The legacy art of illustrator John Fleming Gould is coming to PulpFest 2017 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Pittsburgh – Cranberry — just north of Pennsylvania’s “Steel City.”
Robert Gould, son of the artist, will be coming to PulpFest with many originals and prints by his father, pulp illustrator John Fleming Gould. The artist graduated from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York in 1926. He soon moved into a studio in New York City, sharing space with Walter Baumhofer and other artists. John Fleming Gould soon began free-lancing in the pulp paper field and continued to do so until 1941. He created an estimated 15,000 illustrations. These were all pen and ink , dry brush, scratch board and coquille board drawings.
Gould began with Clayton Publishing, illustrating titles such as DANGER TRAILS and COWBOY STORIES. In 1930 he began a long and fruitful relationship with Popular Publications, drawing interior illustrations for their pulp magazines. He was the lead interior artist for many titles, including DIME DETECTIVE, G-8 AND HIS BATTLE ACES, OPERATOR #5, THE SPIDER, and 10-STORY WESTERN. The artist also contributed work to ACES, ADVENTURE, ASTOUNDING STORIES, BLUE BOOK, CLUES DETECTIVE, WAR BIRDS, WINGS, and other pulp magazines.
During the Second World War, the artist began working for the slick magazines. He became one of the top illustrators for the SATURDAY EVENING POST, COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, COLLIER’S, and REDBOOK. He expanded into advertising art in 1946, working for General Electric and other top corporations. Throughout the 1950s he worked for men’s adventure magazines, such as ARGOSY, OUTDOOR LIFE, and TRUE. In later years he turned to Fine Art. He was also a teacher and lecturer, lecturing at Pratt for 22 years.
Robert Gould has continued the traditions of his father and mother, the founders of Bethlehem Art Gallery in Cornwall, New York. Robert and his wife Loretta have strived to meet and expand the vision of his parents, working to provide images as well as the stories behind the illustrations that thrilled the original pulp readers. At PulpFest 2017, Robert will offer framed and unframed original sketches — some matched to the original publication page — magnets, and framed and unframed John Fleming Gould pulp prints.
PulpFest 2017 will take place from Thursday evening, July 27, through Sunday afternoon, July 30. You can join PulpFest by clicking the Register for 2017 button on our home page. And don’t forget to book a room at the DoubleTree. They’re going fast!
(In 1930, John Fleming Gould began a long and fruitful relationship with Popular Publications, drawing interior story illustrations for their pulp magazines, including the March 1942 issue of THE SPIDER.)
