Antiques for Sale | Antique Furniture | Antique Fairs | Antiques Listings | Antiques Email Alerts | Websites for Antique Dealers | Contact
Doe and Hope
Tel : +44 (0)1767 640995, Mobile: +44 (0)7729 213013
Email : info@doeandhope.com
Web : www.doeandhope.com
Web : www.antiques-atlas.com/doeandhope/
Private dealer, by appointment
The Onion Barn, Shoe Cottage
15 High Street, Blunham,
Bedfordshire, MK44 3NL.
Please don't hesitate to contact us for an appointment.
Aeronautical Artwork Pin-Up Nose Cone Panel c.1950
Description
The panel with semi-naked lady with blushed rose cheeks, ruby red lips and nails, fiery red flowing hair and wearing only underwear, a lavender shawl and stockings with suspenders depicted on a corded phone on a racing green ground and ‘Miss Virginia’ in sunshine yellow script. To the reverse we can see the mechanics of the panel itself in red and white with ten further separate riveted panels. The panel is possibly from a Lockheed P-38 Lightning plane which was a World War II American fighter aircraft.In very good overall condition, with only some minor scuffs to the paintwork, whilst there is a later hanging wire attached to allow the panel to hang in landscape position for display.
Many imaginative service personnel, or lust-ridden pilots (!), painted their aircraft with gaudy images on the sinuous curve of their nose cone with curve being the operative word. Nose art is largely a military tradition, though also a form of folk art and while it began for practical reasons of identifying friendly units, the practice evolved to express the individuality often constrained by the uniformity of the military, to evoke memories of home and peacetime life, and as a kind of psychological protection against the stresses of war and the probability of death. The appeal, in part, came from nose art not being officially approved, even when the regulations against it were not enforced. Cartoons and pinups, as we see here, were most popular among American artists. The British Ministry of Defence banned the use of pin-up women in nose art on Royal Air Force aircraft in 2007, as commanders decided the images (many containing naked women), were inappropriate and potentially offensive to female personnel, although there were no documented complaints.
Historically and visually inspiring, and rarely appearing for sale, Miss Virginia is a wonderfully entertaining segment of aeronautical pin-up themed decorative graffiti artwork. Goodness, gracious, great balls o’fire!
Date1950s :
c.1940-60
DimensionsWidth 36.5 inches
Height 43 inches
Depth 14 inches (at maximum)
ConditionVery Good.
Codeas155a530
Price SOLD £880.00
StatusSold
SellerDoe and Hope
Telephone07729 213013Non UK callers :+44 7729 213013 Emailinfo@doeandhope.com
Contact
Send Doe and Hope a message about this item here