hard pressed to come up with a better choice.
Later during the trip I stopped by the fabulous Columbus Art Museum and wouldn't you know it, the tingling started up again and led me to this painting. No one would confuse her wtih a Bolles girl but once I read the name on the placard I understood the connection.
In addition to being an important early 20th Century artist, Robert Henri was an influential art instructor. For a number of years he taught at the famous Art Students League in New York City, and among his many notable students was our man Enoch. Now having said this, Bolles was not a particularly fond of the great teacher's opinionated and demanding ways. In a letter Bolles wrote many years later he lamented that: " you were forced to become a little Henri or you
were just ignored". But having said this I do see some influence by Henri on Bolles' earliest work. Here's the Bolles image that comes to mind. It's just his second published cover, done in 1914, at the very time when Enoch was taking night classes at the League.
2 comments:
I thought I was the best at spotting swipes in weird places and spotting swipes as far away from the original as possible (far away as in subject matter & in years). I mean at times some people can't even spot it if they r right next too each other, so it's quite an odd skill lol.
Sadly it's the worst thing in art (swiping) and why artist even do it I'll never understand. I would rather toil away in obscurity trying to make original art than swipe a past master and put my name on it. It really bugs me when artist do the photo reference swipe. Where they paint a picture exactly the same from a past photograph, then say "here is my latest painting." There r a few artist in the industry right now that gained fame painting "swiping" old photographs. Exactly the same thing painted from an already famous photo. A particular artist that paints baseball moments and paints the same exact thing that was already a photograph and makes big money doing it. When yes just stealing and also infringing on copyrights of the original photographer. Sorry for the rant haha, but as an artist that tries to do original stuff and then sees others doing such cheap things as swiping really bothers me.
Also wanted to say, I recently just discovered Enoch Bolles and everything he did blows my mind. The pure simplification of form and color.
Thanks so much for your comment. Sorry it took me so long to respond. I should share more of these because there are so many examples of pinup artists who have swiped Bolles. And as you point out there is a continuum of swiping from inspiration to outright reproduction. I have a great quote by the illustrator Murray Tinkleman somewhere or another where he describes this. When I find it I'll post it for you. I'm glad you like Enoch, he was so much more than the pinup cartoonist he's been pigeon-holed as. Please let me know what you think of other posts.
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