Smoking Guns - Illustrating the sixties

Artist Signed Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Series One 2016    

Edition of 50 + 5 artist's proofs, each signed by the artist

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

Series Two 2016    

Edition of 50 + 5 artist's proofs, each signed by the artist

Paper size 110 cm X 84 cm

If you have any questions regarding these editions please email info@levergallery.com

Original painting

c. 1965, acrylic on board

Like ‘White Leotard with Red Spot’, Johnson painted this to pitch to art directors at fashion magazines. They were some of the first images Johnson created with acrylic paint, which first became available in the 1960s. Before this, illustrators would use casein paint which dried very slowly. With acrylic, illustrators have to work quickly whilst it’s wet because it is waterproof when dry.

Artist Signed Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Series One 2016    

Edition of 50 + 5 artist's proofs, each signed by the artist

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

Series Two 2016    

Edition of 50 + 5 artist's proofs, each signed by the artist

Paper size 110 cm X 67 cm

If you have any questions regarding these editions please email info@levergallery.com

Original painiting - acrylic on board, c. 1965

Johnson painted this and ‘White and Black Dress’ to pitch to art directors at fashion magazines. He presented the piece to Willie Landels, influential art director of Harpers & Queen, who created magazine’s distinctive aesthetic. Landels judged this piece ‘too like a work of art’ for fashion illustration, however, he commissioned other work from Johnson. The two became lifelong friends. The original board size is approximately 52 cm tall by 45 cm wide.

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original painting; acrylic on board, c. 1965

Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe novel, Too Many Women was published by Fontana c.1965. Fratini was a celebrated party goer and there is an impish humour to this cover with its candy pink background and feather boa draped around a woman clad in skin-tight black; a look that was moments away from being reinvented by Brian Jones and is now beloved by hen parties everywhere. The original painting art board is approximately 40 cm wide x 55 cm tall.

Renato Fratini, Freedom Observed, 1965, acrylic on board

Fontana Books published Gwyn Griffin’s novel, Freedom Observed, in 1965. Set in a fictional West African Republic about a United Nations observer who finds love amidst a gruelling conflict.  The gory narrative is represented in dark reds and browns, enlivened only by the pink blouse of the protagonist.

This artwork is sold with a copy of an original Freedom Observed paperback featuring the Fratini artwork. 

The original painting art board is approximately 40 cm wide x 55 cm tall. The artwork is float mounted on to conservation grade mountboard and presented in a white wooden box frame glazed with anti-reflective glass.

Lever Gallery Signed Limited Edition Prints

Professionally scanned at high resolution and individually colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée printed onto 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

2016 LG 01 Edition of just 20 + 5 artist proofs
Paper size: 59.5 cm X 42 cm  Approx. image size: 49.5 cm X 35 cm

Artist Limited Edition Print of original work c. 1964-5, acrylic on canvas.

An early commission for short-lived London agency Dyad Marketing. Johnson interpreted the brief ‘Girl with a Gun’ using photographs in a sequence of poses arranged like a moving image. Influenced by American illustrators who were showing their work in art galleries, Johnson created this at a scale suitable for a gallery setting.

If you have any questions regarding these editions please email info@levergallery.com

Limited Edition Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Edition of 50 + 5 artist's proofs

Paper size 42 cm X 29.7 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original work; mixed media, 1965

Wonderful Clouds was written by the French novelist Françoise Sagan in 1960. This Penguin edition was published in 1965. Under the direction of legendary art director Germano Facetti, Coppola’s modernist take on pulp fiction motifs made the novel accessible to whole new markets, while also attracting the avant-garde. The original painting art board is approximately 34 cm wide x 43 cm tall. 

Lever Gallery Signed Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

LG 1 2016    

Edition of 20 + 5 artist's proofs, each signed by the artist

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

Print of original work (c.1965, acrylic on board)

Commissioned to illustrate a crime story in the German magazine, Bunte, Johnson hasn’t encapsulated the narrative with a single scene, as he would usually.  Instead, he has lifted a number of motifs from the story and assembled them like pieces of evidence. Johnson himself appears in the illustration as the photographer.

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Lever Gallery Signed Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.  

One of only 20 prints - each signed by the artist Gino D'Achille

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original artwork; c.1965, acrylic on board

Painted for Nova magazine. D’Achille captures the utopian ideals behind the building of new, modernist public housing in the sixties. The architecture is elegant, from its ordered façade to the splash of blue amongst plain and simple materials. Offset with a lush tree and even playful chalk drawings on the pavement. The piece is designed to be viewed with its partner, Life on a Council Estate 2.

Lever Gallery Signed Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

One of only 20 prints - each signed by the artist Gino D'Achille

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

 Original artwork; c.1965, acrylic on board

Painted for Nova magazine in conjunction with Life on a Council Estate 1, D’Achille gets behind the stylish modernity of the building’s façade to illustrate the council residents’ imagined lives in such a construction. 

Lever Gallery Print - paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm 

A high quality Giclée print on 100% Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Based on a Lever Gallery professional high-resolution and colour adjusted scan of the original artwork. 

Original work; acrylic and pencil on artboard, 1965

Dell'Orco created the illustration for the cover of the Fontana book, A Free Agent, a love story set against the backdrop of the Cold War, written by Frederic Wakeman in 1964. Dell’Orco often works with one bold, abstract colour as the background, while detailed action dominates the foreground and appears to burst off the page.  This graphic layering gives his cover illustration a dynamic effect.

Lever Gallery Signed Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

LG 1 2016    

Edition of 50 + 5 artist's proofs, each signed by the artist

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

Original work: c.1965, acrylic on board

Commissioned to illustrate a story in Women's Mirror magazine - Johnson uses monochrome shades to capture the scene. 

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

1965, acrylic on board

This piece was commissioned by Hodder & Stoughton for a series of novels by Leslie Charteris, following the adventures of Simon Templar aka The Saint. Johnson regularly worked with the model used for this illustration, and would design the styling with her. The pose, and the scene, is heavily influenced by the casino photography of Richard Avedon.

Lever Gallery Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

LG 2016  

Edition of 50 + 5 artist's proofs

Paper size 42 cm X 29.7 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Lever Gallery Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original work; acrylic and pencil on board, c.1965

This cover illustration for a reprint of George's Arnaud's bestselling existential thriller Le Salaire de la Peur, relies on a compilation of publicity stills from the acclaimed film version of the novel, Wages of Fear, which was a critical and box office smash.  When it was released in Europe in 1953 Henri-Georges Clouzot's film won the Palm D'Or, Golden Bear and BAFTA for Best Film.  The film launched Yves Montand's career in America.  He can be seen here on the right alongside fellow French actor Charles Vanel.

Lever Gallery Limited Edition Prints

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

One of only 20 prints - each signed by the artist Gino D'Achille

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original artwork; c.1965, acrylic on board

D’Achille represents the legendary Italian actor Marcello Mastroianni in this piece, setting him in London. The green tint to the background figures, and Mastroianni's brooding features, suggest jealousy or concealed anger in contrast to the innocence of the brightly clothed girl in the foreground.

The original painting art board is approximately 76 cm wide x 54 cm tall.

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size approximately 59.5 cm tall X 42 cm wide 

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original artwork; c.1960s, acrylic on board

Cover illustration for a later edition of the novel "Murder In Moscow" first published in 1951 by Collins. Andrew Garve is one of the pen names of Paul Winterton, accomplished journalist and founder member of the Crime Writers Association. This was Winterton's own favourite of his novels. 

The illustration reduces the story to its essence - as do all Robertson's illustrations in this style. Character and dramatic conflict were often represented in the simple, careful juxtaposition of highly detailed objects on a plain background. He offered tempting clues to the narrative, rather than drawing on an explicit moment or theme.

The original painting is approximately 36 cm wide x 58 cm tall. The artwork is float mounted on to conservation grade mountboard and presented in a white wooden box frame glazed with anti-reflective glass.

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original work; acrylic on board, c.1965

Written by William Sansom in 1961, the influential 1963 film made of the book was a style-setter.  It featured Vidal Sassoon’s innovative re-styling of Nancy Kwan’s famous long hair; which launched the geometric version of Mary Quant’s bob, along with fashion design by Quant herself.  Fratini’s illustration acknowledges the fashion moment but also portrays the narrative of a woman looking for love, naturalistically and with a bitter-sweet tone.

This cover for Josephine Bell’s 1965 novel A Flat Tyre in Fulham shows layering unusual in Fratini’s work and its combined use of paint and pencil work is also a departure from his usual techniques. Englishness is captured in a staid, almost rectilinear composition and subdued colour, unlike the dramatic poses and bold colour usual in his other work. The original painting art board is approximately 40 cm wide x 54 cm tall. 

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Created from an original artwork, acrylic on board, c.1965

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original painting; gouache on board, c.1965, 

Cover illustration for the novel by critically acclaimed author Erskine Caldwell.  Briefly married to the eminent photojournalist Margaret Bourke-White, Caldwell did not shy away from exposing the poverty, racism and other social ills endemic in the South of the US during the 20^th century. The original painting art board is approximately 40 cm wide x 55 cm tall. 

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original painting, acrylic on board, 1965

Fontana Books published Peter Cheyney’s novel Try Anything Twice in 1965. Fratini caught the mood of the pulp thriller with a stylishly dressed woman on a chaise with a cigarette and a gun. Although this is classic pulp styling, the minimal composition looks toward modernism with more than a nod to Hitchcock. The unusual pose and nuanced expression also give the piece a depth not typical of the genre. The original painting art board is approximately 40 cm wide x 55 cm tall. 

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

If you have any questions regarding this edition please email info@levergallery.com

Original painting; acrylic on board, 1965

Julius Horwitz’s novel, The Inhabitants, was written in 1960 and published by Four Square Books in 1965.  Fratini used a deep red to depict the struggle of a single mother fighting her way out of New York’s slums.  He sets the protagonist in a powerful pose against a group of figures left behind. The original painting art board is approximately 40 cm wide x 55 cm tall.

Fontana Books published Gwyn Griffin’s novel, Freedom Observed, in 1965. Set in a fictional West African Republic about a United Nations observer who finds love amidst a gruelling conflict.  The gory narrative is represented in dark reds and browns, enlivened only by the pink blouse of the protagonist. The original painting art board is approximately 40 cm wide x 55 cm tall. 

Lever Gallery Print

Professional high-resolution scan, colour adjusted to closely represent original artwork. Giclée print on 100% Cotton Rag ‘Hahnemühle’ 308gsm Fine Art Paper, using archival pigmented inks.

Paper size 59.5 cm X 42 cm  

Created from an original painting; acrylic on board, 1965