Saturday, March 29, 2008

Distress and Dismay

Detail, Distress and Dismay, tempera on paper, ca. 1971-74

Friday, March 28, 2008

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Back to Bellefontaine

Update: Two prints sold. Edition now available at JimFlora.com.

Now listed on eBay: a limited-edition, archival-quality fine art print of an uncirculated 1963 Flora tempera painting, Back to Bellefontaine. Flora was born in Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio, in 1914, and lived there until 1934, when he enrolled at the Art Academy of Cincinnati.

Only 25 prints were produced for this edition. Prints #25/25 and 24/25 are being offered at the launch price of $200/ea. Prices will increase for subsequent prints as the edition depletes.

Flora wrote: "Bellefontaine was a town of about nine thousand people, in the center of Ohio. At that time there were no televisions, radios, dishwashers, or jet planes. There were a lot of horses but very few automobiles. A boy could sit on the curb for an hour before an automobile passed by so he could wave at it.

"My parents were born in the 19th century and Bellefontaine was a typical 19th century midwestern town. It suited them admirably, but by the time I reached boyhood, the town was in transition entering the 20th century. So many things were happening at once: electricity, telephones, socialism, radios, automobiles, bobbed hair, movies, short skirts. It was a yeasty time, but through it all most of the 19th-century values persisted. We learned self-discipline, politeness, good manners, doing one's chores with a minimum of grumbling, neatness, cleanliness, and all of the other social graces that get one through life with the least amount of abrasion and lost motion."

Back to Bellefontaine has not previously been published or reproduced.

Monday, March 24, 2008

Firework doggie

Detail, draft manuscript, The Fabulous Firework Family (1955)

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Mischief and Sinister Curiosity

My article about Flora which appeared in the August 2007 issue of Juxtapoz is now posted at JimFlora.com. Two footnotes:
1) Typos and lamentable editorial "improvements" in the print version have been emended;
2) Since the Flora works which illustrated the print version are already prominently displayed elsewhere on the site, I substituted new (and in some cases previously uncirculated) images.

Friday, March 21, 2008

cherry plucker with heartbird

"Nearly everybody gets twitterpated in the springtime."

untitled tempera with pencil, ca. early 1960s
found in sketchbook

Monday, March 17, 2008

The Rape of the Stationmaster's Daughter

New Jim Flora fine art print launched on eBay.

Two prints offered @ Buy-It-Now price of $250/ea. Not mentioned in item description: we have already sold prints 17/20 and 18/20; after the two launch prints sell, the next two released prints (15/20 and 16/20) will be offered at $300 via JimFlora.com.

Elements of this early 1940s tempera were adapted for the cover of The Curiously Sinister Art of Jim Flora.

Saturday, March 15, 2008

Trio

Trio, pen & ink with felt-tip marker on paper, ca. 1993-94

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Gup traincar

Spot illustration, Gup: 3 Adventures, Little Man Press, 1942

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Chance Encounter print now on eBay

A new fine art print of a wild 1970 Jim Flora tempera painting has been listed on eBay. We have editioned 20 prints of Chance Encounter, and only two are being offered at the launch price.

15 minutes later: SOLD.
Further prints of this edition are available at JimFlora.com.

JimFlora.com facelift


Mr. Otis Fodder has completed his technical, systematic, and cosmetic overhaul of JimFlora.com.

Many surprises in store: new images, rotating homepage headers, streamlined checkout system for fine art prints, better-organized galleries, mailing list sign-up, and bottomless bowls of Terra Chips and Reese's Cups.

Visit, please.

Tuesday, March 4, 2008