Gil Elvgren Pinups Make Auction Debut in October at Heritage Auctions

Elvgren works featuring classic cars highlight private collection of former Formula One driver

DALLAS, Texas (September 11, 2020) – An outstanding private collection of pinups will be offered in Heritage Auctions’ Illustration Art Auction Oct. 16, including five paintings by widely renowned pinup artist Gil Elvgren that never have been offered at auction. Bidding opens Sept. 25 on HA.com.

“Heritage is excited to be offering this collection of pinups,” Heritage Auctions Senior Vice President Ed Jaster said. “The consignor is not only a Formula One driver, but also an avid classic car collector. It is no coincidence that many of the works in his collection feature classic cars.”

The quintet of Elvgren paintings includes:

* Bow Spirit, circa 1960 (estimate: $50,000-75,000)

* Let’s Go, 1957 (estimate: $50,000-70,000)

* Low Down Feelings, circa 1955 (estimate: $40,000-60,000)

* I’ve Been Spotted, 1949 (estimate: $30,000-50,000)

* Trophy Girl – A Winner, 1960 (estimate: $10,000-15,000)

Another in-demand pinup in this collection is Haddon Hubbard Sundblom’s Summer’s Day (estimate: $40,000-60,000). The artist is perhaps known best for his images of Santa Claus that he created for the Coca-Cola Company, but he also was acknowledged for his painted pinups and calendar glamour pieces. Summer’s Day is featured as the cover of The Art of Sundblom book  by Dan Zimmer (The Illustrated Press, 2018).

Further highlights from this fabulous collection of 46 works include premier pinup artists: George Petty, Alberto Vargas, Rolf Armstrong, Earl Moran, Peter Driben, William Medcalf, Joyce Ballantyne and many more.

* George Petty Tennis Girl, circa 1947 (estimate: $8,000-12,000)

* The Petty Girl is Back, Esquire calendar, 1955 (estimate: $8,000-12,000)

* Alberto Vargas Brunette with Blue Flowers (estimate: $8,000-12,000)

* Alberto Vargas Legacy Nude (Third Stage Nude), circa 1945 (estimate: $8,000-12,000)

* Rolf Armstrong Girl on Cushion, circa 1940 (estimate: $12,000-18,000)

* Enoch Bolles Seated Beauty (estimate: $10,000-15,000)

* Rolf Armstrong See You Soon, 1947 (estimate: $8,000-12,000)

* William Medcalf Permite Girl on Car Creeper (estimate: $8,000-12,000)

“This auction has an exceptional selection of pinups,” Jaster said, “one of the best pinup collections since the Charles Martignette.”

The auction includes several works by Patrick Nagel, the popular artist who has enjoyed great success in recent auctions, including with Bold, which sold for $200,000 in October 2017. Nagel’s work has been popular in pop culture for decades, and his signature style of images of beautiful women, often with dark or bright red lips and dark hair and eyebrows also is featured in this auction in Jeana, 1983 (estimate: $60,000-80,000). The 40-by-25-inch acrylic on canvas is signed and dated “1983” by the artist lower right. Nagel’s art has been utilized extensively in fashion and music, including on the cover of Duran Duran’s Rio album.

Has there ever been a fictional spaceship as legendary as the Millennium Falcon from the Star Wars movies? Generations of fans dreamed of flying this “bucket of bolts” that was dubbed by Lando Calrissian “the fastest hunk of junk in the galaxy.” Brian Sauriol’s Millennium Falcon Cut Away, 1993 (estimate: $10,000-15,000) is one of four original paintings Sauriol was commissioned to create for Lucasflm Ltd., and Nonpareil Communications, Inc.: The Millennium Falcon, X-Wing Fighter, Imperial Star Destroyer and the Death Star. The posters never were produced, and this was the only commissioned painting Sauriol finished.

For more images and more information on these and the other lots in the auction, visit HA.com/8027.

Heritage Auctions is the largest fine art and collectibles auction house founded in the United States, and the world’s largest collectibles auctioneer. Heritage maintains offices in New York, Dallas, Beverly Hills, San Francisco, Chicago, Palm Beach, London, Paris, Geneva, Amsterdam and Hong Kong.

Heritage also enjoys the highest Online traffic and dollar volume of any auction house on earth (source: SimilarWeb and Hiscox Report). The Internet’s most popular auction-house website, HA.com, has more than 1,250,000 registered bidder-members and searchable free archives of five million past auction records with prices realized, descriptions and enlargeable photos. Reproduction rights routinely granted to media for photo credit.

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