32 replies to this topic

[T54]

In my mind, one of the greatest if not the greatest automotive artist ever. I am the lucky owner of a few of his paintings and drawings. Is there a book anywhere about his work? I have never seen one.

[Vitesse2]

"The Art of Gordon Crosby" by Peter Garnier, published by Hamlyn in 1979. Now pretty rare, since many copies were cut up for framing, I believe.

Looking for the details, I also came up with an AQ article on him in Vol 4 No 4.

[T54]

Thanks Vitesse2, I will be looking for it. I wonder if my own beautiful pics are in the book...? With all the paintings and drawings now dispersed, it is going to be quite difficult to do a new book for a greatly deserving artist.

[Mark Godfrey]

bookfinder.com has a few copies listed.

http://www.bookfinde...08077285_1:7:63

[T54]

Thanks Mark,
Not cheap but I am sure, worth it?
Regards,

T54

[Pils1989]

Oh oh... I have that book althought I've never opened it! ( I can't check it as everything is back into boxes again!)

[Mark Godfrey]

T54, I would say worth it, especially since you have a vested interest in the artist.

If you plan on attending the SAH Lit Faire (Irwindale Speedway, this Sunday) I could bring my personal copy for you to judge. (My copy is not for sale, but you may find one there at the correct price.)

Here is a basic description:
About 9x13 inch HC, the first 30 pages are B&W images and text about the artist. The rest of the book is a single piece of artwork (mostly color) on a right page and a short description of the event portrayed on the left.

Mark

PS: I think the search expired on my link. bookfinder.com is very useful for locating many OOP titles.

[Racing Lines]

Hi,

Does anyone know who is Gordon-Crosby's copyright holder today ?

[David McKinney]

I'm pretty sure it is - or was? - Haymarket

(Assuming we're talking about Gordon Crosby rather than Gordon-Crosby ;) )

[T54]

I got the book from a friend in Georgia, and I am sorry to say that it is not very good. The test is neutral, the story not told. The colors and reproductions of the few paintings (and a very poor choice in the extensive amount of work by Gordon-Crosby) are of extremely poor quality and reflect poorly on the actual work of this wonderful artist, work that I was privileged to see "in the flesh" when the Brooks auction of "the Motor" archives was held in London in 1990. The real thing is indeed marvellous and I am very happy to have purchased the four cartoons of Seagrave, Cobb, Seaman and of the Magic Midget. Treasures I will keep forever.

T54

[Alan Cox]

Bonhams - or Brooks as it then was - held a number of sales dispersing a lot of the archive owned by Temple Press a few years ago. Might be worth tracking down the catalogues.

[T54]

Those, I have. And the catalogues do a better job than the book!

[cheater2]

Originally posted by T54
I got the book from a friend in Georgia, and I am sorry to say that it is not very good. The test is neutral, the story not told. The colors and reproductions of the few paintings (and a very poor choice in the extensive amount of work by Gordon-Crosby) are of extremely poor quality and reflect poorly on the actual work of this wonderful artist, work that I was privileged to see "in the flesh" when the Brooks auction of "the Motor" archives was held in London in 1990.

As Philippe's "friend in Georgia", perhaps he will not mind if I post how I acquired the copy of the "Art of Gordon Crosby" that I gifted him.

For about four or five years in the 1980s, I worked for then-owner Tom Warth at the Classic Motorbooks sales tent at the giant Hershey, PA, AACA swap meet. Every year, CM would bring a large quantity of returned and damaged books to sell along with the regular stock. IIRC on the first day, these "seconds" would be priced at a 20% discount; on the second, 30% discount; and so on. However, and this was one of the real inducements to work for Tom each year, we workers were allowed first pick of the titles on the damaged table each day. I am certain that it cost me more to work for CM than they ever paid me! The FGC book Philippe now holds was one of the damaged titles I glommed from the CM sales table and if truth be told, it looks like it was run over by a forklift, though I don't recall that there is any significant interior damage beyond wrinkling.

He is correct that the quality of reproduction is rather poor and that the text is uninteresting and droll. But it is the only FGC book . . .

On the other hand, T54, it is almost impossible to reproduce via ANY printing process the vibrancy of color so often observed in works by great artists. Van Gogh's "Self Portrait" passed through town a few years ago and alongside the original painting, even the high-res, hexacolor reproductions being sold in the museum gift shop looked terribly dull and uninteresting. I believe that's why original art is so highly valued.

[T54]

Cheater,
I am still very touched by the gift... you are a true friend, see ya in Amelia.

[Vitesse2]

It's in a way a shame that the book was published by Hamlyn, who were essentially a "pile it high, sell it cheap" firm. Equally, had Hamlyn not published it, I doubt anyone else would have even considered it: the late David Hodges was responsible for motoring books at Hamlyn at the time (I think he joined them when they bought Temple Press and he came as part of the deal) and I've always assumed that this book was one of his pet projects.

[T54]

Not writing about the work of Frederic Gordon-Crosby sounds as crazy as the 100 years during which the French utterly ignored the works of Berthe Morisot...
I can't believe no one is doing it NOW!
There are enough auto enthusiasts also art lovers all over the planet to justify selling at least 10000 copies.
If Peter Helck is so glorified, why not FGC who in my humble opinion, is standing above PH by a mile high.

[Andrew Kitson]

Originally posted by cheater2

On the other hand, T54, it is almost impossible to reproduce via ANY printing process the vibrancy of color so often observed in works by great artists. Van Gogh's "Self Portrait" passed through town a few years ago and alongside the original painting, even the high-res, hexacolor reproductions being sold in the museum gift shop looked terribly dull and uninteresting. I believe that's why original art is so highly valued.

I have had almost 60 of my works printed. I have tried many different printers and it is true what cheater says. The usual 4 colour printing process will never match exactly the vibrant colour of an original. This is particularly apparant in modern times with the bright 'rocket red' Marlboro colour for example. There is suitable paint available to match this but even the TV pictures or the photographs of modern cars with these 'dayglo' colours are hard to duplicate. It just looks plain red when printed.

It is always a pleasant suprise when I visit homes or places where my originals hang, especially if they have been printed. You get 'used' to the look of the printed version, either a framed copy I keep on the wall or the stock. The suprise is added to by the size of the original, which is usually always larger than the print too. Despite painting the thing for days on end, you do forget!
But back to topic FGC was IMO the master for all automotive artists.

[Vitesse2]

Originally posted by T54
Not writing about the work of Frederic Gordon-Crosby sounds as crazy as the 100 years during which the French utterly ignored the works of Berthe Morisot...
I can't believe no one is doing it NOW!
There are enough auto enthusiasts also art lovers all over the planet to justify selling at least 10000 copies.
If Peter Helck is so glorified, why not FGC who in my humble opinion, is standing above PH by a mile high.

Sadly, I think it would be lucky to sell 2000, even at a reasonable price (somewhere in the £35/$65 range). But a projected sale of only 2000 (print run 2500?) would probably mean a much higher price (double?), which is where you hit the law of diminishing returns .... :

[Vitesse2]

Originally posted by T54
If Peter Helck is so glorified, why not FGC who in my humble opinion, is standing above PH by a mile high.

.... which was, according to David Burgess-Wise in the February edition of The Automobile, pretty much Helck's own opinion, who thought he was "the greatest motoring artist there had ever been."

[T54]

I have heard that. I also have some original Helck paintings and drawings and can say to Peter Helck's ghost if he is around here that while his stuff is OK, it does not even compare to the truly briliant FGC art.

T54

[f1steveuk]

I had the pleasure of meeting Paddy Nevin and seeing his work, fantastic

[Vitesse2]

There's a copy of the F Gordon Crosby book on eBay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/...1QQcmdZViewItem

Standing at £51, with 1 day 16 hours to go! (Still £8 cheaper than the current lowest price on ABEbooks)

[1920sracing]

Art, of course, is in the eye of the beholder. And there is no accounting for taste. I have not read the David Burgess-Wise comment on Helck but he never went out of his way to praise himself. In fact he was more complimentary of other artists. Two he had very high regard for were Walter Gotschke and Carlo Demand.

Maybe more to the point, Helck as the straw man for Gordon Crosby misses the point that they were working in different environments and not all artists paintings are "good". Some are indeed only OK. Maybe T-54 bought the wrong ones. Helck was more of a studio painter and illustrator for his books, while Crosby was working for the magazine. His work has a more immediate quality to it. To see the difference between the two I would suggest you compare Helck's painting of Murphy at LeMans that is in Great Auto Races and Crosby's that appears in the Endless Quest for Speed and is reproduced frequently. And then have the courage to tell Helck's ghost he is only OK.

1920sracing

[Tim Murray]

I’d long given up hope of ever finding reasonably-priced motoring books or memorabilia in charity shops. However, this morning I walked down to my local Tesco’s and paused outside the Barnardo’s next door to put my face mask on before going in. Looking down, I spotted this in the Barnardo’s window:



A large framed print of Gordon Crosby’s painting of Théry and Rolls in the 1905 Gordon Bennett Cup. If you can’t read the price, it’s £15. The only problem was fighting my way the half mile back home against the rain and wind carrying my shopping and the print, but it was worth it. Now, where to hang it?

[Doug Nye]

Fine choice - well done.

 

DCN

[Sterzo]

A large framed print of Gordon Crosby’s painting of Théry and Rolls in the 1905 Gordon Bennett Cup. If you can’t read the price, it’s £15. The only problem was fighting my way the half mile back home against the rain and wind carrying my shopping and the print, but it was worth it. Now, where to hang it?

Fantastic! Now, you know that photo of your wife's mother cluttering up the living room wall...

 

One of my prized possessions is an advert for a Gordon Crosby Targa Florio print, cut from a 1962 copy of The Autocar. It measures 7" x 4" and if only there were a way to enlarge it without losing resolution.

 

My love of racing history was started by Carlo Demand's Motor Racing Sketchbook. Not in the same league artistically, but with a certain charm nevertheless.

[nca]

Hanging on my office wall, as I type this post, is a small print of the  GORDON Bennett RACE, 1905,  and a much larger version of the  FRENCH LIGHT CAR RACE, 1911

 

The artist captures and conveys the atmosphere excellently, although the tyre wear shown on the Delage and Peugeot at Boulogne is rather worrying.

Ballot in the Delage held on to win "following a closely fought contest with Boillot in the Peugeot"

 

I found the larger print in a marquee at a Silverstone Classic some twenty years ago, but cannot remember how I came by the smaller print.

Suffice to say that they never fail to bring a smile to my face.

 

nca 

Edited by nca, 02 November 2020 - 00:27.

[68targa]

I’d long given up hope of ever finding reasonably-priced motoring books or memorabilia in charity shops. However, this morning I walked down to my local Tesco’s and paused outside the Barnardo’s next door to put my face mask on before going in. Looking down, I spotted this in the Barnardo’s window:



A large framed print of Gordon Crosby’s painting of Théry and Rolls in the 1905 Gordon Bennett Cup. If you can’t read the price, it’s £15. The only problem was fighting my way the half mile back home against the rain and wind carrying my shopping and the print, but it was worth it. Now, where to hang it?

That's a great find, it shows that items do pop up from time to time.  All due to Covid as well - no face mask, no print ?

 

I may have mentioned this on another forum topic; back in my younger days I would contact overseas organisers and request a programme. Most fell silent but some responded and by far the best was from the Targa Florio orgainsers who not only sent a programme but this magnificient large poster with Goron Crosby reproduction showing Bugatti and Alfa. They used the same design for a few years I believe. It's just such a nice piece of period artwork.

 

[Tim Murray]

All due to Covid as well - no face mask, no print ?

Yes indeed. As other people were approaching, I moved closer to the Barnardo’s window to maintain the correct social distance while putting the mask on, and then just happened to look down ...

[Doug Nye]

Cyril Posthumus told me once that Gordon Crosby's nickname amongst his editorial office colleagues was 'Gorby'.  I must say I consider his work to have been far superior to his later counterpart Roy Nockolds, whom I knew as a near neighbour and who was always a very pleasant and engaging man, so declaring my reservations about his artistry does feel somewhat uncomfortable...

 

DCN

[Allan Lupton]

I agree about Nockolds but, on the other hand, Bryan de Grineau . . .

[Doug Nye]

Aah yes - VERY good point...  Isn't that a great photograph as de Grineau runs clear, clutching his sketch pad...

 

DCN

[Allan Lupton]

Aah yes - VERY good point...  Isn't that a great photograph as de Grineau runs clear, clutching his sketch pad...

 

DCN

One of a set of photos and, in the next one, he runs back to help.

Edited by Allan Lupton, 03 November 2020 - 11:11.