Parker, Al

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Parker, Al

Price: $7,900.00

Description: Woman in doorway, holding photo

Exhibition: Society of Illustrators, 1985 Al Parker exhibition.

Provenance: Formerly in the personal collection of Walt Reed.

Comment: Consistently lauded as a great innovator, designer and all-around visual communicator, there's a lot to admire in Parker's work. To me, this is one of his best--- assuredly the best of its type to pass through TIA's portal. I particularly like how he keeps the viewer engaged. How'd he do that? Well, among other things… the strong verticals of the door jamb contrasted with the curves and ultimately strong diagonal leading us out onto the porch. It is, too, the large expanses of the walls and curtain and rugs contrasted with the rich details on, for example, the vase and ultimately the woman's face. A rather shelfworn copy of the magazine is included with the purchase. Here's your chance to own an iconic work by one of the pillars of 20^th Century American illustration.

Price: $7,900 (+ $100 domestic shipping)

Information

Artist	Al Parker (1906-1985)
Caption	“It was ominously quiet. How strange, Vida thought, that they had not heard his step.”
Condition	With the magazine in hand, I have learned a couple things…This is the right half only of the composition as published… see the image of the magazine. Also in the reproduction the blue is much richer than in the original… looking closely at the magazine one can see that the printing doesn’t really “hold” Parker’s edges… look for example at the woman’s elbow and the silhouettes of the roses. Looks to me as though the magazine chose to bump up the depth of the blue and cut and laid down a blue film to achieve that effect. Overall though very good and with a strong wall presence. Has recently been gently tended to including a couple small areas of inpaint. Nicely framed to echo (but not mimic) the doorframe, with museum glass.
Medium	Gouache
Publication Information	Story illustration for “House Without Doors” by Dorothy Black, appearing in the March 1954 number of Good Housekeeping.
Signature	Not signed
Size	14.5 x 11.5”