You know, the one who would modestly blush whenever the teacher mentioned how hormones were transforming our bodies? Well, according to Earle Bergey, in her future maturity she will have grown blasé about lounging around the space capsule casually dressed in a pair of silky harem pants and a shiny brass brassiere. Who could blame any pulp fan for wanting to see that dream come true! So sure enough, all of these surviving paintings were snapped up for a few hundred dollars way back in the 1970s by fan-boys, who held onto them for as long as they could, until the next generation of collectors tempted them with offers of a few thousand dollars. Now, in the 21st century, these sexy sci-fi paintings are back on the market and selling for over $50,000. As prices for pulp art soars higher and higher, most fans have had to grapple with the harsh realization that the time has long since come and gone for owning original cover art. Collecting pulp art is now the sport of kings, who thrill at breaking record prices in jousting matches at auction houses. One of the strangest things about this trend is that the super wealthy investors are given almost no information on the artwork's provenance, its publication history, or the life story of the artist. This is happening because the gold-rush has outpaced the scholarship of art historians. One of the most important things we do know is that 97% of all original pulp art has been destroyed by the corrosive effects of passing time and changing tastes in fashion. It now seems likely that the entire supply of these rare cover paintings are on track to become the investment property of only the top one-percent of our "classless" society. So there's no better time than as-soon-as-possible to figure out, "Who was this guy Earle Bergey?"
This story is from the Illustration No. 76 edition of Illustration.
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This story is from the Illustration No. 76 edition of Illustration.
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THE ART OF PAUL BRANSOM
Paul Bransom (1885-1979) was widely known as the Dean of American Animal Artists. His work appeared on the covers of magazines like The Saturday Evening Post and served as illustrations of short stories in periodicals and in books. He provided the illustrations for some 45 books, most notably the 1912 edition of Jack London’s Call of the Wild and the 1913 edition of Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows.
THE ART OF FRANK MCCARTHY
Witnessing a Wild West show as a young boy was a crucial early influence that led Frank McCarthy to become a distinguished painter of Western historical themes. The excitement and emotion he felt that day stayed with him, and can be seen in the vivid action, color, and splendor that emanate from his paintings.
"Blow some my way"
THE DELINEATION OF DESIRE IN 1920s COMMERCIAL ILLUSTRATION
THE ART OF WILLIAM OBERHARDT
Illustrator William Oberhardt (1882-1958) was born in Guttenberg, New Jersey, 1882.
THE ART OF EARLE K. BERGEY
Wouldn't it be great in the future if all pulp art fans could enjoy interplanetary travel with a devoted consort who looked like that pretty girl in high school biology class?
MORTON ROBERTS: A Brief Life at Yale
Morton Roberts was one of the rising stars in the late 50's and early 60's.
THE ART OF JOE BOWLER
American painter and illustrator Joe Bowler and his creations
THE ART OF ROGER KASTEL
An American artist, most famous for creating the poster for the film Jaws
THE ART OF J.F. KERNAN
There are over 450 paintings, drawings, and printed tear sheets by J.F. Kernan (1878- 1958) in the collection of the Glenbow Museum in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
ROBERT O. REID
From the late 1920s through the 1940s, Robert O. Reid’s work appeared regularly in Collier’s, Cosmopolitan, Ladies’ Home Journal, and The Saturday Evening Post. From August 1931 through December 1940, the prolific artist illustrated at least 35 covers for Collier’s, and at least 40 stories in that magazine alone.
