This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/11/2021
BLAINE, Mahlon (American, 1894 – 1969). Erotic Painting of a Venetian Man. Circa 1940. Oil on canvas in bright colors of a man in an ankle-length coat and peaked hat standing in front of a Venetian scene, a nude woman with tall white wig festooned with flowers contained in the gentleman’s coat. Gilt frame, 25 ¼ x 16 ¼”. Inscribed “For Dunninger/ Mahlon Blaine” in the lower right. Blaine and Dunninger had a long association, the latter illustrating several of Dunninger’s books about magic tricks, and designing his bookplate. His illustrations appeared in The New Yorker and editions of works by Edgar Rice Burroughs, John Steinbeck, and other popular authors. Even so, the artist achieved only limited financial success during his lifetime, and Dunninger is credited with being his most reliable friend and patron.