Jun 24, 2021 - Sale 2574
/

Sale 2574 - Lot 156

Price Realized: $ 390
?Final Price Realized includes Buyer’s Premium added to Hammer Price
Estimate: $ 400 - $ 600
[CIRCUS]
Circus Sideshow. Together, group of 15 possible poster maquettes, circa 1950. Acrylic on board, some with added metallic paint. Most are 306x152 mm; 12x6 inches. "Chief Short Horn" is 285x213 mm; 11 1/4x8 1/4 inches, on 12x9-inch board. "The Marvelous Pig Lady of London" is initialed "S. H." (or possibly "S. K.") in graphite on verso; the remaining are unsigned.

The exact purpose of these illustrations is unknown, as some represent real acts in circuses and sideshows at various points in history. They are executed in the vibrant cartoonish style of the famed banner artist David C. "Snapp" Wyatt who painted advertisements for circus and sideshow acts in the mid-twentieth century. The grouping features typical acts like sword-swallowers and lion tamers often found in modern circuses, as well as so-called attractions that are now considered taboo for the entertainment industry, but which once formed the basis of "freak shows," such as humans with physical aberrations and cultural groups once considered to be exotic in their appearance.

The group includes: "La Tena's Trained Wild Animals," "The Lion King," "Unis," "Capt. Cutter Knife Artiste/Zarov Fire Eater," "El'Toro Crocodile Wrestler/Bingo the Human Chimp," "Lentini 3-Legged Man," "The Siamese Twins Chang and Eng," "The Albino Family," "The Marvelous Pig Lady of London," "Fiji Island Mermaid: Captured Alive," "Malaka and her Serpents/Two-Headed Girl," "Pygmy Tribe/Zelda the Half Girl," "Giraffe-Neck Women from Burma," "Ubangi Savages: Africa/Capture of the Horned Men," and "Chief Short Horn: Terror of the West."
Set Alert for Similar Items